How to be a good warehouse employee

very employee in every position wants to do a good job. However, I found we
often need reminding about what a good job is, more than we need teaching about
what a good job is. And, since everyone and their mother are constantly telling us
how to be good leaders, I decided to tell those that aren.t in leadership positions,
.YET,. what they can do to be a good employee.
Below are 16 tidbits I put together while researching and writing a white paper
with the same title. I decided to shorten it up and this is what I came up with:

1. Work While At Work: The average American worker wastes 2.9 hours per
day. When you include lunch and breaks that means the average employee
works for 4.5 hours a day.

2. Charge Your Cell Phone at Home: I have seen order pickers have to stop
working and get off of the Forklift, because someone cell phone was
charging and they could not get by without moving the cell phone and the
charger out of the way.

3. Stop Complaining About Your Pay: You negotiated it or accepted it, if you
are not happy with it, find another job. It is disruptive when one employee
talks about their salary. Ben Franklin said, .If you want to get rich, diminish
your wants or augment your means.. It is best to do both simultaneously.

4. Help Out Your Boss: Ask them what projects they are working on and can
you help. If your boss replies no, then he or she is an idiot and you should
start looking for another job anyway. Any supervisor worth their salt will
gladly accept the assistance and the opportunity to assist with your career
advancement.

5. Stay Away From Negative Individuals: For two reasons, everyone in the
organization already knows how negative they are and you don.t want to be
associated with them. My mother always told me, .You are known by the
company you keep!. Two, if you are around them enough, you will
ultimately begin believing what they are saying.

6. Find Out What Average is And Beat it By 10%: No one wants to be
average, therefore to move away from the pack and do more. Every week
monitor your progress. Average people are the ones on the news
complaining about the company laying-off half of its work force.

7. Find Out What Your Best Day Was and Beat it By 10% Consistently: It
amazes me to see our culture engulfed with mediocrity, then when there is
an incentive we always do better. Do better on your own without anyone
telling you.

8. Clean Up: Don.t walk past that Coke can today: Tell someone about the
ladder that is broken today. Tell someone about the blown light bulb today.
The problem with most warehouses is not a lack of productivity but the lack
of a broom. Most shipping errors happen because the packing area is a mess.
Most inventory errors happen because the aisles are a mess. Most receiving
errors happen because the receiving area is a mess. Do something about it
today!

9. Read an Industry Magazine Article Twice a Week: After high school the
average American worker never picks up a book. In order to .Earn More
You Must Learn More!. Warehouse Management Systems, RFID, Pick-to-
Light, Voice Directed Picking they are all coming to your warehouse sooner
or later. The more you know about them before they get to you, the more
valuable you are once they arrive. Side Note: I read somewhere that most
people only learn 5 new words a year. And without fail in study after study
the highest paid people in the organization have the best vocabulary. What
better way to improve your vocabulary, and potentially your salary, than to
read.

10. Find Out the Progression Within the Warehouse: That means if you are a
picker what is the next position above that. Document what position you
want next. If the next position from picking is receiving, then when a
position for inventory control becomes available, and you are a picker, you
will know why you may not be considered. But also you need to ask what it
takes to move to the next position and begin working on it.
11. Stay Out of The Customer Service Office: Inside Sales personnel get paid to
take sales calls not talk to warehouse personnel. That does not mean they are
better than you, it means they have a job to do. And customers should not be
placed on hold because the person who should be taking the call is chit-
chatting with a warehouse guy about the game the night before.

12. Learn The Names of The Company.s Top 25 Customers: You have to
know who patronizes your organization. But you really have to know who
spends the most with your organization. I know ever small customer has the
potential to become a big customer. But as Bear Bryant said, .Potential
Means You Ain.t Done It Yet!.

13. Complete What You Start: When assigned a task complete it! Then tell your
supervisor, who assigned it to you, that it was completed and they can
scratch it off of their list. After they scratch it off, ask, .What.s Next!.

14. Keep a Note Pad and Take Notes With It: A lot of warehouse supervisors
do not keep accurate notes. They think they can remember everything.
Therefore make it your responsibility to take notes of the tasks you are
assigned. This shows your supervisor that you care enough to write it down.
It also shows their supervisor that you are a conscientious employee.

15. Go To Lunch With Your Supervisors Boss: Believe it or not, .Business is
emotional.. People trust people they know. When your supervisor puts your
name in for a new position, it is good if the person responsible for approving
it already knows who you are.

16. Keep Track of The Amount of Work You Produce: Most of us are self
motivated individuals. If you pick 100 orders today, and you know it, you
will not pick less tomorrow. Without anyone telling you to, you will always
try to do better than you did the previous day.