Store mgr drowning

13

Quit. It won’t get better. They will take advantage of the fact you keep doing it and they don't have to hire anyone else.

2

u/Global_Time3579 6d ago

This. I know from experience

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u/airkewled67 7d ago

I was there. Working 630-9 6-7 days a weeks for weeks at a time.

If your DM is blowing you off, I’d start looking elsewhere. You can try reaching out to your RM but from personal experience. Get the fuck out before it starts to mentally affect you.

I had to step down after 1 year as I was getting close to committing suicide.

1

u/Many_Access_8598 7d ago

Not to invalidate this experience, but I imagine this type of no-win situation is extremely rare. Maybe in a truly dead market...

I wouldn't give up until you've talked to the RM and even DVP. Email Brad Beckham before giving up.

At least that way you can dip out with full confidence in yourself. I feel like if I gave up in this scenario, I would ultimately second guess myself. "What if more could have been done?"

And I know this sub is 50% populated by people who quit after failing as ASM, so they will shit on my take. But SM is a great position for a real career that will take care of you. No point in losing that opportunity when you don't have to.

11

u/Super-Nectarine-217 7d ago

Start closing at 5 PM. That will get the help coming quick. Leave a note on door "Due to staffing issues, we will be closed at 5PM until further notice"

In a good district, the DM should be finding volunteers from other stores to work at your store for either OT or normal hours.

You aren't even paid for the extra hours your work. Put your foot down and force their hand. They are either compensate you for the extra hours you are working or they can find help. No in betweens.

You cant have any off days for sure, but constant doubles back to back is not healthy mentally and physically. Especially with no compensation. Good luck!

1

u/Far-Bite-2939 6d ago

Except you have to notify RM+ to get early closings approved. If the DM is worseless, what does that say for the regional?

1

u/Super-Nectarine-217 6d ago

In normal circumstances yes. But it seems this district is shit. If the DM ain't helping, I doubt the RM will help. Sometimes you need to take matters into your own hands to get the ball rolling. This SM is in desperate need of workers which the district is failing them to do

1

u/Far-Bite-2939 6d ago

Thats fair, OP may need to keep a backup plan job wise ready. From what I’ve been told you can get in some serious trouble doing that without proper approval and if the upper management is bad, whos to say they won’t just fire them? Maybe they can’t cause then they will have a store that basically has to be shut down due to untrained employees. Either way it doesn’t seem like a win win situation.

Regardless of what i think though, they need to stress their resources first. Contact other managers for help.

1

u/Super-Nectarine-217 6d ago edited 6d ago

Oh you definitely can but its not like they have anyone to replace them anyways.

Our DM would drive wherever needed and work a shift if needed.

Last resort option of course. But I think they would rather them close early than keel over due to overworked. We are talking 14 hour shifts back to back indefinitely. Not healthy and probably breaks a labor law.

For reference, this dude is working 196 in a two week pay period. Amazing if hourly. But salary? Damn near slavery.

I'm not too sure what manager make normally. I'll just say 50K a year.

If i do math right, he is basically getting paid 11 an hour no OT pay. Probably less than his own employees.

4

u/chronotonic1 7d ago

how close are the other stores in your district, see if they can spare someone for a few shifts, if you can get three people plus those two you can have a balance even if they are all working 1-2 shifts a week or at least until you can hire some more people.

Can you not find people because of the pay rate that needs to be an email to the DM to unfortantely create a papertrail in the emails.

See if they can come in and get some interviews for you done and hired for your team a lot of DMs are always (or should be) willing to spend some time with this process even more so if you are a newer managers.

Reach out to the RM as ask if they have anyone in another district wanting to move up to an asst manager and help grow a team and help coach the regrowth of your store. That verbage will go pretty far with the RM

2

u/alexmaxspeed314 7d ago

Five stores within 30 minutes of my store. Dm says he's gonna ask if anyone wants to help. Nothing happens. As far as hiring it's been oddly difficult getting anyone that can run a computer or answer the phonea honestly. I talk to more delivery driver applicants than anything else and that's all they want to do is drive

1

u/rangeremx 7d ago

Honestly, for coverage I would contact the nearby stores directly. Shoot the DM a courtesy text/e-mail if you feel the need, but that's something I've usually handled at a store to store level.

1

u/chronotonic1 7d ago

yeah I would call the stores direct and tell them of their need at this point if the TM from that store is good with overtime I would take the hit for a month until I can get coverage proper. I am aware that overtime does mess with a TM work/life balance but helping for a month might be the make or break of yourself. If they can all send one over at least once a week to help with closing that means you are not closing but two nights right there. If you can get one or two of them to take on a second shift that means a day or two off then if not better coverage to get a lunch yourself (going to the bank does not count towards this I do not care what anyone says that should not be done during your lunch break)

1

u/chronotonic1 7d ago

Also a lot of managers do not want to do this but that 16-22 age range might be someone that can grow with the company, also if you are in a large or have a population of bi-lingual customers those age brackets can see how they impact service better than those that dont because they get regulars faster I have seen.

1

u/Many_Access_8598 7d ago

If the talent pool is that dry there isn't much you can do. Make plans for yourself and let the DM know he can come in and close the store since you have plans you can't miss.

That is assuming you're doing everything right.

Are you salary or hourly?

5

u/bernardfarquart Moderator 7d ago

This is the worst. Working long days with no help can make you feel helpless and hopeless, your DM should be making something happen to help you out if they can’t then ask your Regional Manager for help. You need to make sure you don’t work yourself into a nervous breakdown, make sure your bosses know that’s the direction things are headed, and ask for help.

3

u/Dontwalkongrass1 Moderator 7d ago

This sounds like a conversation you need to have with your RD. Back it up with facts, go over conversations with them that you’ve had with your DM, and provide many details as you possibly can. I’ve been there, it’s not fun, and it doesn’t turn out well because you burn out quickly; so does your family.

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u/Seaworthiness-Klutzy 7d ago

I'm sorry man. I feel horrible just knowing what this situation feels like. Hang in there. It will get better.

3

u/Helpful_Wishbone7468 7d ago

I was in this situation with dollar general as a store manager. I was the only keyholder and kept the store open full hours myself for two weeks. Then my body gave out. I started closing at 5 pm and in about a week the company had a bunch of people at my store. It wasn’t until it affected the company that I got help…

1

u/FranklyFranky2351 3d ago

hence why I told my guys i do not get paid overtime, you do. if im not there look to the ASM. and i told the ASM he gets overtime so hes gonna have to be pulling the long shifts. they've had callouts on the manager weekends and i dont answer my phone as im off. got in trouble for it, but my entire district did for it as well.

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u/Gloomy_Mode_803 7d ago

Get out now. It's obvious your leaders don't care. They know the situation, but unless you do something other than bitching about it, they're not going to do anything. Open the store late one time and see what they say. When they pdp you tell them you're exhausted from so many open to close shifts that your body shut down. Let them figure it out.

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u/crabbyfuture20 7d ago

that is insane! notify your dm IMMEDIATELY

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u/Valuable-Dog-7024 6d ago

Have a family member leave a google review for your store as if they are a customer saying they stood in line for a long time while they saw the store manager drowning with no workers etc. I did the same for my store had someone from corporate call my store ask if I was alone I said yes only have 4 employees me my driver and my two closers they called the RM so fast he called the DM so fast and they sent other team members from other stores to help and they did lateral moves to transfer people to my store Oreilly’s starting pay is so shitty you can’t never find employees to hire

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u/Garlandboy12 2d ago

If you call yourself SM, hiring is your responsibility. Last time I checked, DMs don’t have extra employees in their pockets. Reporting the issue to HR or higher management doesn’t change your responsibility—it only shows that you’re struggling to run your business. Stop complaining, take ownership, and hire more people. That’s my genuine advice.

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u/Ok-Eggplant8772 6d ago

Can't you not hire because of the pay ? I cant imagine yall paying anyone more then 12-14/hr for part time hours or wierd times

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u/Many_Access_8598 7d ago

If you want to go over your DM's head you better have all the facts. You should have at least a few examples of good applicants that you already sent or tried to send to your DM.

If your application pool is dry you should be able to demonstrate that, too.

Reach out to the other SM's in your district. If their experience mirrors your own, and your DM is asleep at the wheel, the RM will want to know that.

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u/FranklyFranky2351 3d ago

One of the nice things about my DM is if we as a SM like someone, he will let us hire them. He still checks them and voices major concerns, but if we like them, he doesn't push back.

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u/Necessary_End_566 7d ago

Call the Tips hotline IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!

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u/Infamous_Ad_4638 7d ago

From a standpoint of having taken over 2 stores an struggled with staffing on both, this is not only SOLELY your responsibility as the gm, but also your fault for running off your staff without having their replacements ready.

Double down, you close before 7, go recruit for an hour everyday until your fully staffed.

0

u/NeitherTheory2162 7d ago

Last week finished at 91hrs bucks to suck to be a gm at times

1

u/OkReflection7545 7d ago

Shit I just finished with 90 hours last week as an ASM, I’m scheduled for 60 hours this week. My manager doesn’t want to come in since they are salary so they’ll overwork everyone else before coming in.

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u/FranklyFranky2351 3d ago

You more or less signed up for that when taking the ASM job, as much as it pains to say that. I agree with the SM, we don't get paid overtime, you do.

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u/OkReflection7545 3d ago edited 3d ago

Ehh within reason, it would help if your store manager came in and did their job at least. They come in for all of 3-4 hours and leave for the day, paperwork not done, returns or stock isn’t checked in but it’s somehow my responsibility when I’m not there 🤷‍♂️. We have also been short staffed for the last few months, they refuse to hire anyone but I get bitched at by my DM about my ot hours. Salary or not, you have a job to do, stop being lazy and help your store. Don’t get mad when the people that are there walk out with that mindset which is what caused use to be short staffed. Lost 4 long term employees because of the SM and I’m looking for something else as well after 6 years.

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u/FranklyFranky2351 2d ago

You need to report that to TIPs as soon as you can. Had a SM near me that would come in at 9 and leave at 1. God knows how that store ran but he was caught and reported by TMs from other stores that reported it to our DM who caught him in the process of leaving for the day and just said don't bother coming back.

I despise my office and rather be on the front counter (which is where I'm supposed to be). Plus the A/C in my store actually works and my office is in a hot spot so its always like 20 degrees hotter in there so I do all my stuff up front.

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u/Sad-Grapefruit667 7d ago

Lol, I worked open to close for 11 months, 630AM-9PM, 6, sometimes 7 days a week when I first took over my location. That's what you signed up for. That being said, your DM should be scheduling a hiring event and making sure your requisitions on Workday are all open and current with Indeed postings to match. Good luck.

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u/No-Group7343 6d ago

No one signed up for that

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u/Sad-Grapefruit667 6d ago

When you take a SM position you agree to be the final line of defense and cover any hours or shifts due to lack of coverage. So yes, literally every SM signs up for that, most just cant handle the reality when it's time to step up to the plate.

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u/Ovulationhunter 5d ago

False. Leads to a bad taste if the company cant staff or help staff in a reasonable time. This is poor managment by the DM and should be taken seriously.

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u/Sad-Grapefruit667 5d ago

Its not false, its in the job description lol. Its also the SMs job to recruit and staff. Sometimes that means even going to the competition to scope out talent for your store. The only poor management the DM performed was hiring an SM that is either not qualified or too immature to handle the responsibility. DM is just a support role. If the DM needs to step in to recruit, then they should be looking for a new SM.

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u/Sad-Grapefruit667 5d ago

Also idk what you mean by "the company," but "the company" includes the SM

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u/Ovulationhunter 5d ago edited 5d ago

While true, I worked in a location this exact situation played out. Our dm came in and helped close many nights and pulled staff temporarily from locations. That DM then stepped down, new RM management stepped up and pulled the rug out from the newly added SM. Left with very green staff which led to 2 different stores staff leaving entirely. SM was not at fault and wasnt going to continue to kill himself nor was our AGM or RSM, Which all was new to the company anyway. I dont care how you cut the cake, your expectation of a SM is not realistic. First DM cared the second didnt and terminated me for speaking out. God forbid you ever get managment higher then SM.

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u/FranklyFranky2351 3d ago

We didn't sign up to be taken advantage of. I also got promoted with them knowing in the near future I cannot close nor will I.

I'd like to see where it says I have to drop whatever I'm doing and come cover a shift. That sounds like I'd be on call and I highly doubt we're gonna get on call pay. We're not paid enough for that. I've already had 2 occasions since I took over that I was out of town on the manager weekend and had a call out. Did I drop what I was doing to drive home? Hell no. I've been the cause of a district wide group text because I didn't answer my phone on my DAY OFF. If I'm FORCED to take work related calls in my off hours then I should be paid on call time to do so. By your definition, I must stay within reasonable distance to the store to cover shifts, which falls into the paid on call category.

You talk all high and mighty about "stepping up to the plate" but in the end I'd almost be willing to bet money you have a team in place that allows you to be able to not have to cover it yourself. Some of us in the small markets don't get the luxury of having staff because of some arbitrary payroll number we got assigned. In those situations we're literally being set up to fail right from the start. Oh I'm supposed to stay in my payroll goal? Ok cool, let me hire 3 full timers and a part timer. Ok cool, but now they are paid too much ($13/hr) and I can't reach goal... but I can't take their pay, and new hires only accept $15+ (still below livable wage), and I can't take their hours since... you know... they're full time. Oh and my ISS can't afford my drivers since we're a rural market so I bleed money on drivers but god forbid I send them home as that's when the orders will flood in (it happens every time). Its literally a lose/lose.

I get that stores need coverage, but forcing the store manager to do it unpaid is wrong. I have no problem hiring or firing, as I've already done both since taking over, but the numbers allotted to my store are crazy. By their calculations, I should be alone until 10am with 1 driver at 9am (shops in my area open at 7-8am), then my ISS and 2nd driver at 10am, then at 3pm my closers come in and I cut one or both drivers by 4pm. Bye bye customer service if I'm supposed to do it alone. I also understand DMs get paid off of the store payroll goals and other metrics but forcing me to drown is just wrong. I might try that though now after typing it all out. I might just shoot my own foot to prove a point that my payroll goal is unrealistic. Am I bitching? Yes. Will I keep moving forward? Yes. Am I going to answer my phone at 9:05 on a Sunday when my opener decided to not come in? No.

0

u/Sad-Grapefruit667 3d ago

I think you missed the part where I said I worked open-close 6-7 days a week for 11 months when I took over my store. I recruited and staffed my store, then hit sales calls hard af, and grew the stores gross sales 20%. You're just proving my point that most SMs cant handle the responsibility. You should probably step down instead of whining. It just took me 4 months to find 2 drivers to replace 2 that quit after the camera installs in the vehicles. You know what I did? I hopped in a delivery vehicle and worked some late nights to finish the job. You know what I didn't do? Blame other people for accepting the responsibility of running a store. Your team is probably a miserable group with someone like you walking around. The job description is in the policy handbook btw.

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u/FranklyFranky2351 3d ago

Hard to grow sales via sales calls when my store is in such a small rural area that we already have the business from everyone. They're just all mom and pop shops bar the single used car lot that does repairs as well. I'm literally driving into a neighboring district to steal pro accounts from another store.

I think my problem was I went from an always busy store with no down time at all with amazing staff, SM and customer base, to a store that honestly shouldn't of been built, at least not where they put it.

I won't drive our delivery vehicles after the cameras. I don't consent to that.

Guess I should stop having a life and family and just sleep at the store like one of our old DMs did. (Not kidding, he would sleep in the stores on a military style pop-up bed, for stores that were severely understaffed and had no SM. At least until our RM told him to stop.) Profits before people amirite

2

u/Ovulationhunter 3d ago

I hope they randomly fire you like they do many for no reason to understand they take advantage of people. In my personal opinion your a dickhead.

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u/Sad-Grapefruit667 3d ago

There is always a reason someone gets fired. Ive never been taken advantage of because I have a phenomenal DM and RM and I understand I am very lucky for that, but at the same time, I do everything I am supposed to do with no complaints. I don't have a victim mentality. This job just isn't for everyone

1

u/74Rotor 2d ago

I was in the same position back in 2015. Only difference is that I WAS actively always hiring, and just couldn't get consistent people to show up. I asked for help, recommendations, everything. After a day of being just me and my driver from open to 3pm....I left early. Went to an interview at a Mercedes Benz dealer, and have been in dealerships since.

My advice. ANY spare time you have, learn, research, train, do whatever you can to find your way into a new career path. I had started at O'Reilly in 2008 when their mantra was 80% full timers and 20% part timers, then it flipped. Their stores and their employees have been shit ever since.

Do yourself a favor ....if you're a car guy like me, get out of automotive. There are thousands of other jobs that will allow you to pay for your car hobby. But automotive is an antiquated industry in how people that work in it are paid and treated. Run.

I've been a store manager, a parts manager, a parts advisor, etc....same issues, different structures.

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