⭐ Don't Sweat the Retail Audit Score, Seize the Opportunity

Assigning point values to inspection items is a common practice in retail and hospitality audits. The idea is to obtain an overall score for the site and an indication of the site’s compliance with a program or sets of standards. Scoring a site may however trigger unexpected reactions from the franchisee or store manager.

Most operators and franchisees take pride in their work and can struggle with a disappointing visit score and the district manager’s guidance.

Was the district manager too harsh or unfair? Is my store really lacking in certain areas as the visit’s score, notes and action plan suggest? It can be a lot to deal with on a professional level but also on a personal level.

While we understand an operator’s pride and commitment to excellence, we have the following advice for anyone disappointed with the outcome of their last district manager visit: don’t sweat the score, and don’t waste the opportunity.

Don’t Sweat the Score

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There is no such thing as a perfect visit in retail. Turnover happens. Weather happens. Human errors happen. Even the best operators let a thing or two fall through the cracks, occasionally.

Getting a less-than-perfect score is not, in and of itself, a grave concern nor particularly unexpected. The best ball players in the world don’t throw the perfect pitch 100% of the time, neither do the best retail operators.

Team calibration plays a certain role in this and so does managing expectations. Remember that the purpose of a retail audit is not to score, but to improve the store’s sales and bottom line.

Didn’t get a perfect score? Were the store’s presentation, merchandising and service standards perfect in every way? Perfection is a journey, not a destination.

Operate your retail and hospitality network like a giant

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Seize the opportunity

So what’s the opportunity?

For a district manager, the opportunity is to hold his/her stores to the highest standards. Anything less is unfair to the brand, the franchisee and the customers.

For a franchisee, the opportunity is to uphold and execute on those standards.

So don’t sweat a low score. A low score can happen on any journey to greatness. Focus on the opportunity, the end goal and a chance to do better next time.