Matthew sent a message to Edward W. Stack – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Dick’s Sporting Goods – Email Address that said:
Mr. Stack,
My name is Matthew and I was an employee at the new Katy Triple-Play and I helped open the store. I wanted to contact you directly, because this issue seems to be a consistent problem in your corporation. I've reached this conclusion from my experience in my store, testimonies from outside employees that came to help us set up, and extensive online research. The management training in your corporation is sub-par. I recently left my job, because the fishing manager Jim, directly above my lead, provided us with little and at times no communication to his team. His leadership ability is lacking in more than just communication: he does not develop a working relationship with his employees, rather he barks orders, does not spend time in his section and only communicates with the lead to tell him what to do, and never seems to be short of criticism but refuses to give any recognition for a job well done. While recognition in retail should not be expected, some sort of positive feedback needs to be given by a good leader. Jim's ineffective leadership is why I left, but not why I am contacting you.
I am contacting you in reference to management issues throughout the company. When I was hired, I was told the amount of hours I received would be directly related to the amount of work I put into my job. This was told to employees I got to know from stores in Austin, TX, Lafayette, LA, and Birmingham, AL. In the case of all of the associates I talked to about this, that was very far from reality. There is obvious favoritism in scheduling, and in my case, it was to the point that I had to go out and find a second job at a hardware store. For me, this was a big deal, because I have worked in outdoor retail for 5 years, since I started working when I was 15. I know for my friends in Lafayette, the associate struggling with scheduling was highly commended by his lead when here the week after he helped us. I can leave you a list of references that can commend my customer service, retail knowledge, and work ethic. Feel free to call my lead Adam and ask him. If you research online former and current employees opinions of the business, the consensus says that management does not recognize the difference in the value of hard working employees and two percenters. This lack of recognition of an employees value shows a considerable deficit in proper management.
The Katy Triple Play has not been open but around six months. The store opened with eight managers under the general manager, and, an honest evaluation as an employee, only three of those are worth their salt. One of these, and possibly the most effective one, recently left his position to work for a different company. While he told us it had nothing to do with the company, but he had to take the opportunity to make more money. The way I see it, there is no way that our store could not match the offer he was given. The store was number one in the district consistently since it opened, and exceeds its daily goal nearly every day. There had to be an issue with the team and leadership to make him want to leave.
The Dick's Sporting Goods brand is held to an extremely high standard in the eyes of the consumer. The reason I wanted to work for this company was because they provide top of the line products with experienced staff. This seems consistent across the board, from my experiences in San Diego, Chicago, Miami, and Austin. How this seems to work out with the lack of proper management baffles me, but I think it is something worth investigating.
Thank you for your time,
Matthew
