(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Theart walk in suzis shoes inevitable video-call backlash is well underway. Videoconferencing is exhausting, people complain. Our brains have to work harder than they do in face-to-face interactions. And so we give each other advice on how to combat Zoom fatigue and speculate whether it’s worse for extroverts.
However, some people have been having the opposite experience. Since they got the hang of video software, they’ve found virtual meetings to be better than expected — maybe even an upgrade over the in-office variety.
One big reason they’re having such a fine time is that, for many organizations, remote working has meant a decline in the total number of meetings, says John Hollenbeck, a professor at the Broad College of Business at Michigan State University. We don’t go to the trouble to set up video meetings unless there’s something important to discuss, and that’s revealed how many of our in-person meetings weren’t essential. The meetings we have now tend to be higher quality.
Virtual meetings also often have fewer attendees. “You maybe think harder about who needs to be there, and who doesn’t,” says Hollenbeck. It’s also possible that people who don’t feel they have something valuable to contribute find it easier to skip a meeting that’s not in person. After all, if meetings are recorded, they can always catch up on what was said later on.
Video meetings are more likely to start on time; there’s no wandering around the building to find the right room. Nor do you have to lurk outside said room, shooting impatient glances at the people running overtime.
There’s less chit-chat. You’re more likely to get down to business right away, and if you run out of things to talk about, the video meeting ends early. No one feels pressured to use the full block of time.
Meeting organizers, perhaps aware of how awkward they look staring silently into the camera , take more responsibility for providing a clear agenda. Attendees’ roles may be clearer, too, whether they’re speaking or listening.
Video meetings also create a level playing field. In the old days, it wasn’t uncommon to have hybrid meetings — with some people sitting together in a conference room, and remote colleagues dialing in — which often felt unbalanced. Remote colleagues either couldn’t get a word in, or they got the floor and droned on too long. When everyone’s dialed in, everyone’s on Hollywood Squares, and everyone’s equal.
This may subtly deter meeting dominators from filibustering, says Hollenbeck. We’re more self-conscious when we’re on camera, so super-talkers may be more aware of how long they speak.
Story continues
Some things that can make video calls tiring — looking at so many faces at once, being distracted by the tiny image of yourself in the corner of your screen — might also stop you from blathering. The result is that quieter people finally get a chance to speak.
But say this doesn’t sound like your experience at all. Say you’re living in a video meeting hellscape. There’s little point in blaming the technology; in our current environment, you’re stuck with it. Instead, reconsider meeting frequency, size and structure.
Are colleagues still calling too many meetings? “Any organization that creates eight hours of Zoom meetings has really got that balance wrong,” Hollenbeck says. Collaboration can be a good thing, but people also need time to concentrate.
Are meeting organizers inviting too many people? It’s a natural impulse for anyone who’s ever forgotten to invite someone important, or had to deal with a slighted colleague. It doesn’t help that virtual meetings aren’t restricted by the size of the conference table. But anyone who invites more than six people to a meeting should make it clear who is expected to attend, who will have a speaking role, and whose participation is optional.
If too much socializing is pulling your meetings off-track — hey, we’re all a little lonely right now — schedule a purely social call with colleagues for shooting the breeze. Just let them know that anyone suffering from Zoom fatigue is free to opt out.
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.
Sarah Green Carmichael is an editor with Bloomberg Opinion. She was previously managing editor of ideas and commentary at Barron’s, and an executive editor at Harvard Business Review, where she hosted the HBR Ideacast.
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As shown below, the results in the quarter materially changed the trend in two-year stacked comps for each of the banners, along with a significant acceleration for consolidated comps.
The increase in consolidated comps was the primary driver of an 8% increase in revenues to $6.3 billion. The company ended the quarter with 15,370 locations, up less than 1% year-over-year. This reflects a 7% increase in Dollar Tree units, offset by a 4% decline in Family Dollar units.
The top-line results at each banner flowed through to their respective income statements, with Dollar Tree gross margins and operating margins declining year-over-year while Family Dollar gross margins and operating margins expanded year-over-year. On a consolidated basis, gross margins contracted by 120 basis points in the quarter to 28.5%, reflective of a shift to lower-margin consumables, tariff costs and the impact of markdowns from the Easter headwinds at the Dollar Tree banner. The company saw slight operating leverage on SG&A from higher comps, with the net result being an 80 basis point contraction in operating margins to 5.8%, with operating income declining 5% to $366 million. This is not adjusted for $73 million of pandemic-related costs, such as PPE supplies.
In the first quarter, the company opened 85 stores (net of closures) and completed 220 Family Dollar renovations to the H2 format. Importantly, comps at renovated Family Dollar stores continue to outpace the chain average by more than 10%. On the call, management indicated that they plan on reducing both the number of new store openings (from 550 to 500) and the number of H2 renovations (from 1,250 to 750) in 2020.
Personally, given the fact that Family Dollar is seeing material benefits to its business from the pandemic with new or lapsed customers coming into its stores, I think the company should try to get more aggressive with its renovation plans, not less. On the other hand, you could argue that renovations cause short-term disruptions and limit their ability to fully capitalize on the business momentum they are currently experiencing.
As a result of fewer new stores and remodels, management now expects 2020 capital expenditures to total $1.0 billion compared to previous guidance of $1.2 billion. In addition, the company has temporarily suspended share repurchases. At quarter's end, the company had $1.8 billion in cash on its balance sheet compared to $4.3 billion in total debt.
Conclusion
In recent years, Dollar Tree has been a tale of two cities. While its namesake banner has generally delivered impressive financial results, Family Dollar has been a persistent underperformer. This quarter, those results flipped, and given what we've seen in the weeks since quarter's end, there's a decent possibility that we will see something similar in the coming months. As the CEO noted, the second quarter is off to a very good start at Family Dollar.
Here's the important question: how useful is that information is in terms of making future predictions about the business? Will recent success at Family Dollar translate into long-term success for the banner? The optimistic take is that new or lapsed customers, especially those visiting the renovated stores, could become recurring business for the banner. The pessimistic take is that they have experienced short-term success out of necessity as people went to any store that was open to try and find essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer that were largely out of stock throughout the retail landscape. From that view, many of these customers could abandon the retailer when life returns to normal. As Philbin noted on the conference call, early on [during the pandemic], folks needed us. Will people still shop as much at Family Dollar when it's no longer a necessity?
Personally, I do not place too much weight on the recent results. I will need to see incremental data points that indicate that Family Dollar has truly won sustained business from these new customers. While I still believe that the Dollar Tree banner is a well-positioned retailer with attractive unit returns, I'm not yet willing to say the same thing for Family Dollar. For that reason, along with the recent run-up in the stock price, I plan on staying on the sidelines for now.
Disclosure: None
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