Retail Manager (General)
What the work is
Organises and controls the operations of a general retail trading establishment.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Manages the daily operations of retail establishments
- Manages and supervises staff, including hiring, rostering, training and performance evaluation
- Develops and implements policies and procedures to ensure efficient and effective operations
- Monitors and analyses sales and financial data
- Manages retail establishment finances, including budgeting and financial reporting
- Develops and maintains relationships with suppliers, and negotiates contracts and pricing
- Implements marketing and promotional activities to attract and retain customers
- Resolves customer complaints and ensures high levels of customer satisfaction
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a fictional homewares and gift store in a suburban shopping strip, in the week before Christmas. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A rush of customers and a team that keeps its good humour right to closing time
- A customer returns to say the gift you suggested was a hit
- You hit the weekly goal without pushing anyone too hard
Hard days
- A rostering gap on the busiest Saturday of the year
- An angry customer who wants a refund on something that was never sold by you
- A stocktake that shows something is missing and you do not know why
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 162131, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.