JuLX 29, 1020 



The Horists^ Review 



17 



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SUCCESSFUL PROFIT-SHARING 



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USINESS is entering upon 

 a new era. It is the day 

 of close cooperation, not 

 only among business men 

 themselves, but among 

 their employees as well. 

 As a matter of fact, we 

 have been asleep at the 

 stake for many years and 

 have been short-sighted in 

 our views and actions towards em- 

 ployees. There should be no difference 

 between the florists' business and any 

 other business. We operate along the 

 same line as merchandisers. There is a 

 difference, however, which is largely the 

 fault of florists themselves. I have said 

 before that the majority of failures in 

 business, or of failures to make a suc- 

 cess in the florists' business, are due to 

 the fact that there are too many of us 

 that put ourselves on a par with the 

 man who is spading the beds or wheel- 

 ing dirt. We are too prone to be penny 

 wise and pound foolish. In other 

 words, it is time to devote the biggest 

 part of our time to conducting the ex- 

 ecutive end of the business. We must 

 come to realize where we are making 

 money and where we are losing it. 

 This can only be done by systematic 

 records. 



This brings me to the new issue of 

 the day, which is 

 profit-sharing. This 

 is another step for- 

 ward. It is money 

 in our pockets. You 

 may say, * * How can 

 I profit by paying 

 my employees a por- 

 tion of my profits, 

 on a profit-sharing 

 basis, when I have 

 not done it hereto- 

 fore?" 



Employees' Part. 



If we adopt the 

 profit-sharing plan, 

 each employee real- 

 izes that when he 

 wastes stock he is 

 participating in that 

 loss; if he fails to 

 give good service 

 and the store loses 

 a customer, he is 

 participating in the 

 loss ; if in making up 

 a design or bouquet 

 he is wasteful in the 

 material that he 

 uses, he is partici- 

 pating in another 

 loss, or, if in mak- 

 ing up a design or 

 bouquet he is eco- 

 nomical in the con- 

 struction of the 

 work and is also 

 careful to see that 

 it will come up to 

 the expectations of 

 the customer, he is 

 participating in the 

 profits. It is human 

 nature for employ- 

 ees to be more inter- 



The address of Robert C. Kerr, of Houston, 

 Tex., before the meeting of the Texas State 

 Florists' Association, July 21, 1920, on ''Can 

 the Florists' Business Be Operated Successfully 

 on the Proat-Sharlng Plan?" 



ested in the work of a concern if they 

 know that they are interested in the 

 profits, whether they are large or small. 

 In nine cases out of ten where a concern 

 has labor troubles, it is its fault and 

 not the fault of the employees. 



There are several things that are 

 essential in a profit-sharing system: 

 First, there must be an organization. 

 By that I mean employees who are 

 satisfactory and have a desire to build 

 up a big organization. If there are un- 

 satisfactory employees, it makes no dif- 

 ference what is offered them, they are 

 dead to the world and time and energy 

 are lost in trying to please them. So 

 weed them out and get only the best. 



Profit-Sharing vs. Gifts. 



I believe that there is only one true 

 profit-sharing basis. There is the idea 

 of handing a bonus check at the end of 

 the year, and it is accepted graciously 

 by the employee, but the plan does not 

 instill inspiration as by the actual re- 

 sults of the store. A plan to get re- 

 sults must be of such a nature that every 

 employee participates in the actual prof- 



Robert C. Kerr. 



its of the company, and then it is up 

 to them to deliver the goods. Lay your 

 cards on the table if you are proud of 

 your business and let the other fellow 

 know how you have succeeded. If a 

 commercial agency asks for a report of 

 your business and it is a good one, you 

 are proud to render it; if it is a bad 

 one, you sometimes hesitate and may 

 fail to render it and are therefore put 

 in the wrong class. 



Do not try to make a secret of the 

 actual profits of your store. Bender 

 a monthly profit and loss statement. 

 Have your monthly eflB.ciency meeting. 

 Talk about the statement. If one par- 

 ticular line showed an unusual profit,, 

 find out how you did it. Apply the 

 same methods to the other departments 

 that are not so profitable. Talk with 

 the head of the delivery department 

 and, if the maintenance of this de- 

 partment is unusually high, investigate 

 it thoroughly and find out why. The 

 bookkeeper should submit a list of cus- 

 tomers who are slow to pay. The sales 

 manager should discuss ways and means 

 of increasing the sales of the store. 

 These monthly eflSciency meetings are 

 wonderful things. Let your business 

 be an open book with your employees. 

 It will instill confidence and make them 

 more deeply interested in your welfare. 



The profit-sharing 

 plan has been insti- 

 tuted by many of 

 our larger concerns 

 and is working suc- 

 cessfully with many 

 firms throughout the 

 country; so let us 

 conduct our busi- 

 ness on that basis 

 and let it be said 

 that the florists 

 throughout the 

 country are ranked 

 among the best class 

 of business men. 



Working Plan. 



I am going to 

 give our working 

 plan, not as a model, 

 but I believe we 

 have taken a step in 

 the right direction. 

 Our retail store is 

 operated by what 

 we call the central 

 organization, c o m- 

 posed of myself, the 

 sales manager, the 

 superintendent o f 

 service and the 

 credit manager, four 

 in all. The head of 

 each department is 

 held responsible for 

 his respective work, 

 and is expected to 

 show results at the 

 end of the year. 

 This plan has been 

 in operation since 

 the first of this 

 year. 



There is only one 

 thing that gets re- 



