Hot Topic

DON’T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS NOSE RING

If you have a fashion-forward teenager (or shop for one) you have probably heard of Hot Topic, a highly successful mall-based retail chain that specializes in clothing, accessories, gifts, and music. Hot Topic’s motto is “everything about the music” and the merchandise reflects a variety of trendy music-related lifestyles including punk, club and gothic. It’s not a typical mall store, and neither are the employees.

At first glance, HR professionals might not think of the tattooed, body-pierced salespeople and store managers as candidates for corporate advancement. Hot Topic management believes otherwise, and with the help of Milestones, Inc. they have created a leadership program to develop the district managers, executives and other leaders they need to supervise the chain’s rapid growth.

Hot Topic believes in a fair and developmental environment for all employees, and is committed to promotion from within. “Development is a company-wide goal,” says Jane Cruz, Hot Topic’s senior vice president of human resources. “Our plan is to grow our people fast enough to stay ahead of our very hot growth rate. That’s why all of our directors, vice-presidents and senior vice-presidents are going through leadership training.”

Honor Their Identities
Cruz had previously worked with Milestones, Inc. at Universal Television, and she again sought Madelon Miles’ expertise to develop a leadership program that built on Hot Topic’s in-house operations training. Senior management knew Madelon had a reputation for not prejudging clients. “After the first half-hour of the program, I didn’t even notice the nose rings any more,” says Madelon. “And they’ve become one of my favorite clients.”

Madelon’s approach was informed by Hot Topic’s “open culture” that respects individuality and honors initiative. She built on this strong foundation by speaking candidly about the goals of the three-day program and her role in facilitating learning. She explained that leadership is more than a technique, it’s an attitude to be lived and used outside the company as well.

Many of Hot Topic’s employees are young people who feel they “don’t fit in” elsewhere, so it was important to honor their identities. The development work began with individual assessments to help participants understand their own styles and motivations. Coaching and performance management were also discussed, especially how to help team members accept advice without making them defensive.

Buddies For Reinforcement
Interactive exercises played an important role. Participants worked through such simulations as how to welcome an “apprehensive suburban Mom on her first trip to Hot Topic” and make her comfortable shopping there. The sessions finished with presentation skills, with each participant preparing a two-minute “standup speech.” What might have been intimidating at the beginning of the workshop became a profound experience. People made major shifts in how they saw themselves, as well as how they interacted with their team members,” says Madelon. “It got very emotional as people shared how important this was for them.”

The program’s success reinforced Madelon’s and Hot Topic’s belief that if you can’t see beyond appearances or limit people because of their age or experience, employees will probably meet your low expectations. But if you accept them and challenge them, they can take a “cool job” and make it a career. It’s an attitude management everyone can adopt to motivate people to give their best for any organization. In fact, that’s leadership.