Question

Analyze the poor decision-making strategies exhibited by the management team at Toys R Us for the past 10 years? What do you believe was the BIGGEST managerial decision-making failure the company made?

Answer 1

According to me biggest managerial decision-making failure the company made should be :

1.Their presentation was hectic, leading to poor customer service:

Any customer who had ever shopped in a Toys ‘R’ Us before could report feeling overwhelmed when walking into one of their locations. With too many different products arranged in messy displays, most of the chain’s stores could be described as hectic. This not only led to customers feeling unwelcome but also made for poor customer service. When inventory is all over the place, not neatly or stylishly displayed, and frequently in a jumble, it is hard to help customers find what they are looking for.

This is one of the biggest lessons that any small or medium-sized business can take from the Toys ‘R’ Us debacle. In many cases, limiting the variety of your in-store inventory, and making sure it is displayed in organized and stylish ways, can be more inviting than having all your inventory out in view. Additionally, giving employees access to inventory in a mobile POS system can ensure that they are better equipped to offer great customer service.

CEO Brandon mentioned that Toys ‘R’ Us stores will begin carrying fewer products in the future to cut back on this problem, which would also help simplify operations and customer service.

2: Their inventory management wasn’t well-planned or executed:

Something that Toys ‘R’ Us could have benefited from was a better inventory management system. Customers frequently reported that the newest products being advertised weren’t available – in fact, there was an iconic Christmas movie made about toy stores running out of the latest and greatest toys that closely mirrored many people’s real-life experience with Toys ‘R’ Us. By not having great inventory management and poor attention to detail when ordering stock, many of the stores left customers no choice but to head to Amazon or other online retailers to find things they wanted.

3.They didn’t carry original products:

One of the biggest reasons that Toys ‘R’ Us struggles to compete against the likes of Amazon and Wal-Mart is that they don’t carry any exclusive product lines. Their products are the same products that you can find at other big chain retailers, and often at more savings and in more convenient ways. Customers can get the same products online without having to venture into stores where they can’t be sure that the product will even be in stock.

4. They lacked a modern strategy for customer engagement.

Finally, Toys ‘R’ Us lacked an engagement strategy when it came to their customers. Customer engagement means building and nurturing relationships with customers to promote brand loyalty. Without it, customers feel no connection to the company, and that gives them even fewer reasons to return. Today’s modern customer expects to connect with a brand online (via social media and email); through loyalty programs; through personalized content; and more.