加東版 2023 第九期
建立友善包容的工作環境
親愛的夥伴們：
最近，一位曾在我們分店做過的同事Bill Chow，在CBC News投稿了一篇感人至深的文章，他說自己跟許多在加國出生的CBC華人第二代一樣，從小成長的環境說的都是英語，長大後才發現會說華語好方便，並發現T&T是學習中文最棒的地方。文章中描述他在T&T工作9年終於學會了粵語和國語普通話的酸甜苦辣，還有文化尋根的甘苦談。
他覺得在T&T好值得，除了學會了中文，「我被中華美食和音樂包圍，分店裝飾不斷變化，慶祝不同的華人年節，讓我感覺與自己的根更加緊密地連繫在一起」。當他離開T&T時，已打下了繼續自學中文的基礎，如今已能使用互聯網、書籍、詞典、谷歌翻譯以及中文連續劇繼續學習，「當我到兩岸三地旅行時，已可聽懂中文並與人對話交談」。
然而，Bill在文章中也提到一些辛酸和挑戰。
「這並不總是一種愉快的經歷。我的一些同事表示，他們不喜歡與CBC一起工作。他們會說一些不歡迎我的話，比如『你可以去只說英語的地方上班呀！』。午餐時間，大多數員工都表示我不能和他們坐在一起，儘管還有空位……我的午餐最終都是在更衣室或停車場外面的路邊解決……在T&T，雖然我和華人在一起，但我仍然很難融入」。
但Bill為了學中文，都忍了下來，「每當我感到悲傷或不安時，都會提醒自己為什麼要來做這份工作：我想學中文。每一次上工都會給我帶來一個新詞彙、一個新短語、一個新句子、一個新諺語，有時，甚至一個新的髒話。我把學到的每一個單詞都寫在一本我稱之為『T&T聖經』的本子裡」，每晚下班後都會一遍又一遍地複習，直到把粵語和國語普通話統統搞通。
我很佩服Bill學習中文的熱情，也遺憾他碰到了一些不友好的對待。Bill提醒了我們，在T&T，儘管我們可能來自四面八方，但同事間朝夕相處，應有更多的友善和包容。有的同事可以學中文，有的同事可以學英文，大家都能在T&T找到許多學習、成長的機會，探索更多不同的文化和美食。互相了解，互相扶持，大家才會有歸屬感，感受到自己的價值。
我真心感謝Bill分享他的T&T故事，並把原文鏈接在這裡https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/first-person-t-t-1.6928529。我們的分店越開越多，服務的社區越來越廣，將來還會有更多元族裔的同事加入我們，友善、包容，才會讓我們的路走得更寬、更遠。而且，你想過了沒，如果碰到只會說英語的客人，CBC不正好是你最得力的好幫手嗎？
Tina Lee
CEO
敬業華哥，勇往直前
雖然FM店是新店，但是蔬果部的丁華大哥一點都不新。
華哥總會在有需要的時候出現。除了FM店，在CL店和SL店開業前後，我們都可以在蔬果部的冷庫看見他的身影。日常工作中，華哥總是在冷庫和收貨區域拉貨穿梭，每天都把蔬果部的冷庫處理得井井有條。他又完全配合部門主管的運營計劃，任勞任怨，把主管安排的工作圓滿完成，工作態度得到主管高度評價。
除了工作高效，華哥還非常樂於助人，常常幫助新同事解決工作上的困難。他又協助前場同事積極補貨，讓蔬果部時刻都陳列豐滿，絕對是專業盡全力的表現。在打卡機系統出問題時，華哥每天下班都會向主管報告工作時間及完成情況。在開店前後的繁忙時段，華哥更主動承擔很多工作，例如修理手拉車、補檔位，勇於承擔部門各類繁瑣事項。
華哥的兢兢業業讓我們每一位同事都佩服。在分店第一次最佳員工的評選中，華哥更獲得全票通過！FM店有了華哥，如獲至寶，讓人放心！
(Fairview Mall分店) 分店行政Candy Li
站在顧客角度，顧客至上
為了加強商品部同仁對顧客的了解，並增加前線工作體驗，我們在去年開始了「採購員到推廣」的活動。經過兩次親身體驗，我深深體會到Think as a customer (站在顧客角度) 的重要性。
初次當推廣員時，除了向小朋友推廣的成功率較高外，其他年齡層的顧客比較沒有反應。我心理揣摩著，是我的聲音不清楚？還是推廣的位置不好呢？最後，我發現原來是跟自己的開場白有關。
考慮到顧客來自五湖四海，我起初很自然地用英語開場。後來，當發現顧客比較沒有反應時，我嘗試同時用兩文三語，留意顧客閒談時用的語言，並迅速跟上。果然，改變策略後，推廣的效果便出來了，客人更會主動提問互動。
回想當初剛到加拿大，作為顧客的我亦有過相同的遭遇。到西人超市買豬肉時，我發現廣東式的切法及部位名稱，在西人超市都是沒有的，跟店員溝通倍感困難。自從在大統華購物後，問題就迎刃而解，因為我能夠用母語跟店員溝通，很快地滿足購物的需求。
由此可見，「站在顧客角度」及「顧客至上」永遠都是在零售業當中，最重要的法則之一。
(東岸分店支援中心) 商品部Kent Cheung
要想被人理解，請先試圖去理解別人
良好的溝通，是工作中必要且重要的一部分，然而在繁忙的工作中，同事們經常將自己負面的情緒，帶到話語上或是發洩在其他人身上，使合作變得困難重重。
在分店繁忙時，每個人都辛勞地工作著，都有接連不斷的工作要完成，同時還要笑迎顧客。然而，有些同事會轉身把負面情緒發洩到同事身上：原本要詢問對方工作進度或是否需要幫忙，卻變成質疑對方的工作能力；原本想給反饋以提高工作效率，卻變成批評指責。儘管是善意提醒，但使用的口氣或用詞不對，造成原本的善意被解讀成挑刺的批評，日積月累就成了不可解的誤會。
不論是上下級或是平級關係，在進行溝通時，都應互相理解體諒。在開始發表意見或是指出別人的不足之前，重要的是先理解對方的想法，這樣接下來的溝通才會順暢。公司贏的文化鼓勵同事講真話，若有想法或擔憂，可用正面、友善的方式提出來，健康有效的溝通與反饋才能讓團隊變得更好。以後當我們要開口時，多站在對方的立場想一想，先理解別人，才能夠更好的被別人理解。
(人力資源部)
2023 P8 分店最佳員工榮譽榜
2023 Period 9
Creating a Welcoming and Inclusive Work Environment
Team,
Recently, Bill Chow, a former colleague of ours, penned a touching article for CBC News. Bill’s story is one of inspiration as he embarked on a journey to reconnect with his Chinese heritage. It also serves as a moment of reflection for us, both as colleagues and as a company, reminding us of the values we hold dear.
Growing up as a Chinese-born-Canadian, Bill initially didn’t fully appreciate the value of reconnecting with his cultural roots and learning Chinese. He later realized the importance of understanding his heritage, and chose T&T as the starting point for his journey of rediscovery. In his article, Bill shares his poignant nine-year experience of learning Cantonese and Mandarin, along with the challenges he faced along the way.
Bill cherished his time at T&T, finding it incredibly rewarding. He fondly reminisces, "I was surrounded by Chinese food and music. Even the constant change in store decorations that marked different Chinese holidays on the calendar made me feel more connected to my roots". When he left T&T, he had already laid the foundation to continue learning Chinese on his own. Today, he thrives in this pursuit, utilizing online resources, books, dictionaries, Google Translate, and Chinese dramas. Bill’s dedication has empowered him to engage in conversations and confidently navigate his travels in China. He proudly notes, "When I travel in China, I can understand the conversation and reply back in Mandarin".
It saddens me that alongside his accomplishments, Bill also bravely shared some of the pains and challenges he faced during his time with us.
He confides, “However, it was not always an enjoyable experience. Some of my colleagues made it known they didn't like working with a ‘CBC’. They would say unwelcoming comments like ‘there are jobs out there that only require you to serve customers in English’. At lunchtime, most of the staff said I couldn't sit with them even though there were empty chairs at their tables. I ended up eating many a lunch in the locker room or outside on the curb in the parking lot. There at T&T, I was among other Chinese people and somehow I still was not Chinese enough”.
Yet, for the love of learning Chinese, Bill persisted. He writes, “Whenever I felt sad or upset, I tried to remind myself why I was working this job — I wanted to learn Chinese. Every shift of work brought me a new word, a new phrase, a new sentence, a new proverb. Sometimes, a new swear word. I wrote down every word I learned in a book I called my ‘T&T Bible’. Every night after work, I reviewed the contents of what I wrote over and over and over again until it stuck in both Cantonese and Mandarin”.
While I’m proud of Bill's passion for learning the Chinese language, I feel a profound sense of regret for the challenges he faced during his tenure here. This reminds us that while we may come from different backgrounds or speak different languages, we have so much to learn from each other – some of us may want to learn English, some of us may want to learn Chinese. The important part is ensuring T&T is always a welcoming and inclusive workplace, where everyone feels they belong. While the challenges of COVID may have left us isolated in the lunchroom for a time, let’s remember that now is the perfect moment to come together. Let’s sit side by side, share stories, and support each other on our respective journeys. We should all have the opportunity to learn, grow, and realize our full potential within the T&T family.
I extend my heartfelt gratitude to Bill for sharing his T&T journey with us. His story can be found in its entirety at this link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/first-person-t-t-1.6928529. As our T&T family continues to grow and serve an increasingly diverse range of communities, let us commit to fostering an environment of warmth, openness, and acceptance. Together, we can widen our road to success and journey even further.
Tina Lee CEO
The dedicated Brother Hua marches forward
The FM store may be new, but the Produce Department's Ding Hua is anything but new.
Brother Hua always appears when help is needed. Prior to the FM store, he was bustling about in the Produce Department's cooler at the CL and SL store. During his daily work, Brother Hua is always shuttling goods between the cooler and receiving area, and keeping the Produce's cooler in an orderly fashion. He would fully cooperate with the Department Head's plan, completing all tasks without a single complaint, thus earning him high praise from the Department Head.
Besides his high work efficiency, Brother Hua is always willing to help others and resolve new colleagues’ work challenges. He would also help colleagues replenish shelves, keep the Department always fully stocked - a true display of professionalism and dedication. When the time clock was out of order, Brother Hua would report his work hours and progress to the Department Head at the end of the day. During the busy period at store opening and closing, he would actively take on more work, like repairing shopping carts, never shying away from taking on tedious tasks in the department.
Everyone admires Brother Hua's work ethic. He even received unanimous votes for our first monthly outstanding staff selection! He is truly a treasure at our store, we are blessed to have him!
(Fairview Mall store) Store Admin Candy Li
Thinking as a customer, customers is #1
To strengthen the Merchandising Department's understanding of our customers and increase front-line work experience, we began our "Buyer Loves Demo" campaign last year. After experiencing it twice, I now fully understand the importance of thinking as a customer.
During my first time as a promoter, besides having a fairly high success rate promoting to children, customers in other age groups were relatively unresponsive. I wondered, is it because of my voice wasn't clear enough? Or because of the location? In the end, I realized it’s about my opening greetings.
Considering how our customers come from all over the world, I naturally spoke in English at first. Later on, when I realized customers were not responding, I tried using 3 languages (English, Mandarin and Cantonese) at a time. I would pay attention to the language the customers used and quickly followed suit. Sure enough, this change brought results, with customers asking questions and actively interacting.
Thinking back when I first arrived in Canada, I also had the same experience as a customer. While shopping for pork at a western supermarket, I realized they didn't have Cantonese-style cuts or the same part names I was accustomed to, which made difficulties in communicating with the staff. Since I began shopping at T&T, I no longer had those issues because I could talk to staff in my mother tongue and quickly complete my shopping.
Through this, you can see “thinking as a customer” and “customers is #1” are always the most important principles in the retail industry.
(Store Support Centre – Eastern Region) Merchandising Dept. Kent Cheung
To be understood, we must first try to understand others.
Good communication is a crucial part of work. In our busy workday, colleagues' negative emotions can often leak into words or result in venting on others, making it incredibly difficult to work together.
When the store is busy, every person still has to great customers with a smile while working hard with a seemingly never-ending list of tasks. However, some colleagues vent their negative emotions on coworkers: from asking others the progress of work or whether help is needed, it turns into questioning others' abilities; from giving feedback to improve work efficiency turns into criticizing others. Despite being well-intentioned reminders, the wrong tone or words used resulted in turning the goodwill into criticisms, thus creating an accumulation of inexplicable misunderstandings over time.
No matter it's between superior and subordinates, or between peers, mutual understanding and consideration are extremely important during communication. When sharing opinion or pointing out someone's shortcomings, it is important to first understand the other person's thoughts to ensure a smooth communication. Our winning culture encourages telling it as it is. Anyone with any concerns or ideas should express with a positive and friendly way. Effective communication and feedback help make the team better. Before we speak, let's try to think from others perspective. We must first understand others to be better understood by others.
Human Resources Department
2023 P8 Outstanding Staff of the Store
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