I'm Lost! No More GSAs...? What are they now?

[Priceslasher]

Ok but why not? Why shouldn’t GS/GAs be DBOs of the front end? I don’t get it. Having a cashier work candy doesn’t mean they aren’t guest-centric. If GM can “manage” to work freight and help guests at the same time, why can’t cashiers/front end too? Because giving them zero tasks in between guests just causes idle chatter, looking at phones, extended bathroom breaks, etc.

This is the biggest question that will never get the same answer if answered at all.. it’s not why cant the front be tasking/owning their business..it’s why are we getting discussions for performance for being team players? And why does the rest of the store think front end dosent want to do tasks? WE ARE NOT ALLOWED... lol

 

[DBZ]

GM does our candy. I've never seen our candy look so good. When the advocates were doing it, it wasn't horrible looking, but not a single person up front knew how to pull what we needed. No one had the time either. We had a big rack of candy in cash office hallway but all it had on it was reese's and M&Ms. No new stuff ever showed up unless a TL couldn't find his beef jerky or fruit snacks and then more stuff would come.

Lately, it appears as though there are too many advocates because we are starting to train the new seasonals. Everyone works up front their first day. Thankfully one or two GM TLs have been bringing up u-boats of bullseye. If we can push it, we do. The person who owns Bullseye has been thrilled because her sales were way up.

 

[idkwhattodo]

Well as a former GSA myself, the former GSAs are held to leadership standards at my store but not a penny more than their peers. Which is why I’ve been job searching because of I’m tired of the shit.

literally same at my store. it’s exhausting to be told by corp we don’t exist, but then having the dsd, sd, and all of the store expect you to lead and do what you’ve always been. honestly more work is falling on us GSAs at my store because of all the new people at guest service... if a guest so much as hands certain tms the receipt wrong, they call one of us to help them because they get frazzled.

 

[Dog]

literally same at my store. it’s exhausting to be told by corp we don’t exist, but then having the dsd, sd, and all of the store expect you to lead and do what you’ve always been. honestly more work is falling on us GSAs at my store because of all the new people at guest service... if a guest so much as hands certain tms the receipt wrong, they call one of us to help them because they get frazzled.

Team needs some serious upskilling but no one wants to put the work in

 

[seasonaldude]

Honestly, we need our GSAs back. It's a real struggle keeping everyone at the front in their designated role for the day when an SETL isn't right there. Someone needs to be in charge.

 

[JAShands]

We’re finally to the point that we are only utilizing former GSAs as back up skilled advocates who are on register. They are no longer the openers nor the closers. They have successfully trained enough seasoned TMs to assume their new responsibilities. Now our former GSAs are our primary trainers for new hires, but another half dozen advocates are also being utilized to train, all of which have a year or more experience at the front end.

 

[Nauzhror]

I’ll start by saying I never agreed with the GSA position - it was an “assistant TL” and were taught and told to do NOTHING but WATCH ! What a terrible lesson for any employee.

I think this largely varied store by store. I haven't worked at Target since 2015 (but may start doing so again shortly, I have an interview for Guest Advocate later this week), but when I did my ETL's and STL expected me to act as if I was the GSTL. If that meant coach cashiers, do so. If that meant make decisions regarding whether to break the rules to help a guest or not - do so. They basically wanted me to never call them over to the front end unless I had exhausted every possible way of solving a problem on my own.

 

[REDcardJJ]

i don’t have ANY former GSAs left and my front end is running! don’t get discouraged

 

[REDcardJJ]

they all left when they learned they’d have to cashier and i got promoted

 

[Marcellow]

Team needs some serious upskilling but no one wants to put the work in

The SETLs have issues managing so if anything, good TMs are bearing the burden of the poor performers to keep the front afloat.

 

[Targetteddy]

So, I'm hella confused. I mean I THOUGHT we're all just Guest Advocates now and above us we have the SETL (ours hates being anywhere near the front). So, why are all the ex-GSAs still watching the front, performing GSA duties, and all that jazz? Do they just have a new title? When the changes happened my GSTL left to go over to SFS (I miss her so much), and the two strongest GSAs left to go to SFS, too (Oh GAWD do I miss them). Now we have a bitter ex-GSA who blatantly ignores us when we need help (computer crashed in the middle of payment, need change) and yells "I'm not a manager!" when he's watching the front and the newbies go to him with questions. We have another ex-GSA who had just become a GSA before the changes, she's pretty good but I can tell she feels pretty powerless. So if they're not GSAs anymore, but they're not quite down here with us Guest Advocates, what are they? Do they get paid more for closing registers, doing cash office and holding the key to the change drawer? Are they still obligated to stand around and watch the front? Are they in limbo?

Our GSAs just turned into closing advocates still get 40 hours and the same pay I’ve been at the front as a TL and the change isn’t easy but after months it has worked well think about it everyone should basically help each other but we still have our self checkout person so call run the lanes and breaks

 

[TargetSenpai]

I have this problem at night sometimes too but my ETL doesn’t want them tasking (how it is in modernization) so there’s not much we can do to be productive since there’s only so many guests to say hi to, so many times you can read the weekly ad, browse cartwheel, have 1 on 1s and huddles, fill supplies etc

Luckily, our closing lead can see if they are far too slow up there and they have an extra set of hands (very rare, but it does happen) and have had a cashier come help before close to push my go backs/reshop. I'm always grateful for the help when they do this. But yeah, otherwise, that eating up Target's time grinds my gears lol

 

[RedcardReba]

Honestly, we need our GSAs back. It's a real struggle keeping everyone at the front in their designated role for the day when an SETL isn't right there. Someone needs to be in charge.

Oh, no!!!!!

I never met a GSA who truly was worth a dime more. They rarely helped, often jerked people around, blamed everyone else for their messes. Seriously, that model led to demoralized tms and micromanaging.

No, modernization works.

 

[Nauzhror]

Oh, no!!!!!

I never met a GSA who truly was worth a dime more. They rarely helped, often jerked people around, blamed everyone else for their messes. Seriously, that model led to demoralized tms and micromanaging.

No, modernization works.

It think it largely depends on the cashiers a store has.

When I worked at a GSA most of the cashiers were terrified of making judgment calls. They'd call me over because a guest said an item that rung up for $5 had signage that said it was $4. They'd call me over because a $8 coupon required supervisor #'s.

Normally these weren't big deals, but they'd do this even if I was stuck at the service desk helping with the line their and couldn't immediately help them, which would lead to their line getting backed up, etc.

I didn't want them to hold up their line over such trivial things, I wanted them to change the $5 item to be $4, and to enter a $5 coupon followed by a $3 coupon in such scenarios. Some of them would, most of them weren't comfortable doing so.

 

[Amaylyn]

It think it largely depends on the cashiers a store has.

When I worked at a GSA most of the cashiers were terrified of making judgment calls. They'd call me over because a guest said an item that rung up for $5 had signage that said it was $4. They'd call me over because a $8 coupon required supervisor #'s.

Normally these weren't big deals, but they'd do this even if I was stuck at the service desk helping with the line their and couldn't immediately help them, which would lead to their line getting backed up, etc.

I didn't want them to hold up their line over such trivial things, I wanted them to change the $5 item to be $4, and to enter a $5 coupon followed by a $3 coupon in such scenarios. Some of them would, most of them weren't comfortable doing so.

Yup, our GSAs were very much parents up front. There for everything and anything and rarely complained. I mean, it's a little better with the newer cashiers being taught to have so much power, but the older ones still need the GSAs... plus, I miss ours, they mostly all left for SFS. Well, most if ours. There was one that was most definitely was described above.

 

[Nauzhror]

The main problem at my store was that there'd be problems, that weren't really "hard" to solve, but every solution was the wrong one.

Example:
Lines are getting long. I can continue speedweaving, and try to direct people to the shortest lines, but that's only going to help so much and most likely the LOD is going to eventually see how long the lines are and tell me off for letting them get that long.

I can call for backup, but then I once again risk being told off for requiring help from the salesfloor.

I can hop on a register myself, but then if a cashier needs something and I am not able to help them I get told off for being on a register.

I don't mind taking responsibility or making decisions, just don't put me in a position where every solution is wrong.
I just applied for a position as a guest advocate after not working for Target for four years, and honestly I think it'll be nice to have supervisor #'s and not need to rely on anyone else to do basic shit for me, but also not have to be responsible for everyone else and be the one to take the blame for things that had no proper solution in the first place.

 

[RedcardReba]

It think it largely depends on the cashiers a store has.

When I worked at a GSA most of the cashiers were terrified of making judgment calls. They'd call me over because a guest said an item that rung up for $5 had signage that said it was $4. They'd call me over because a $8 coupon required supervisor #'s.

Normally these weren't big deals, but they'd do this even if I was stuck at the service desk helping with the line their and couldn't immediately help them, which would lead to their line getting backed up, etc.

I didn't want them to hold up their line over such trivial things, I wanted them to change the $5 item to be $4, and to enter a $5 coupon followed by a $3 coupon in such scenarios. Some of them would, most of them weren't comfortable doing so.

That's the natural outcome of micromanaging. And why modernization is better. All that fear based bs is gone.

 

[Nauzhror]

That's the natural outcome of micromanaging. And why modernization is better. All that fear based bs is gone.

The only fear bs was cashiers worrying about getting reprimanded for not pushing red cards hard enough.

 

[RedcardReba]

1

The only fear bs was cashiers worrying about getting reprimanded for not pushing red cards hard enough.

We sure do still push red cards.

 

[Anelmi]

Eh. My store has largely stopped pushing the RC in favor of Circle.

 

[Nauzhror]

What's Circle?

 

[DBZ]

What's Circle?

They are rebranding Cartwheel at Target Circle. If you don';t have a RC you can earn 1% on your transactions which can be used like a gift card. You can also vote to where Target donates money.

 

[SallyHoover]

You also can get your 1% rebate without showing your barcode or using a specific card by inputting your phone number at the register. It also means that cartwheel savings will be tied to the phone so those without smart phones who set up their cartwheel on their computers no longer have to print out the bar code.

Target gets to track more shoppers by providing a 1% rebate who have resisted using cartwheel or using a red card.

 

[Sebastian]

this this this

i'm guilty of chatting occasionally but never at the checklanes and never in front of guests

when SCO and an DU TM and FOS attendant start their own "mini gossip huddle" I just walk over "you're making yourselves look really bad right now, and everyone is looking at your little group, let's make ourselves useful and each of you pick a guest to go help with something right now."

 

[REDcardJJ]

when SCO and an DU TM and FOS attendant start their own "mini gossip huddle" I just walk over "you're making yourselves look really bad right now, and everyone is looking at your little group, let's make ourselves useful and each of you pick a guest to go help with something right now."

i like this, i’m gonna start using it