Think Customers: The 1to1 Blog

Yesterday, BusinessWeek featured an article in which the editors went directly to Wal-Mart managers—the employees closest to the customers—to ask them their ideas about how to fix the struggling behemoth.

Many of the managers' ideas were simple and even obvious, but as the article pointed out, they’re ideas that were generated after talking with customers and listening to what they want.

Take chocolate doughnuts. Wal-Mart has been cutting back on making fresh doughnuts because they don’t make much money for stores. But the store managers have a different perspective. They say they actually get people into the stores and then while there they buy other merchandise.

When the magazine contacted Wal-Mart a spokesperson seemed to be dismissive of the manager’s ideas, declining to comment on them. That may be a mistake.

In 1to1 Magazine’s upcoming October issue, contributing writer Erika Rasmusson Janes will explore how tapping employees for fresh ideas generates new processes, services, and products that companies otherwise can’t produce. She reveals that employee feedback is relevant in improving customer service and making internal changes. Rasmusson says that frontline employees are the ones who see patterns to customer satisfaction and know what hinders efficiencies.

Hopefully Wal-Mart won’t take the BW article with a grain of salt. The company needs to realize that its employees are the biggest untapped resources available—and one that should not be ignored.