Retail Conflict Management

Retail work now carries a new level of responsibility as customers arrive stressed and tensions run high. This series prepares you to handle it.

What this course covers:

• Why conflict management matters more than ever in retail
• Your role in reducing conflict on the floor
• What to expect from the rest of the series
• How the training will help you day to day

The opening program in a retail conflict management series.

When you're dealing with stressful situations at work, one of the best things you can do to reduce that stress is to be prepared for those scenarios ahead of time. When you know your company policies, what difficult scenarios might arise, and how to handle them before they happen, you'll be better-positioned to respond in the appropriate manner. So in this course, we'll talk about ways you can be prepared for difficult situations that might arise at work. We'll go over customers' rights vs. store rights and policies. We'll cover how to handle customers who claim they have a medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask. We'll discuss managing general retail delays that are occurring due to the pandemic. We'll also touch on how to handle verbal and physical assaults.

Conflicts can escalate quickly. Your job is to step in and de-escalate the situation before things get out of hand. There are four phases of conflict, with each phase presenting different signs, and that's what we'll cover here. We'll talk about what signs to look for, and how to handle each phase, so you're prepared for anything when conflicts arise. Luckily, with the right training, you'll be able to catch specific signs in the early phases and diffuse these situations quickly.

The ideal outcome for conflict management is to prevent it from ever happening. But no matter what you do, some conflicts are going to flare up, especially when nerves are high, and people are worn out. You do, however, have the ability to prevent some issues from arising. And you do have the ability to minimize the conflicts that are seemingly inevitable. That's what we'll discuss in this course on de-escalation.

When you're in a conflict with a customer, it's easy for things to get out of hand. If you're coming from a mindset of, "The customer is always right," or you just don't know what to do with your own emotions, maintaining control over tense situations is difficult. In this program, we'll go over some tips to help simplify things. We'll also help to prepare you for common scenarios that may arise during these stressful, unprecedented times.