No abstract

The article considers the problems of staff training for trade in connection with the main modern trends in the economy of developed countries. On the one hand, information processes are rapidly developing in all areas of economic activity. On the other hand, the labor market has undergone structural changes related to the aging of the population. For successful competition, modern retail chains require qualified specialists of secondary education and skilled workers with digital technology skills. At the same time, there are large number of older professionals work in the trade, who do not have skills of using of digital equipment and plan to improve their skills. In addition, modern Russian technical schools and colleges do not train special skills of working with digital equipment for trading. The article suggests ways to transform the training system for trade in accordance with the requirements of the digital environment.

Despite the difficult period for retail, Russian retail chains continue to develop and find new resources to improve the efficiency. The largest retail chains are expanding markets and continue to grow steadily. However, modern economic conditions place high demands on the activities of managers and staff in retail. Moreover, the unstable external environment forces the management to look for new opportunities of improving their enterprises competitiveness. An organizational culture is the important resource for improving the retail enterprise efficiency. Nevertheless, the effective organizational culture can be built only on the shared values of all staff. The article describes the results of the study of value orientations of managers and subordinates in connection with their work activity. We analyzed the "TD Intertorg" ("Narodnaya 7-ya Family") which was one of the largest food retail companies in St. Petersburg. We used the formalized survey methodology to study the value orientations of 170 employees of the company. We identified and characterized the differences in the value orientations of the administrative, retail and operational staff with high and low labor activity. Also we defined the key values for the creation of the organizational culture that increases the efficiency of the personnel of the retail company. We offered the mechanism of development organizational culture for the trade enterprise on the basis of values compatibility of the managers and subordinates. The results help us to optimize business communication process and improve the efficiency of the retail enterprise.

In the modern world, a new category of travelers (global shoppers) has appeared. They are people who spend their time for shopping on abroad trips. The article considers the problem of understanding the consumer behavior of Russian tourists (Russian global shoppers) in duty-free shops. The purpose of the study is to identify the features of consumer behavior, motives and habits of Russian tourists when shopping at duty free stores at airports. A pilot study was conducted by questionnaire survey at the airport. The results of the study showed that Russian tourists consider shopping (duty free) as part of their trip abroad. They are looking for a favorable price / quality ratio. Many of them do not plan their shopping in advance, but adhere to certain budget restrictions. The paper offers suggestions to improve customer satisfaction. The results of the study are useful for business persons and marketing managers in the international trade sphere.

Changes in the demographic situation in the world lead to a change in the enterprises staff. These changes are associated with a life expectancy increase and, as a consequence, an increase in the economically active population over 65 years old. However, the significant increase in the number of active older generation people is directed opposite to the level of the information technology use by them. For example, the older generation is not keen on making online purchases. Thus, in the trade, the working places for older employees are retained. The paper presents a comparative analysis of the trade enterprises labor resources in Russia and the Czech Republic. We have used methods of statistical data analysis and formalized survey. The study results have showed the similar trends in the trade sector labor markets in Russia and the Czech Republic. In addition, the results of the study have revealed the directions of the older labor force use. The older people can be involved in activities with a large communication load and high value of professional experience. Older workers often act as mentors, transferring their experience to the young colleagues. Thus, the interactions between workers of different generations can accelerate the development of trade enterprises.