Opening and Closing Procedures

Every day we must take the merchandise out of the safes and set it up in the jewelry cases before we open to customers at 11:00am. Every afternoon we must remove the merchandise from the jewelry cases and pack it away in the safes where it is protected from loss by burglary.

We have a lot of merchandise to set up and put away, and to do it in a timely manner requires the prompt assistance of all employees on hand. All employees who are scheduled to work from 10:00am to 6:30pm set up the cases in the morning, and empty the cases and pack the safes in the afternoon.

If a situation arises where an individual needs to work on some other duties during set up or closing time, it must first be cleared with the HR Director who must ensure that there are enough people left to get the job done in the time allowed.

Occasionally an employee will have a medical exemption for setting up or closing due to physical discomfort.

Setting up

Everyone who sets up is to report to the showroom promptly at 10:00am. Everyone is expected to get merchandise out of the safes and carry it into the showroom until all merchandise is in the showroom. Everyone then stays in the showroom helping to set up until ALL the cases are set up, the boxes put away, and the glass on the counter tops and fronts cleaned.

Once set up is complete, everyone attends to his or her assigned cleaning station. Once cleaning is complete, then everyone may go to their desks and start their work.

These positions do not help set up (unless occasionally needed):

• The Salespeople
• The Executives
• The Controller and her Assistant on stats days
• The IT Manager
• The Logistics Coordinator
• The head Bench Jeweler – sets up repair equipment, then starts jobs
• The Jewelry Buyers
• The Bench Jewelers only on Saturdays (to clean)

Opening

Everyone should be at your workstations, ready to work, by the time we open the doors to customers at 11:00am every day of the week. This is especially crucial if you are in sales or buying, but it applies to everyone else too. Once customers start coming in, we all must be in place to provide customer service, as well as support and backup for those who directly work with customers.

Closing

Everyone who closes is to report to the showroom promptly as soon as we are notified over the intercom by the salespeople that we are closed. Everyone is to carry storage boxes from the safes into the showroom, take merchandise out of the cases, pack it away in the boxes, and carry the boxes to the safes to be stacked inside. If one person is appointed to stack the boxes inside the safe, then that person can stay out by the safes as soon as enough boxes are completely filled to be ready to start packing.

Everyone stays in the showroom helping until all merchandise is packed away and the safes are closed. Once the safes are closed, everyone is allowed to leave.

These positions do not help close (unless occasionally needed):

• The Salespeople
• The Executives
• The IT Manager
• The Logistics Coordinator
• The Jewelry Buyers

What if we don’t close right at 6:00pm?

There will be times that we have a late customer and we don’t close right at 6:00pm. Since we don’t stop getting paid at 6:00pm, we also don’t stop working at 6:00pm. Remain at your desk working productively until someone from the showroom calls over the intercom that we are closed.

When you hear that call, drop what you are doing, and go immediately to the showroom to help close. If you have merchandise on your desk or in your work area, gather it up immediately and pack it away before reporting to the showroom. Once everything is put away and the safes are locked, you may then return to your desk and finish whatever you want to finish before leaving. Do not worry about being in a hurry to leave. One of the Executives will always wait for you to finish what you need to do.

What not to do

Whether you are scheduled to open or close, please don’t drag your feet in getting out to the showroom to help. Don’t come up with things that you “have to do” before you can get out there. Don’t stand around socializing. Don’t make other people come to find you. Any of these tactics just unfairly dumps your share of the work on your coworkers and causes resentment in those who do get out there promptly.

In the mornings, get here early enough to go to your desk and put down your things, put your lunch in the fridge if needed, and still report to the showroom promptly at 10:00am. If you must have coffee while setting up, bring it with you to work or get here early enough to get coffee downstairs before 10:00am. Otherwise, wait until the showroom is set up, your cleaning station is finished, and then get your coffee.

Once the showroom is set up, go to your workstation and start working. Don’t wander around in the break room or chitchat with coworkers until after 11:00am. You are on the clock now, so you should be working until you take your 15-minute morning break. Be at your workstation ready to start work by 11:00am. Don’t be down in the break room at 11:05 where someone who needs help can’t find you.

In the afternoons, even if you still have things to do at the end of the day, drop everything and come out to close when called, then return to your desk after everything is put away to finish up. Don’t finish reading your emails, turn off your computer, or finish up the task you are in the middle of doing. Don’t pack up your personal belongings or route paperwork or make notes in the computer. Don’t carry empty coffee cups down to the break room, or mail to the shipping room, or make copies or anything else other than going immediately to the showroom to help close.

The exception is if you have merchandise on your desk or in your work area, then lock or pack it away before you come out to the showroom.

What you are doing IS important, but…

There may be times when you think that what you have to do is more important than helping to set up or close. It’s true that what you do is important. But if everyone stayed at their desk who thinks what they must do is important, there would be no one to set up, because what every one of us does is important. Setting up and closing is crucial and necessary, so let’s all participate promptly so we can leave promptly. If you do have something important to finish before you leave, ask an Executive to stay with you while you finish up after the safes are locked and he or she will gladly do so.

An Executive may ask you to do something else instead of setting up or closing and in that case, of course you are excused for the time you are assisting the Executive. Once you’re done with that specific task, go back out to the showroom and resume setting up or closing.