Corporate Strategy and Corporate Culture: The View from the Checkout

Abstract

Strategy and culture in British supermarkets are dealt with in a second article, this time from the viewpoint of the checkout. Attempts to create a customer care ethos include instilling a corporate philosophy. For checkout staff this means smiling and meaning it. The staff see it differently; compliance may mean just “putting on an act”. Their response is discussed within the broader context of internal resistance to change and market factors beyond company control.