Apr
30
As April comes to a close, the #PeopleofPremium have been answering to retail’s changing demands for seven weeks. We’ve encountered challenges never seen before. We’ve sacrificed and pivoted. Tireless efforts on the frontlines and behind the scenes. It’s been all-hands-on-deck at Premium.
Seamless transitions.
- IT worked around the clock to ensure our offices and employees could transition into 100% work from home operations in less than 72 hours.
- Numerous dedicated teams were sidelined as of March 22nd when Best Buy began offering contactless, curbside service. Just as quickly, team members temporarily transitioned into other areas experiencing increased demand to continue financially supporting their families.
- For the surge in new needs, nearly all of Client Services shifted its focus to support project initiatives in essential retail channels. Recruiting, Field Operations, and Training went into overdrive. Zone Leaders and Flex reps stepped into interim recruiting and onboarding roles to support new additions to the Premium team.
Supporting our team members.
- The Operations Support Center, Field Management, Human Resources, and Communications stayed in constant contact with our employees, answering thousands of emails, messages, calls, and posts.
- We took conservative financial measures and temporary pay reductions to prevent layoffs and furloughs.
- The NLDC team safely received protective gear (while socially distancing), and turned around shipments of 4,300 supply kits as fast as we think was humanly possible. It was less than a 24-hour turnaround from the time masks arrived, to the time shipments went out. Meanwhile, Karen Boyl, a member of the Walmart PSP team, and Linda Brown, a member of the Google team, went above and beyond sewing face coverings for Premium coworkers.
Continued success.
- We launched the Walgreens GO merchandising team on March 23rd. For the four peak weeks that followed, the team executed 8,000 hours per week. Our collective speed of response and tight collaboration with Walgreens is a significant Premium success story.
- At the same time, we stepped up for CVS, and have ramped up to 5,000 hours a week supporting multiple shifts through May.
- In April, we began aggressively fielding teams for Rite Aid’s distribution centers, supporting their flow of inventory and fulfillment of online orders. We also provided Rite Aid with 6,000 hours of in-store support, six days a week, across 25 regions.
- Walmart Wireless banded together to ensure 96% of the hours at our stores were covered. The team was laser-focused on health and safety while understanding shoppers’ urgent need for mobile connectivity.
Reinventing ourselves outside of the store.
- Samsung’s Home Entertainment team has virtually connected with thousands of Best Buy and warehouse club associates and customers across the US and Canada.
- Logitech’s online community of Blue Shirts have been enjoying an all-day Twitch gaming stream. The team has also stepped in to support customers in online retail, providing responses to thousands of unanswered product reviews and questions.
- Lenovo STARs made socially distanced visits to stores to drop off Stock the Breakroom care packages for our friends at Best Buy.
This is not nearly an exhaustive list. Share your win using #PremiumHeroes. Thanks for all you do, and thanks for being Premium!
