August 7th, 2009
The Professional Interviews (4): Scott, Assistant Manager of Retail Distribution (at a mass-market publishing house)
[Man, I love doing these things! I’ve known Scott for 6 years and borrowed his workspace to make airline reservations, and I still had no idea he did half this stuff at work. It’s me in the bold-face (’cause I’m that self-important), Scott in Roman. Also, you should know that while he was telling me all this, S was also making a wicked tofu marinade.]
So, what is it exactly that you do?
I work in the retail operations department. There’s 3 components to operations: what’s shipped out; what’s returned; and what’s sold. I deal with what goes out.
And by “dealing” with, you mean?
What I deal with is gross units, order files that are transmitted from our customers, entered by our sales force. I insure that [books] arrive on time, since we have a timeline from when the order files are received to when they are processed at our warehouse. I’m basically chasing down the customer or chasing down the salesperson to chase down the customer, to get the orders. Then I have to also verify the orders that we receive for reasonability. I’m also doing preliminary analysis on how we’re doing overall against these order files.
Reasonability?
Every month, stores order the same product lines. The theory is because the series’ are bought as a product line rather than as individual authors, it should be the same order numbers every months. That’s one of the major audits I do of the files, to make sure it’s the same. That’s only series. For single-title, I’m comparing it against projections, which are made by the sales force of what they think we’re gonna get.
So you’re checking that orders are reasonable, not that they’re lucrative?
Yep, just that they’re ordering what they said they were gonna order, or the same as last month. It gets more complicated, because there’s also distribution reviews done by sales force and sales analysis (the “what was sold” group) to see what’s selling, because if 30-40 percent of your book sells, that’s fantastic. Single-titles have a longer shelf-life, you’d probably want that over 50 percent.
Because of those distribution reviews, customers’ll come back and say “we’re gonna change our orders to reflect sales” (a chain will revise distribution for all their stores at once).
That’s a mere fraction of what I do. Do you want to do the rest as bullets?
Sure!
–I load the [order] files and make sure that they have all the information required for the warehouse to process the orders
–I do gross unit analysis for early trends and missing orders (that’s the bulk of my job)
–I do some summary delivery analysis reports (what does that mean? We need to know, ‘Did 30% of the stores get delivery early? 20%?’ I provide the numbers. Most shipments have a 3-day delivery window, [so we wonder] ‘what stores received stock on the first day of the window?’)
–I also take part in the weekly teleconference call with the warehouse to discuss any issues like stickering issues, inventory issues, basic return information.
–Also, I do a monthly video-conference (cool!) call with the warehouse that deals with bigger issues than the weekly call, like changing barcodes, or marketing has come up with a new product line that they want to ship.
–I am involved with monitoring inventory levels of backlist titles to see if reprints are required.
–I am helping to develop MS Sharepoint site, a document file-sharing website.
–I test and implement reporting in our data warehouse.
–print and binds—which is the process of determining how many books to print to cover initial orders and re-orders for the first 90 days.
What makes you qualified to do all that?
I’ve learned a lot of it on the job. When I started in 2001, I had basic Excel skills and MS Access skills. I would argue that logistics is just institutional knowledge—understanding how the system flows, what file format goes where, what needs to be massaged data-wise, and just…how things work. … There is technical stuff: I had to learn specialty software, but again, I learned them on the job. And then there’s just basic logic—things happen in steps.
So what is it about you, personally, that makes you good at this?
I like to understand things, that’s helpful. People have commented that I’m friendly (True!) which helps, but that is true of any job in an office—the friendly guy is well-liked. There is a certain level of intelligence required and they feel like I possess that level of intelligence, so… Asking questions is important too, so that when someone asks for correct information you can make sure you have it.
How did you get the job?
I actually was approached. I put my resume on Workopolis and a headhunter called me. Then, they made me do 2 interviews and a computer test (they sent me down to this independent third party testing thing) to see if I could actually use MS Excel. Apparently, a lot of people say they can use it, but… Since then I’ve actually done courses on Excel and there’s still a lot more I need to learn about it.
What sort of person would you recommend go after a job in operations?
(laughs) Someone who likes numbers! Um…someone who can think logically, doesn’t mind a stressful environment. Course I say that, but it depends on where you are—other companies might be difference. I think if you make toothpaste, it doesn’t change from month to month. But bread people, they have to get it there every day.
And who should stay away from this sort of job?
People who aren’t good with numbers, people who have trouble with logic, people who want to be able to sit and meander through their stuff. We’re one of those in-between departments that don’t get to control the timelines.
What is a typical day like for you?
There are no typical days.
There are greater cycles: if you come to me on a Friday, there are certain things I do on Fridays. Every cycle is different, every problem is different, unfortunately. If I had to split my day, parts of it are short-term problems and parts are long-term problems, and the short-term always eats up the long-term problems’ time. Lemme give it a crack:
First thing in the morning you are going through your email to find out what happened while you weren’t there. The warehouse starts at 4-5 in the morning; they were already packing books then. And then people stayed after you left, too. After that, I usually have either ad-hoc reports or reports that are due for the cycle that I’m in. Or I’m chasing orders. Long-term stuff, I usually have some reports that I have audit to make sure they work correctly, I have instructions to type out on using reports, my boss will come with some specialty analysis that he wants done… Usually there’s calls to be made for clarification. Also we have a partnership for distribution with another publisher, and they send me morning reports on orders and inventory and I have to deal with problems there.
In the afternoon, if you’re lucky you get to do your stuff; if you’re unlucky, you’re doing other people’s stuff. At a moment’s notice, my superior or their superior, could come and ask for something. Because I’m assistant manager, I’m lucky, because they go to the manager first.
The afternoon is a blur, really. You might have meetings: tomorrow I have meeting from 8:30 to 1. It’s our big monthly meeting, which no one ever wants to go to.
Is it catered?
It used to be, but due to budget cuts, it is no longer. Which has sped it up now that we don’t have lunch in the meeting.
So, you get to 4:30, and leave?
Usually, sometimes I have to stay an extra half hour to get some key things out, but more or less I leave on time. My boss is there until 6 or 7 often, but I joke that’s because he is a bachelor. I have a lot to get home to. I have a new baby, so I have to get home and get supper and spend time with the kid…who probably isn’t old enough to appreciate it.
Is there a people management part ot your job?
I don’t have anyone report directly to me, but in operations, if you’re brought into a meeting, you’re contributing to helping solve a problem. If book signatures have been mismatched, we have a meeting and I’m part of defining the solution, I don’t say, ‘you do this,’ but I say, ‘I’ll do this,’ other people say ‘I’ll do that.’ Sometimes I’ll take charge of a meeting, but that’s a dynamic, sometimes people just don’t want to make a decision and I want to get it done. You can get meeting-itis, and you’re just beating something to death. Some people just like the sound of their own voice, and those people don’t work in Operations. We can’t do that because we have to get out of the meetings and deal with the emails ticking away in our in-boxes. That’s why agendas are so important.
That being said, back to my point about institutional memory, I do tell people what to do sometimes just because I know do the answer, and I say, “If you go do this, it’ll solve your problem.” They don’t report directly to me, it’s just because I have the answer they listen to me.
What do you do at lunchtime?
I usually go to the kitchen, get my lunch, and come back and eat in my office. Unless I didn’t bring a lunch, in which case I go buy it. Then I read a book, websurf (Salon, Slate, Macleans, NYT, bookninja, bookslut, and whatever meets my fancy.)
No working thru lunch?
That happens, depends on the day. Some days I have to work through.
Degree of resentment?
No one likes working through their lunch. But sometimes you get in a groove, stuff is getting done, the emails make sense when you type them up, and you don’t mind. Other days, you’re like, “Why won’t this end?” But there’s always a sense of urgency, I don’t think I’ve ever had slow days. An example: Today, I’m dealing with books that just went on sale for August so we’re having ad-hoc meetings to see if we can deal with the orders. I’ve already got all the billing files for September, now the warehouse is actually starting to process them. I’m already looking at October on-sale because I’m trying to figure out where the orders are. We’re setting up some special projects for November. And I was just dealing with my boss on Christmas books, backlist Christmas books, I had to do a report on that, to see if we need to order them, which we do.
What’s the hardest part of your job?
Memorizing some stuff. There’s certain things that my boss is just gifted with–like numbers. I’m good at math, but I don’t remember specific numbers .Some ppl can work faster because they memorize certain things, but my mind just doesn’t want to do that.
When you tell people what you do at parties, what is the typical response?
No, I don’t do that. Frankly people can’t wrap their heads around it. I tell them the name of the publisher, and then I say, “I help get the books out.” I would say operations has an influence on your life, when product shows up and where it is. But it’s just too hard to explain.
Anything general about the job?
It’s been one of my pet peeves that there’s always this discussion about art vs. business. There’s this dullard Dilbert suck-your-soul element that everyone talks about in business, but I would argue every job has a soul-sucking element, even artistic pursuits. I have seen math artists– there’s a guy in our department–people who can read that patterns. And there’s an art to writing an email, there’s art in everything. There’s a human element to everything. Math is not as simple as A + B = C; it’s hard and there are some people who are gifted. Some people just have a knack for it.
RR
July 13th, 2009
Did I miss anything?
Kingston was lovely, filled with tiny dogs, bizarre bizarre buskers running in hamster wheels and jumping on pogo sticks, friendly American tourists, delicious pizza, and trees ideal for napping beneath. So what did you get up to this weekend?
My 12 or 20 questions (actually, 19!) with rob mclennan is now posted. If you’ve lost all interest in me, I’d still advise you to check out the series, as so many cool writers confess their thoughts on writing, writers, reading and fruit on it.
Oh, and upcoming, a review of Coming Attractions 08 from Andrew M., whose blog is pretty cool.
Ok, now back to real life, where no one ever juggles flaming clubs or makes my bed for me, and I have do things that don’t take palce in sunshine. Even still, I’m rather fond of real life.
If it’s all right with you / I’d like to come home with you tonight
RR
July 6th, 2009
Professional Interviews: Mary, assistant manager in a tack shop
Interview #3 in this series, if you are keeping track, still taking advantage of my friends’ patience as I am as yet too timid to interview strangers. For urban readers, a tack shop is a saddlery, a place that sells equipment for horseriders, competitive and recreational, and for the horses themselves.
What is your job? I’m in sales, shipping, and I’m assistant manager, 2nd within the chain of command.
How did you get that job? By chance. I was laid off for the winter from the nursery [plants, not babies] that I was working at and my friend who owns a horse farm needed some help because her dad, who usually helped her out in the barn, was having bypass surgery. So while he recuperated she needed a hand and I needed something to do. I worked for her through the winter and summer while looking for another job (I had decided not to go back to the nursery when they asked since they weren’t going to give me back my management position).
A typical shift for me: I get there are 8:45, unlock, turn off alarms, turn on lights (and fans, if it’s summer, turn on the Open sign, take sale or feature items out to the porch. And water my plants! Load computers, count change in the till, count out bills to add to the till…then, if no customers have come in, I’ll answer any emails that need answers and print off any online orders that need to be filled, check the fax machine for fax orders, check the log book for phone and other orders have come in [since my last shift]. I’ll go get the required items from around the store to fill the orders. If large quantities or a large item is require, I’ll fax a request to the company warehouse and have them check their stock since it’s easier for them (but if they don’t have what’s needed, I’ll pull it from the store). If no one has it, I call the customer to suggest something else. Once an order is filled, I got omy till, look up the customer (or add the info, if they aren’t in the system) and run their credit card through. If all goes well, I put the order into shipping and receiving for my boss to take to the warehouse.
I also answer the phone, I set up meetings with suppliers, I sit in on those meetings, take stock of items required to fill the store, and help any customers that need me. But the mail-order takes up the majority of my day.
What makes you good at your job? Knowledge of horses and livestock and the fact that I ride all the time. People don’t want and don’t trust advice from someone who has no contact with horses. I have very good customer service skills and excellent phone manners. And I know what’s going on in the horse world, since I got to shows, know rules and regulations, things like that. Even rodeos.
What sort of person would hate your job? Someone who doesn’t know the horse world; they wouldn’t be able to give good advice. Someone who doesn’t like helping people; there’s a lot of 1-on-1. You can’t have issues with people who come into the store.
Favourite item in the store? A brand-new Billy Cook barrel saddle, the new design. It has a natural coloured rawhide-wrapped horn and cantle… As opposed to the natural light colour, it’s a chestnut. Even the roughout leather on the fenders and jockey skirt are a chestnut colour. It’s very comfortable to sit in. It makes me debate whether to trade in my current saddle. But I don’t think I will.
Final statement: To ride a horse is to fly without wings!
June 30th, 2009
Professional Interviews: Kimberly, Registered Massage Therapist
Another in my series of interviews about people’s jobs, because that’s something I’m interested in. Please note that I am still at the stage in learning interview technique where I only do people I’ve known 19+ years, and I’m still fiddling with the format. Please also note that the tone of this interview might have been affected by the fact that Kimberly will shortly be leaving the profession.
Kimberly defines registered massage therapist as “a licenced health-care practitioner who uses their hands, forearms and elbows to manipulate muscles and soft tissues of the body to decrease pain and increase a person’s range of motion.”
Kim works at a spa 1 day a week, and a clinic the rest of the time. She says at the start of their careers, “Most RMTs work in at least 2 different places just so they can get enough clients. Then they gradually switch to 1 place as they build up a client base.
RR wanted to know the difference between registered and non-registered massage therapists…it turned out to be a big issue! Kim says, “RMTs have been to school and are licenced by the province they work in, they have liability insurance, and we follow standards regarding hygiene, sanitation issues…someone who is a ‘body worker’ (RR could hear the quotation marks) may not necessarily clean the sheets between clients, doesn’t have a knowledge of anatomy and physiology, they could injure you, they wouldn’t know how to work with a health concern and the type of massage that they would provide would likely be for relaxation only…or for ‘other’ purposes…
“I have an interesting story about that. There’s a place near where I live that had aromatherapy/body massage, which was a cover for a rub-n-tug. And the police found out and the place was fined $1000 for not having a licence for operating that sort of establishment (RR is surprised such licenses are available). What makes me angry is that RMTs have to work so hard to be professional because there’s these places (sigh)…If an RMT were to work inappropriately in any way, and they were caught by our governing board, they would probably be fined around $10 000, stripped of their licence and ostracized by the community. It’s crazy.
“My friend M is a massage therapist at a high-end day spa. She had a client ask her for a ‘release’ at the end of his massage. And he knew she was registered and it was a reputable place. That’s one of the drawbacks of being an RMT, especially if you are a young woman.”
What are some of the pluses? “You get to work one-on-one with people, and people get really close because there’s sort of a friendship that’s built between therapist and client. And you get to see the difference you can make in someone’s life by taking away chronic pain or stiffness, just using your hands. I especially like massaging pregnant women, even though it’s more difficult, because they benefit more from having a massage, because of the way your body changes during pregnancy. Sometimes during a prenatal treatment, you’ll see the baby react to the massage and you can tell that they enjoy it too. Which is really neat.”
What is a typical day like? (we did a day at the spa, because K thought that’d be more interesting than the clinic; hours at the clinic are also longer and more irregular) “At the spa, I work 9 to 5, doing a max of 6 1-hour massages with 15 minutes between. If I’m lucky, the administrative staff won’t book any back-to-back (at the clinic, she books her own) and I will get a lunch, but I’m not always lucky. Sometimes, I have to wolf down a granola bar between appointments. When you are massaging, you are standing 95% of the time, so you are always hungry.
“I usually stretch for a good 20 minutes before work, which is unusual…I think a lot of RMTs forget. Coincidentally, a lot of RMTs injure themselves with tendinitis, carpal tunnel, nerve problems, that sort of thing.
“Where I work, we have to pull each person’s file, have a little mini-interview to find out if there have been health changes and what areas are causing them pain. And then we leave the room while they get on the table. Most people have a full-body massage but occasionally, half a body is more conducive to a therapeutic treatment.
“During the massage, most women tend to talk for a bit and then sort of relax, whereas most men tend to talk the whole time. Especially if they’re a first-time client. Within the first 10 minutes, men will tell me their weight, how much weight they can lift, and whether or not they’re dating someone. It follows a pattern every time, it’s creepy. Most women just sort of veg out.
“I’ve learned from experience that it’s better to answer questions about me in vague terms. The front desk handles all the books and payment, and linen services does the linens. Which is the ideally convenient situation for an RMT, although it’s not as profitable as owning your own clinic and doing it all yourself.”
What sort of person would be a bad fit for this job? “You shouldn’t be an RMT if you need a predictable regular paycheque, which is one of my biggest complaints. If you have any physical problems, [you shouldn’t do this] because it’s a very physically demanding job. If you are a very loud person, that wouldn’t be good, either. You need to have a voice that’s conducive to relaxing. And if you have any weird aversions to people’s feet or bad skin or body odour, or any of the other possible quirks you clients might have, [this isn’t the job for you].
“The person who should be an RMT is professional, committed to healing pain naturally, likes long periods of time when they can think, and ideally has some time they can afford until their business is profitable. It also helps to want to be your own boss.”
Kim adds this note to you, the blog reader: “The worst part of the job is when a client doesn’t show up for their appointment and you’re left waiting for them, not knowing if they’re late or just not coming. So you wind up wasting your time and not getting paid. So tell your blog-readers to keep their appointments!!”
You’re like an Indian summer / in the middle of winter
RR
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