Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • April 15, 2019 • Hartford Business Journal 25 OTHER VOICES New taxes spell danger for CT retailers By Tim Phelan O nce again, Connecticut is at a fork in the road. With less than two months remain- ing in the legislative session, decisions will soon be made on an array of tax increases actively being considered. There are clear and predictable dan- gers ahead, with prospects for Con- necticut's retail industry — and our customers — very much at risk. Connecticut retailers support more than 470,000 jobs and contribute more than $34 billion to the state's economy. There are roughly 42,000 retail establishments in Connecticut, and in total, the retail industry produces approximately 14 percent of Con- necticut's total GDP. As much as any other industry, retail is the lifeblood of commerce in Connecticut, indispens- able to our economy and quality of life. Retail businesses large and small pro- vide good jobs for Connecticut fami- lies, and more than 98 percent of all retail companies are small businesses, employing fewer than 50 people. For some, retail is a first job and a foothold into our economy; many oth- ers turn to retail because of the many fulfilling and rewarding career paths the industry offers. Retail businesses need to balance a budget, work diligently to sustain good jobs in a turbulent economy, and meet the chal- lenges of increas- ing competition, not only from brick-and-mortar competitors but an ever-growing number of online options. We recognize that Connecti- cut is facing serious fiscal challenges, and difficult decisions must be made. Our legislators are working diligently to steer Connecticut through, when options are limited and there are no easy choices. In fact, no one appreci- ates this more than retailers, because our customers are always top of mind. What impacts them impacts us. All of which makes the list of sales tax and other potential changes of great concern. Any one of them may not be disastrous — but as they keep piling on, one after another, it will become a case of death by a thousand cuts, which will hurt individual retail- ers and the retail industry, and hurt consumers and our communities. The list is virtually endless, and the ramifications are substantial. Extending the sales tax to dry-cleaning services. Imposing a fee on plastic bags. Instituting a sugar tax on beverages. Increasing the minimum wage. Adding tolls to our roadways. Elimi- nating the sales tax free week. In- stituting a tax on accountant, legal and a multitude of other services that retailers depend on in the course of their business activities. At every turn retailers will need to pay more. It is a house of mirrors — everywhere we look, we see a new tax or a new fee. Our customers will as well. All of this would increase the cost of doing business, just as it seemed we might be turning the corner on a slow-to-recover economy. Anyone who knows a retail owner in your local community realizes how challenging doing business here is already. Retailers have always understood that we need to do our fair share, and we have. During the past decade, the sales tax has been increased, luxury tax insti- tuted, clothing exemption reduced and then eliminated, and sales-tax holiday diminished. All of these steps have been taken to bring in money to the state, but the retail industry has felt the impact. Retailers here already pay high corporate taxes, are routinely among the highest property taxpayers in the town they operate in, and face high fixed costs, such as rent, energy — which is the highest in the nation — increasing minimum wages, workers compensation, and healthcare costs. Let's not pile on more inflexible requirements until we add the straw that breaks the camel's back, and see jobs and retailers flee our state in increasing numbers. Retailer businesses and our custom- ers have a common interest. The state should not make it tougher to make ends meet — in the family budget or the retail bottom line. We would much rather work with policymakers to strengthen Connecticut's economy and business climate, so that retailers — and the thousands of people who work or shop with us — can truly thrive. Tim Phelan is president of the Connecticut Retail Merchants Association. BIZ BOOKS Nine lies about work that impact team-building, productivity By Jim Pawlak "Nine Lies About Work — A Free- thinking Leader's Guide to the Real World" by Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall (Harvard Business Review Press, $30). To get the most out of the book start by reading Appendix A — The 2018 ADP Research Institute's Global Study of (worker) Engagement. Its gist: Despite all the "30,000-foot wis- dom" on how creative organizational culture, goal-setting and the necessity of feedback create an engaged, pro- ductive employee, over 84 percent of the 19,346 employees surveyed said they simply "came to work." Over 83 percent said they were part of a team. Based upon those findings, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to deduce that ground-level, dysfunctional teams cause disengagement. The "Nine Lies" identified by the study play roles in team dysfunction- ality because an unhappy teammate drags down the engagement and productivity of any team. Here's a snapshot of the top five lies: 1. "People care which company they work for." — And the survey says: Em- ployees care far more about the work they do, the challenges they are given, collaborative effort and the trust/respect of their colleagues. The responsibil- ity for creating an engaged team rests with the team's leader. Like an orchestra's conductor, the team leader assesses and reassesses priorities, provides direc- tion and coordinates actions. A poor team leader can't orchestrate harmony. 2. "The best plan wins." and 3. "The best companies cascade goals." — There is no "best plan" because the speed of change and things beyond the control of teams charged with plan execution will affect outcomes. Also, the people making the plans are far from the front lines so "they don't have enough real-world information upon which to make the plan in the first place." Without from-the-trenches input, c-level plans are met with "they don't understand." When plans are questioned from the get-go, kiss en- gagement goodbye. 4. "The best people are well-rounded." There's a difference between "something you are good at" and a "strength." Sports analogy: Every baseball team selects its starters because of their ability to play a specific position better than others on the team. You don't see infielders and outfielders changing positions. There are starting pitchers and relief pitchers. The "utility play- ers" have value because their "strength" involves their versa- tility (i.e. they play a number of positions adequately). A team in business should function the same way. When choosing to assign a task, learning opportunity, or chal- lenge, its base elements should build from an employee's strengths. When starting from a strength base, an employee engages immediately. As the assignment progresses, the employee learns "something to be good at," which complements their strengths and builds their versatility. 5. "People need feedback." While employees need information on their performance, they need to find ways to improve performance rather than being told the right (even stars can im- prove) or wrong of how they're doing it. The authors suggest a "brushstroke" approach for a team leader: It involves letting the employee paint a new self- portrait based upon what's working, what worked in the past and what could the future look like. Start the new self-portrait by asking what three things are working well. When an employee sees some things are going right on their job, he/she sees a base for moving forward. Next, ask: "When you encountered situations like this in the past, how did you deal with them?" Allowing the employee to talk through what they've done to work through similar situa- tions, builds a solution-finding mindset because they've been there, done that. Last, ask, "What do you already know you need to do?" When you hear the response, ask, "What are a couple of actions you could take right now and what do you need from me?" Helping employees deal with their issues on their own terms creates an "I can do it" mindset that increases engage- ment, which carries over to teammates. Takeaway: High-functioning teams retain a company's talent. Tim Phelan Jim Pawlak Book Review At every turn retailers will need to pay more. It is a house of mirrors — everywhere we look, we see a new tax or a new fee.

• Cover