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Kevin Zavaglia took his first job with Verizon<\/strong> in 1994 as a junior sales associate, back when the company was still Bell Atlantic<\/strong>. Flash forward 30<\/strong> years, and Zavaglia has spent nearly his entire career at the retailer, rising up the ranks to become Chief Sales Officer.<\/p>\n However, Zavaglia\u2019s single-employer experience is becoming less and less common, particularly in retail, where historically high attrition rates hover at around 60%<\/strong>. Add to that the economic and geopolitical challenges of the past few years that have exacerbated an already outsized problem.<\/p>\n At its core is a fundamental issue with retail work, particularly for those on the frontlines \u2014 these jobs are not often seen as long-term opportunities.<\/strong> Complex work schedules, relatively low pay and few opportunities for advancement are among the reasons.<\/p>\n In fact, even Zavaglia, when he first started at Verizon, didn\u2019t see it as a career, but rather just a short-term job to make ends meet, until one fortuitous weekend when his manager went out of town and left him in charge.<\/p>\n \u201cNo one had ever left me in charge before; it was the first time anyone showed me that I could have a career and not a job,\u201d Zavaglia recounted. \u201cOn Mondays we did our sales meetings, and I took that opportunity so seriously, I even prepared an agenda. That one five<\/strong>-minute conversation changed my life. Now I try to bring that into our organization every day. We have so many talented people throughout our organization, and the impact you have as a leader on their careers is so important.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia sat down with Retail TouchPoints<\/em> to share how Verizon nurtures its frontline staff so they too can have that \u201clightbulb moment,\u201d and how other retailers can do the same.<\/p>\n Retail TouchPoints: When you were younger, what did you think you wanted to be when you grew up?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Kevin Zavaglia: <\/strong>My degree is in criminal justice, and I wanted to be a state trooper. My brother was a police officer; my uncle and my cousins were police officers. But I got into sales part time and [when I graduated] I sat down with the Chief of Police, and said, \u201cOkay, I\u2019m ready now.\u201d I really wanted to get into the police academy. And he said, \u201cHow much money are you making?\u201d I gave him the number. \u201cHow many nights are you working?\u201d None. \u201cHow many weekends; how many holidays?\u201d And that\u2019s where my career path took a different turn.<\/p>\n RTP: Many people work retail at some point in their lives, but not many reach the C-suite like you have. To what do you credit your rise and success?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia: <\/strong>It was a couple things. Number one, you have to constantly be learning<\/strong>. Number two, you have to be able to take risks<\/strong>. I didn\u2019t take a job early on [in my career] because it didn\u2019t lead to the path that I felt I needed to go. It was in telesales; nothing wrong with telesales, but for my career journey, that role was not going to lead me to becoming a President, which was where I wanted to go. Also, mentors; I was very fortunate to have some great mentors<\/strong> along the way.<\/p>\n I think it also has to do with the training [you get at] Verizon. If you look at my Market Presidents, of six, four of them started at the frontline.<\/strong> [With] the skill set we teach you, you learn sales, but more importantly, you learn customer experience, you learn marketing, you learn operations<\/strong>. We\u2019re going through the hurricanes right now actually, so you learn emergency response and readiness<\/strong>. You get this diverse background at Verizon that I\u2019m not sure [associates get] at other companies.<\/p>\n RTP: So many people start out in retail viewing it, as you did initially, as just a job. How can leadership help their employees have a \u201clightbulb moment\u201d like you did and shift their thinking?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia: <\/strong>[At Verizon] the majority of our employees have moved up, so people who are in management and director roles, senior director roles, VPs, they offer real-life examples<\/strong>, just like me.<\/p>\n But the other piece that I think is unique here is the training that we provide our employees so that they are prepared to go into those types of roles.<\/strong> If you\u2019re a retail rep, we use IVR [interactive voice response systems] for security training, we use AI to build quotes, so you get these unique experiences that I don\u2019t think other retailers offer. That allows you, when you go into an interview [for a role higher up], to have this broad depth of innovation, of creativity, of experience.<\/p>\n Also, we always tell people, the first time you get a manager job is the first time you become a manager. We know that, and I think we\u2019re willing to take those chances on people as well<\/strong>, especially on our employees.<\/p>\n RTP: What were your favorite and least favorite parts about being a store-level associate?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia: <\/strong>My favorite part was the compensation checks, there\u2019s no question. But you have to work hard. If you\u2019re coming here to punch a time clock, it\u2019s probably not the right company for you. You\u2019ve got to put in the effort. You\u2019ve got to stay abreast of the industry, our promotions, your customers. So it\u2019s a lot of hard work, but it\u2019s very rewarding.<\/strong> My parents blessed me with a good work ethic. My dad was a janitor, and he worked nights as a short-order cook; he worked six<\/strong> days a week, so that instilled this work ethic in me that to this day I still have.<\/p>\n RTP: Do you think a commission structure helps with employee retention?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia: <\/strong>I certainly think it motivates employees. To me, commission is a little bit of a bonus structure. In retail, you can easily hide in the back of the store.<\/strong> But what we have is called \u201cMy Book of Business,\u201d so even when it\u2019s slow, our retail reps are making outbound calls to customers who they have leads with that they haven\u2019t closed yet. They\u2019re calling customers who they\u2019ve already sold, making sure that everything is working properly. They\u2019re getting referrals. So that commission structure really does drive that incremental behavior.<\/p>\n RTP: What skills are most important in a frontline employee who\u2019s looking to move up the ranks of a retail business?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia: <\/strong>I think early on to get to frontline manager, you\u2019re looking for people that have that energy and work ethic. The higher up you go, you\u2019re looking for that strategic mindset<\/strong> \u2014 the ability to adapt, to change, communication skills. It\u2019s about how you motivate a larger audience. It\u2019s a lot easier to manage a small store. But then when we make people district managers, and now instead of having 10<\/strong> people you have 70<\/strong>, the first thing we say to them is, now you\u2019re managing in a remote environment, so how are you going to motivate people when you\u2019re not in front of them every day? Learning those types of skills is very important.<\/p>\n RTP: There\u2019s a lot of new technology available to make the employee experience easier and more rewarding. Is Verizon trying out any of these things?<\/em><\/strong> Zavaglia: <\/strong>There are a couple of AI tools that we\u2019re currently using right now. Number one is our Manager Dashboard, so when a customer comes in, we can see what they\u2019re there for and how long they\u2019ve been a customer with Verizon. It makes it a little bit more personable and easier to manage the sales floor as well. The system tells [a sales rep whether a customer is] new or is likely there for an upgrade. Then the system has different personas, so for example, right now there\u2019s the iPhone 16. If a customer comes in [and we know they] have an iPhone 14, [we can make an educated guess that they\u2019re] coming in for the upgrade, and we assume it\u2019s going to be the 16. So the system tells [the sales rep] everything about that device and the pricing. [It means that] now our reps don\u2019t need to know every little detail, because it\u2019s on their tablet<\/strong>.<\/p>\n RTP: What advice do you have for retail employees who are at the start of their career and decide this is something that they want to pursue further?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Zavaglia: <\/strong>Number one, embrace every opportunity to learn and grow. And approach things with curiosity.<\/strong> I\u2019m always the person in the room who raises their hand to ask a question; don\u2019t be afraid to ask questions. Also, seek out mentorship and build relationships with your colleagues<\/strong> that go beyond work.<\/p>\n And as I said earlier, there is no substitute for hard work. What you put in, you get out<\/strong>, so know our products and services, know the competitors, make sure you\u2019re there to value the customers. To this day, I still talk to two<\/strong> of my early big-win sales from years and years ago. People laugh about that but stay connected with your customers.<\/p>\n Bring that learning mindset, bring a great attitude; it\u2019s really about whatever you put in, especially at Verizon. When you put in the time and the effort, you will be rewarded.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"Kevin](\"https:\/\/www.retailtouchpoints.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/1706221033332.jpg\")