Start organizing team work with a shift task table. For each operation, record one primary person, a replacement, and a completion criterion. Having one person responsible for a task removes uncertainty about who must finish it.
Prepare a short handover log and training scenarios for sales and receiving. Check specific actions: what customer needs the salesperson identified, how many items the employee received, and what they left for the next shift.
Assign operations and identify a replacement
List the work from store preparation through the end of the shift. For each task, note the inputs: a list of goods to put on display, a supplier order, or a message from the previous shift. Instead of “handle the delivery,” write: “count the goods received, match the codes to the order, inspect their condition, and record discrepancies.”
Assign a primary person and someone to cover them if needed. Agree on who reports a replacement and who receives the current work status. When coverage changes, name the person responsible for completing the operation.
Illustrative example: a 480-minute plan
Suppose salespeople A and B work in the store, and the owner checks completion. Below is an illustrative 8-hour plan for salesperson A, or 480 minutes. Salesperson B can cover for them. Prepare B’s plan separately and check that the coverage does not overlap with B’s other tasks. The time blocks illustrate planning; they are not a work standard.
| Operation | Time, min | Primary person | Replacement | Completion criterion | What to hand over if unfinished |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Getting ready to open | 25 | A | B | Checklist items checked; deviations recorded | Unfinished item and next action |
| Serving customers | 250 | A | B | Needs identified; recommendation matches them | Unresolved inquiry and agreement |
| Receiving a delivery | 60 | A | B | Quantity, codes, and condition checked; discrepancies recorded | Unchecked items and document location |
| Replenishing displays | 45 | A | B | Goods placed according to the prepared list | Items still to be placed |
| Break | 40 | A | B — covers customer service | Coverage handed over and completed | Current customer inquiries |
| Closing and handing over work | 60 | A | B | Closing checklist completed; unfinished work handed over | Task, person responsible, and deadline for the next action |
Calculation: 25 + 250 + 60 + 45 + 40 + 60 = 480 minutes. Customer service here is shown as a total for the shift. If a delivery takes longer, adjust the distribution of operations and coverage. Do not add a new task to an already filled plan without reviewing the time.
Hand over unfinished work with a next action
Leave the next shift a brief note on the status of work and urgent needs. For a working template, use these fields: what remains, current status, next action, person responsible, deadline, and document location. Before the shift ends, review the notes with the person taking over.
In this illustrative example, a note could read: “Cup delivery: quantity and codes checked; two boxes not yet inspected. B should inspect them before receiving is complete. Order is in the delivery folder on the receiving desk.” Avoid entries like “sort out the goods”: add a specific action and expected result.
Teach sales through a role-play exercise
For training, use a scenario in which a colleague plays a customer with a difficult request. Illustrative situation: a customer is choosing a cup as a gift, hesitates between two options, and asks for advice. Prepare two samples and cards listing their actual characteristics. Separately practise recording a sale in a demonstration database. Starting stock: 3 units of A1 and 2 units of B1; A1 costs UAH 100 per unit. The customer buys 2 units of A1, and no other transactions occur. The salesperson creates a demonstration sales record. The observer checks SKU A1, quantity 2, total UAH 200, the sales record, and closing stock: 1 unit of A1 and 2 units of B1.
- Ask the salesperson to find out who the gift is for and what features the customer needs.
- Ask them to recommend an option that matches the stated needs and expectations.
- Have the colleague add a requirement, such as a particular capacity. The salesperson should check the characteristic on the card and revise the recommendation if needed.
Set observable criteria for this exercise: the salesperson asked questions, correctly repeated the needs, explained why the recommended product matched them, and did not invent product characteristics. Mark each action as completed or needing another attempt. Repeat the specific step that was unsuccessful.
Illustrative plan for a separate training session
The owner separately schedules a session for an employee and observes the exercises described here in a demonstration database.
| Stage | Duration | Action and check |
|---|---|---|
| Testing | 50 minutes | The employee completes the sales and receiving exercises; the owner checks the records, quantities, sales total, stock balances, and shortage handover. |
| Training | 30 minutes | The owner explains missed steps, the employee repeats them, and the owner checks the results against the same criteria. |
This illustrative session lasts 50 + 30 = 80 minutes.
Practise receiving in a demonstration database
Prepare a separate demonstration database and an illustrative order for 5 units of A1 and 1 unit of B1. The physical delivery contains 4 units of A1 and 1 unit of B1. The employee matches the codes to the order, counts the goods, and inspects their condition.
The employee records the result: 5 units checked and 1 unit of A1 missing. They enter only the quantities actually received in the demonstration database: 4 units of A1 and 1 unit of B1. The observer checks the codes, quantities, shortage note, and demonstration receiving record.
Hand the unresolved shortage over to the assigned person. The handover log states that 1 unit of A1 is missing, the next action is to contact the supplier about supplying it, and identifies the person responsible, agreed deadline, and order location. The observer also checks this handover entry.
Make a short manager check plan
- At the start of the shift, review assignments, replacements, and work handed over by the previous team.
- During the shift, observe one operation. Compare the employee’s actions with its completion criteria.
- At the end, check the result and notes about unfinished work. Assign the next person responsible for each entry.
- In a separate review, check opening and closing lists from the last seven days for dates and signatures.
If an action was missed, record exactly which step needs to be repeated or added to the instructions. Check it the next time that operation is performed.
Access rights and staff notifications in Torgsoft
After assigning operations, check employees’ access to the necessary program functions. In Torgsoft, a role is an access-rights template that determines which menu items and functions are available to an employee. Match the role to the assigned operations. Describe software access separately from the decisions you have authorized the person to make. Read more about access rights in Torgsoft.
Messages require the additional paid Staff Notifications option, a network Torgsoft Ultra or Terminal licence, and a local network or terminal server. After activating the option, enable collective notifications in the retail network settings, save the changes, and restart the program. The “Колективне оповіщення” (Collective notification) log contains delivery time, acknowledgment time, and response speed. Acknowledgment time and response speed are populated after the employee presses “Ознайомлений (а)” (Read) to confirm they have read the message. See the feature description on the staff notifications in Torgsoft page.
Review the log when you need to find out whether an employee read an assignment. Check task completion by its result: the receiving record, completed checklist, or handed-over task. Do not use the read confirmation as proof that the task was completed.
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