Jaime Hadley

Contemporary Metrics and Organizational Performance

Motherhood Maternity – Store Performance Metrics

Most companies these days experience a constant influx of customer data. Companies

track customer experience, purchase patterns, and sales dollars in an effort to utilize data to make

strategic decisions to increase performance. In order to be effective, the metrics used by

companies must be directly related to their strategic goals. The metrics must reflect accurate data

that can be analyzed and translated into actionable intelligence. Motherhood Maternity, a part of

the Destination Maternity Corporation, uses different systems to track and analyze different

aspects of their performance. This paper summarizes those systems and discusses how they are

used to measure performance and create strategic goals.

Motherhood Maternity uses customer surveys to gather data about customer experiences.

This survey can be taken by anyone, as it can be located and accessed through a quick internet

search. The survey is mentioned on the bottom of every Motherhood Maternity receipt, and the

staff is supposed to mention the survey to the customer at the end of every transaction. The

survey begins by asking the customer to identify the store they shopped in and then proceeds to

ask questions related to overall experience, store conditions, and employee performance. Though

mostly multiple choices, on a rating scale, the end of the survey gives the customer the

opportunity to write a comment. Customers are enticed to take the survey by being entered into a

drawing upon completion, currently for a Kindle Fire.

Motherhood uses the survey data in a variety of ways. The questions asked reflect the

strategic goals of the corporation for customer experience. Motherhood Maternity sets high goals

for store cleanliness and accessibility, as well as sales staff and management performance. The

questions ask the customer to rate the store on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best possible

score. The manager of the Rogers, AR Motherhood Maternity store indicated in a phone

interview that each individual store is given an overall score based on the surveys. She stated that

a store of 4.5 or higher is required of each store. Should the score slip below 4.5, higher level

management coaches the store manager and staff to help identify where the store is failing and

set goals for improvement. Brittney, the store manager for Rogers AR, also stated that the store

manager is alerted if any question is answered with a 1 – the lowest possible score. The manager

is then asked to follow up with the customer personally to resolve the issue and try to salvage the

customer relationship. The store staff receives the comments as well; the positive comments

provide encouragement and identify staff members going above and beyond, and the negative

comments are followed up on.

Motherhood Maternity also uses metrics to track sales performance by store and

individual staff members. The computer used for sales transactions tracks how many units are

sold per transaction, how many dollars made in each sale, and the current sales versus the daily

goal for the store. Employees are expected to maintain a units per transaction number of 3.5 or

higher and a minimum of $45.00 per sale (numbers based on previous experience – may not

reflect current goals.) These numbers are based on organizational goals and reflect the sales

success of each individual and individual store. Staff at Motherhood is evaluated based on these

metrics, and coached to achieve the highest scores possible. The computer also tracks the sales

dollars for each day and compares them by percentage to the store’s daily sales goals. The sales

goals are based on corporate goals, as well as the store’s performance on the same day, previous

year. Sales goals are tracked and used to determine the success of the store and management.

Lastly, Motherhood Maternity tracks the capture rate of customer information, number of

credit card signups, and the number of partner program signups (depending on current

partnerships.) When checking out in the store, the customer is asked for an email address, first

and last name, mailing address, and due date. The store must maintain a certain capture rate to

avoid additional coaching and be considered successful. The store must also maintain a

minimum number of credit card signups, for the Destination Maternity credit card, and customer

participation in partnership programs, such as a subscription to Parenting Magazine.

Motherhood Maternity, like so many corporations, uses data gathered in stores to track

and measure organizational performance as well as create strategic goals. Motherhood Maternity

specifically uses client surveys, sales metrics (dollars per sale, items per sale), and additional in-

store rates to track their store and management performances. By doing so, Motherhood

Maternity is making the smart decision to use the data at their availability to contribute to their

organizational success and long-term sustainability.