Workforce Comprehensive Curriculum Study

1. Workforce Comprehensive Curriculum Study Research Team: Dr. Mike Brady, College of Business Dr. Susan S. Fiorito, College of Human Sciences Alexis Allen, Ph.D. candidate, COB Cinthia Satornino, Ph.D. candidate, COB

2. Challenge • The continued success of the retail industry depends on a qualified workforce. The challenge for universities is to determine what knowledge and skills retailers value and then produce graduates that possess these proficiencies.

3. Opportunity • The FRF is in a unique position in that it has relationships with both Florida universities and Florida retailers. By facilitating a dialogue between these groups, a general curriculum framework can be developed that addresses current workforce needs and provides the next generation of retail leadership in Florida.

4. Purpose Goal: To develop a framework for a retail curriculum that would assist in providing a qualified retail workforce and the next generation of retail leadership in Florida. Objective: Determine the knowledge and skills of successful retailers and use this information to develop a curriculum at a University level to promote, enhance, and develop successful retail leadership.

5. Study Process • Exploratory Research • Benchmarking • Interviews • Pilot Study • Online Survey Study • Data Analysis • Deliverables • Report of Survey Results • General Curriculum Framework

6. Workforce Study Overview of Phase I & ii (Previously Reported)

7. Phase I: Benchmarking Programs • Goal: To examine and assess peer and aspirational retail and merchandising programs throughout the U.S. • Methodology: Content analysis of 20 university programs in retailing, merchandising, and product development being offered throughout the U.S. • Results: Programs varied by required coursework, specializations/tracks offered, and targeted careers

8. Phase I: Benchmarking Jobs • Goal: To assess the current employment landscape in the retail industry • Methodology: Content analysis of 27 job postings from corporate websites and job posting websites (e.g., careerbuilder.com) • Results: Job postings varied by position, hard line/soft line designation, and desired skills

9. Phase II: Exploratory Interviews • Goal: To determine retail executives’ perceptions of recent college graduates’ strengths and weaknesses, as well as unmet needs of current retail curricula • Methodology: 13 in-depth phone interviews with FRF members of varying size and type • Results: Six general themes emerged

10. Themes from the Exploratory Study • Communication skills are critical • Need to be able to manage people – they’re not very good at it • Classes in accounting and finance are viewed favorably • Retail Math is a critical need • Internship programs are critical • Students are impatient

11. Current State of Retail Education • Respondents were satisfied with the retailing education of recent college graduates but expressed a desire for more of an integrated, broad-based retail education • “We recruit out of two schools – COB and Merchandising. In both cases, they have background knowledge that is valuable as they grow in their careers. From the B-school, the students have analytical background (statistics, etc.), so they can help build strategy. From merchandising, they have made the decision to get involved with retail. So they are ready to get involved with the realities of retailing.”

12. Current State of Retail Education • Other, similar sentiments. • “I think the business focus should be more broad so that you’re not limited to merchandising.” • “I think that a finance class more devoted to retailer finances would be beneficial.” • “I want to know that they’ve had some financial coursework … I think that’s necessary for people to move up in the organization.” • “The business/finance/accounting need to have a stronger focus.”

13. Workforce Study Phase iii (NEW)FRF Membership Survey

14. Survey Development • Preliminary draft was reviewed by FRF representatives and RMPD faculty. • Revisions and comments were addressed and pilot questionnaire was developed • Pilot Study: • 200 FRF members were randomly selected using a random number generator for each retailer line type • Survey was sent 10/5 and closed 10/14 • A total of 6 responses were received

15. Survey Development • Revisions were made from the pilot study results. • The final survey draft was extensively reviewed by all of the Workforce Council attendees at the October meeting

16. Main Data Collection Process Surveys were sent to all emailable FRF members (2,556 members) in two waves. A drawing for an iPad 2 was used as an incentive for respondents. 65 responses were received – a 2.54% response rate. • First wave sent on 10/25/2011 46 Responses • Second wave sent on 10/31/2011 19 Responses

18. FRF Membership by Line Type

22. Respondents by Position Type

23. Workforce Study Results

24. Respondents Who Hired College Graduates • 220 Hires Were Made Within the Last 5 years (roughly one a year) • Store Level Positions: 77 • 25% Sales • 22% Retail Management • 20% Store Manager/Asst. Store Manger • Corporate Level Positions: 143 • 12% Management Trainee • 11% Sales • 10% Information Technology • 10% Finance • 9% Human Resources • Satisfaction with Hires = 78/100

25. Perceptions of Recent College Grads Needs Improvement (M  3) Meets Expectations ( 3 < M < 3.5 ) Verbal/written communication Presentation skills Leadership Team management Project management Product knowledge Entrepreneurship • Understand financial statements/financial analysis • Unrealistic expectations • Willing to “pay dues” • Understanding the “big picture” • Knowledge of career paths • Merchandising

26. Perceptions of Recent College Grads Exceeding Expectations (M > 3.5) • Technology Skills • Innovativeness • Multitasking • Basic Retail Math

27. SkillsRanking Employers often desire a blend of hard and soft skills. On average, the ideal blend of hard and soft skills: Soft Skills vs. Hard Skills 53% vs. 47% Most Important Soft Skills • Customer Service • Leadership Skills • Verbal Communication Most Important Hard Skills • Computer Competency • Product Knowledge

28. Soft Skills * Skills are listed in order of a combination of columns 2 & 3 * For rankings: 1 = Most important

29. Hard Skills * Skills are listed in order of a combination of columns 2 & 3 * For rankings: 1 = Most important

30. Desired Professional Experience * Experiences are listed in order of a combination of columns 2 & 3 * For rankings: 1 = Most important

31. Educational Criteria Specialized Certificates Internships Internships make job candidates significantly more desirable (M=4.2) Internships provide valuable experiences (M=4.4) More than one internship was slightly favored (M=3.3) • Certificates make job candidates moderately more desirable (M=3.6) • Most respondents were unfamiliar with specialized certificates (M=2.6) • Most respondents were neutral on whether or not certificates indicate higher skill sets (M=3.1) *Mean response rate shown in parens. Strongly Disagree = 1; Strongly Agree = 5

32. Desired Coursework *Other courses include: Communications(3), Computer, Labor Relations, Managing People, Math, POS computer course, Sales, Work Ethic, Writing courses

33. Workforce Study Results By Primary Product Category

34. Overview of Resultsby Primary Product Offering Category • Several differences emerged across industries at the corporate level: • Services hired relatively more Finance and Human Resources positions • Soft Lines made up the majority of Allocator, Buyer, and Product Development positions • Hard Lines hired primarily for Management Trainee and Sales positions • Food and Beverage hired more at the Management Trainee position than any other position • There were far fewer differences at the store level, as all industries hired primarily for management and sales positions.

35. Overview of Resultsby Primary Product Offering Category • There was not significant variation across industries in the specific hard and soft skills that were valued by respondents • Similarly, there was little variation across industries with regard to desired professional experiences and activities with a few exceptions: • Hard Lines and Food and Beverage valued students’ having more than one internship • Soft Lines placed less emphasis on Marketing than other industries

37. Workforce Study Conclusions and Recommendations

38. Conclusion 1: Current programs address textile and product development needs for retailers. To supplement the current supply of graduates from textile/fashion-focused programs, university retail programs should enhance existing curricula to emphasize an integrated, broad-based skill set.

39. Conclusion 2: While most graduates meet expectations of entry level retail positions, issues of their awareness of career opportunities in the retail industry could be expanded. Unrealistic expectations of what a retail career entails and general unwillingness to “pay their dues” were identified by those who did not graduate from merchandising or retail certificate programs.

40. Conclusion 3: Hard skills and soft skills are both valued. Curricula should focus on cultivating both types of skills for all graduates.

41. Conclusion 4: Internships are critical in making graduates more attractive to retail employers. Preparing students to make the most of their internships is a necessary part of a comprehensive curriculum.

42. Curriculum Framework Recommendations Framework Features: • Multiple tracks to address diverse needs of retail employers • Integration of merchandising, retailing, and business core courses • Cornerstone/Capstone courses and experiences for career awareness and expectations management

43. Cornerstone Fundamentals Focus on • Career path options • Organizational skills • Ethics and legal Additionally, (for ALL tracks) Communications: Presentation skills, written and electronic communication Analytics: Retail math, finance, accounting, trend analysis

44. Capstone Fundamentals Focus on • Internships • Leadership skills • Experiential Learning: Retail simulation • Retail Strategy

46. Thank You! *Special thanks to Rick McAllister, Tom Petrillo, Dean Billie Collier, Dean Caryn Beck-Dudley, and Dr. Mary Ann Moore