Archived Hardlines training...what to expect?

[axlo]

So I just got hired a few days ago and I completed my cashier training...it wasn't too bad and I got used to it after a couple hours. Now I'm training for hardlines and I was wondering what to expect? Do you guys have any advice? How did your training go?
Thanks!

 

[Bosch]

It will be a whirlwind.. Just remember try.. You will push CAFs, do reshop and help guests.. Until you learn the floor use that MyDevice use it make it your frienemy you will need it but hate it sometimes. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Process teams if they are there usually know the store inside out so they can be a good resource of where stuff is..

And just try but never expect to finish everything, most of the time make it look good and move on.. 🙂

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

You get a learning plan & trainer to help you out on sales floor.

 

[thunder20]

It'll be tough the first few days or weeks, cafs, reshop, answering phone, back up, help guest, finish your task on time everything while been literally the only team member on the floor in hardlines besides the TL..but once you get the hang of it everything else goes at ease . My target tends to blame me for not finishing my task, but some just forget to remember you the only person on the floor dealing with guests, phones, and backing up. But overall you'll get used to it fast if you really want to continue working.

 

[HardlinesGuy]

Hey there! I'm in the exact same position as you. I too am a brand new Hardlines Team Member, and I finished my training about two weeks ago. Hardlines is pretty straight forward, really. Training is going to be again, straight forward. I'll give you a run down of my training..

On my first day, I went to TSC, which is the desk in the TM Only area where you clock in, and asked for my trainer. I met the trainer, and he showed me where to get Walkies and myDevices from, and a bit of a crash course on how to use each of them. We then asked the LOD for our task for the night, and he gave me a quick tour of the store. He showed me the section we were in charge of for the night, and then proceeded to explain the proper way to zone it. We spent the day zoning, and that's about it. Zoning is simple fixing up of a section to make it look presentable. You'll pull items forward, line them up straight on the shelf, etc. Generally make the area look nice. Any items that are broken or misplaced, you'll seperate. Your trainer will explain more.

Day two was more or less the same, and I was taught how to use the phones to take calls and how to clear requests for service. At the end of the night I was shown how to sort re-shop (misplaced items and returns) and what to do with backstock items. (Items there's no room for on the floor.) And that was pretty much all..

Hardlines is a very straight forward job, and once you get the basics down, you'll have no trouble. All you're really doing is fixing the shelves and helping guests, plus backing up at the front from time to time. It's not hard, but like thunder20 said, you need to work fast. It's important that you get your section done before the end of the night. Ask your trainer if you don't understand something, stupid question or not, it's best to ask and get an answer rather than assume and screw up. Lastly, don't be afraid to ask questions here either. We're all here to help!

Good luck!

 

[axlo]

Hey there! I'm in the exact same position as you. I too am a brand new Hardlines Team Member, and I finished my training about two weeks ago. Hardlines is pretty straight forward, really. Training is going to be again, straight forward. I'll give you a run down of my training..

On my first day, I went to TSC, which is the desk in the TM Only area where you clock in, and asked for my trainer. I met the trainer, and he showed me where to get Walkies and myDevices from, and a bit of a crash course on how to use each of them. We then asked the LOD for our task for the night, and he gave me a quick tour of the store. He showed me the section we were in charge of for the night, and then proceeded to explain the proper way to zone it. We spent the day zoning, and that's about it. Zoning is simple fixing up of a section to make it look presentable. You'll pull items forward, line them up straight on the shelf, etc. Generally make the area look nice. Any items that are broken or misplaced, you'll seperate. Your trainer will explain more.

Day two was more or less the same, and I was taught how to use the phones to take calls and how to clear requests for service. At the end of the night I was shown how to sort re-shop (misplaced items and returns) and what to do with backstock items. (Items there's no room for on the floor.) And that was pretty much all..

Hardlines is a very straight forward job, and once you get the basics down, you'll have no trouble. All you're really doing is fixing the shelves and helping guests, plus backing up at the front from time to time. It's not hard, but like thunder20 said, you need to work fast. It's important that you get your section done before the end of the night. Ask your trainer if you don't understand something, stupid question or not, it's best to ask and get an answer rather than assume and screw up. Lastly, don't be afraid to ask questions here either. We're all here to help!

Good luck!

Thanks for all the info! I've done two days of training so far and it's going basically how you said it would. There's only a few things I still need to get the hang of, like using the walkies. I feel like there is a certain way to respond or ask everything and I don't want to seem rude/out of place but so far all I've had to do is call for the backroom. It wasn't so bad...I just have no idea where to actually get the item I asked for since my trainer did so :/ I still need to learn re-shop and what to do with backstock items like you said but hopefully I still get another week of training!

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

Back stock items go in a tub in the back room with a clip that says backstock. Walkies for back room on channel 2, depending on your store. When speaking a walkie salesfloor side, say this is spot, I am in aisle c16. Can someone tell me where fans are? Doing my device search can help you too.

 

[squirrely]

Thanks for all the info! I've done two days of training so far and it's going basically how you said it would. There's only a few things I still need to get the hang of, like using the walkies. I feel like there is a certain way to respond or ask everything and I don't want to seem rude/out of place but so far all I've had to do is call for the backroom. It wasn't so bad...I just have no idea where to actually get the item I asked for since my trainer did so :/ I still need to learn re-shop and what to do with backstock items like you said but hopefully I still get another week of training!

At my store, a BR TM will pull something for you if you need it for a guest. Just switch to the BR channel and ask them to pull something & have the DPCI ready for them. I've been at Target for almost a year and I've only personally pulled 2 items myself. I could be back there searching forever on my own 🙂

 

[squirrely]

Back stock items go in a tub in the back room with a clip that says backstock. Walkies for back room on channel 2, depending on your store. When speaking a walkie salesfloor side, say this is spot, I am in aisle c16. Can someone tell me where fans are? Doing my device search can help you too.

When I was hired I asked over the radio probably a million times where things were or if we carried an item because searching on a PDA could take forever. Now that we're using the MyDevices, I find them much easier to search with and I feel good that I don't have to constantly radio over asking where something is.

 

[axlo]

At my store, a BR TM will pull something for you if you need it for a guest. Just switch to the BR channel and ask them to pull something & have the DPCI ready for them. I've been at Target for almost a year and I've only personally pulled 2 items myself. I could be back there searching forever on my own 🙂

Yeah my trainer had me practice doing that and I was able to get the item but I guess what I mean is...how do I know where in the backroom to get the item? My trainer knew where to go but when I'm on my own I have a feeling I'm going to be wandering around the backroom if this ever happens :/

 

[squirrely]

Yeah my trainer had me practice doing that and I was able to get the item but I guess what I mean is...how do I know where in the backroom to get the item? My trainer knew where to go but when I'm on my own I have a feeling I'm going to be wandering around the backroom if this ever happens :/

If you scan a Barcode, click the name of the item in blue on the MyDevice. It should tell you the location. All of the aisles are numbered in the backroom. It will just take a while to learn the general location of everything. I still don't know every everything is.

 

[Alex123]

Back stock items go in a tub in the back room with a clip that says backstock. Walkies for back room on channel 2, depending on your store. When speaking a walkie salesfloor side, say this is spot, I am in aisle c16. Can someone tell me where fans are? Doing my device search can help you too.

Ugh team members who dont backstock their items drive me crazy

 

[axlo]

If you scan a Barcode, click the name of the item in blue on the MyDevice. It should tell you the location. All of the aisles are numbered in the backroom. It will just take a while to learn the general location of everything. I still don't know every everything is.

Oh okay I see! I was so confused as to how my trainer was able to find it so quickly but now I get it. Thanks! 🙂

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

Ugh team members who dont backstock their items drive me crazy

Your store may have a closed backroom. Do you want a hardlines newbie to back stock the items?

 

[squirrely]

Your store may have a closed backroom. Do you want a hardlines newbie to back stock the items?

Exactly! At my store, the BR TMs do the back stocking.

 

[squirrely]

Oh okay I see! I was so confused as to how my trainer was able to find it so quickly but now I get it. Thanks! 🙂

The aisle will have a sign at the end that also tells what is in them. Like one might say coffee, candy, etc. That will also help 🙂

 

[HardlinesGuy]

Oh okay I see! I was so confused as to how my trainer was able to find it so quickly but now I get it. Thanks! 🙂

Worst case scenario, politely ask a back room team member to help you find the item.

Also, if you have any questions you'd like to ask me directly seeing as we're in similar positions, feel free to private message me. I'd be happy to help.

 

[mrknownothing]

Ugh team members who dont backstock their items drive me crazy

Your store may have a closed backroom. Do you want a hardlines newbie to back stock the items?

Exactly! At my store, the BR TMs do the back stocking.

This. It's better if a trained backroom TM does the backstocking because he/she knows the stockrooms better and is less likely to cause location accuracy issues.

 

[axlo]

Worst case scenario, politely ask a back room team member to help you find the item.

Also, if you have any questions you'd like to ask me directly seeing as we're in similar positions, feel free to private message me. I'd be happy to help.

okay thanks so much! 🙂 Right now all I've been doing is working in the seasonal area...haven't gotten any experience doing much else other than zoning. I have another week of training so hopefully I learn some more

 

[SFSFun]

There's only a few things I still need to get the hang of, like using the walkies. I feel like there is a certain way to respond or ask everything and I don't want to seem rude/out of place

At my store, if we need to ask a general question on the walkie we just say "Hey team, can anyone tell me where to find xx item for a guest?"

At my store, a BR TM will pull something for you if you need it for a guest. Just switch to the BR channel and ask them to pull something & have the DPCI ready for them.

And wait for the BR TM to tell you it's ok to give the numbers!

how do I know where in the backroom to get the item?

If you asked the backroom TM to get the item, also ask them where you can meet them. At my store it is usually the unload line (the conveyor thing).

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

From another thread:
@Fast Service Needed In thanks!

1. Zoning
   - Look at every item, working top to bottom (or vice versa) and do it on a per section (usually four feet) basis
   - Cover all diamonds
   - Turn all labels to face out
   - Use grey dots (if you see one, the item in the location might not be correct)
   - Don't move strays/foreign/re-shop to the appropriate aisle every time -- use your cart and leave items on the floor until you finish the aisle (some ETLs might not like this, maybe only do it after the store is closed)
   - Organize your cart! Example: bottom tier = backstock, middle tier = strays and empty packages, hand basket = defectives, top tier = re-shop for your current department (this should be worked every time you change aisles if the items are within a five-aisle radius)
   - Check multiple locations on the same aisle, don't leave holes if you have product on the shelf above/below
   - Pegs are easy to zone, just use the grey dots
   - You shouldn't need a PDA to tell if a product is in the wrong spot (most of the time the last five numbers are on the bottom left of the label, the assortment number near the UPC will be on the top right of label, and Target brands have DPCIs near the UPCs and sometimes on the front of the package)
   - Know the department - zone where it gets shopped more first (if you have time to come back later) or last (if you only have enough time to get to each aisle once) - Example: Toys then Sporting Goods then Toys if you have time to go back
   - Check empty endcaps for backroom locations, if none then pull from home, if no product - flex the endcap with like items, starting with d-code or NOP
   - Zone clearance, please, just do it
   - Remove grey dots in locations that have the correct item
   - Always pull more than one item forward (minimum two, typically 3-4) - if everyone does this, the zone is maintained A LOT longer while being shopped
   - Inventory control clips (round rubber things) on pegs should be pulled forward if there are few items on the peg - this greatly improves the look of a peg-heavy aisle
   
   Returns/Re-shop/Strays
   - If at all possible, get a PDA
   - If you have a PDA, use RF Apps (NOP + toggle to Pricing, LOC, SUBT, etc.) - if you don't know why, you haven't used it enough
   - Put the items in your cart yourself - you know how your thought process works more than other people, so you can work through the merchandise quicker (this is critical in HBA or Toys)
   - If you don't have a PDA, park your cart near a price check machine (assuming you have the new ones that SF schemetics)
   - Park your cart on an endcap, work all of the items within a five-aisle radius (three before, two after)
   - Ask CIHYFS - chances are this isn't your first time working returns/re-shop, so you should be able to show guests where most items are
   - Remove grey dots from empty locations that you are filling (some stores may not remove the dots if there is only one item, check with your Instocks or Hardlines Team Leaders)
   
   CAF Push
   - Fill your vehicle - if there are other vehicles with merchandise in nearby areas (or only a few items) you should grab them, you will save yourself time and effort
   - Use the smart labels (that might not be the official term) that is on every single box - it tells you the DPCI, SF schematic, and item name
   - Push your vehicle, don't pull it
   - Don't stack your vehicle too high, running over a guest is a bad thing
   - Learn your backroom (where different departments get backstocked, where to keep empty vehicles, etc.) - this makes backroom TMs' lives a lot easier
   - Combine your backstock with nearby backstock vehicles, don't just throw a pink clip on it and walk away
   - Keep your vehicle organized - separate backstock as you work, break down boxes, put trash (see: C/D blocks) in an empty box
   - Don't overstock - the accumulator isn't perfect, please don't make it worse
   - Remove grey dots from empty locations that you are filling