What the pros say

Daniel Cyr, store manager, RONA

Which skills are required to become a store manager?

Above all, you need to have a good head for business and be able to make decisions to do this job. You also have to be good at mobilizing your people, whether managers or other employees in the store, to work toward common goals. Teamwork is important for reaching the company's objectives. In addition, you need to have a good education to handle the administrative part, or have acquired a lot of experience along the way. You have to be comfortable with numbers to be able to analyze performance indicators, like sales reports, for example.

Which personal qualities would you say are important to have?

Leadership is crucial for this job. This means having a clear vision of the store's development, and the ability to convey it to employees. This also means sharing the corporate values and philosophy with the employees. Store managers must also be able to make decisions on the spot, and finally, they need to care about what they do in order to successfully face challenges and motivate employees to work well.

What other types of jobs can this lead to?

Depending on their experience and available opportunities, a store manager in the RONA network can move into a regional manager position, which involves supervising many points of sale. There are also a number of head office jobs that they may be qualified for, depending on their career path, interests and ambitions.