Retailing in the digital age : A cross-sectional survey of employees' attitudes toward digitalization

• Main Authors: Pernebrink, Linnea, El Azab, Adam
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Umeå universitet, Företagsekonomi 2019
• Subjects: Digitalization; retail employees; attitudes; e-commerce; self-service systems; Business Administration; Företagsekonomi
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-156261

Digitalization is changing the world, and the retail industry is no exception. The new technologies are affecting retail in multiple ways to increase sales and customer satisfaction. This change is being observed in the physical stores as well as new online markets. The customers’ role in retail is increasing as self-service systems are taking over cashiers, and an increase in e-commerce websites begs the question if the digitalization is threatening the physical store and the number of employees. The worst case scenario being, digitalization rendering the physical stores obsolete. Managers and consumers have been the focus of previous studies, but little is known of how employees perceive the new forms of digitalization emerging in retail. This study examines front-line employees’ attitudes toward digitalization in the retail industry by answering the questions; what are the retail employees' attitudes toward digitalization? Do they differ depending on the industry? Which, if any, factors are affecting employees’ attitudes toward digitalization? This quantitative study has used a deductive approach to construct a cross-sectional survey. The survey has been used to answer the research questions, fulfill the studies purpose, and bridge the gap in research regarding employees’ attitudes. The results show that employees’ attitudes are somewhat positive toward digitalization, and evidence was found of multiple differences between the industries - employees’ attitudes toward digitalization being no exception. The study found that how useful employees perceive digitalization, their personal usage, and what industry they work in are factors affecting employees’ attitudes toward digitalization. This study can be used as a foundation for further study in multiple fields with a focus on retail employees and attitudes. The results of the study also have a practical contribution as it provides evidence of factors which could influence employees’ attitudes. This is of value for managers who can use the results of this study to better influence and manage the attitudes of employees.