Activity Planning and Execution

The seasons change and holidays occur in a predictable annual pattern. With a little planning, your department can be ready to take advantage of seasonal and holiday promotions. The file system described below is a simple means to better plan for annual activities.

The 52-Week File System

The 52-week file system is a system that uses a separate folder for each week of the fiscal year. Each folder is labeled “week ending” with the appropriate date. By creating and maintaining a separate folder for each week of the year, a week’s history can be quickly referred to, enabling proactive activity planning.

Suggested Information to Include in Each Folder

• The department schedule for the week.
• The ad flyer that was in place.
• The display merchandising map.
• Budgeted and achieved sales.
• Pertinent community events, weather, store-specific events and any challenges that occurred during that week.
• Notes that may be pertinent for future reference.
• Competitors’ weekly flyer

The Value of the 52-Week File

The 52-week file is primarily a profit planning tool. It provides managers with comparable weekly data. Since weekly sales patterns are fairly constant, managers can take last year’s figures, make allowances for holidays, paydays, etc. and then forecast their upcoming week. This enables managers to schedule staff and plan sales goals.

The 52-week file is also a valuable succession tool. It assists relief managers or newly transferred managers to have a productive transition into a new location.

Finally, the 52-week file is an essential event planning tool. The information in the file enables repeat of successful activities and refinement of less successful ones and is thus a useful tool for increasing financial performance of the department.