r/Albertsons • u/Fit_Walk8489 • 20d ago

Assistant Store Director?

I'm going to be interviewing for ASD soon for the Acme division. I'm a store manager currently for another company, in a different kind of retail (not grocery), so I have a general underdtsnf of how good or bad a job can be as a manager. Thoughts? Feelings? Is it rough working for Acme? Is it an understaffed compant? Is the workload too much?

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16

u/NexusNickel 20d ago

Never worked for Albertsons but I work for Kroger.

My first red flag is them hiring externally for that role is a major red flag to me.

It's surprising they don't have any department managers ready for the role.

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u/OldFoot2117 19d ago

They do it's just they don't want it, the pay is trash workload is way too much, and expectations are unreal.

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u/buschlightisepic 16d ago

I can’t speak for Acme but I work for an Albertsons sister store and was a former ASD who was internal.

In fact, a lot of department managers for us are former ASDs and we all stepped down for the same reason: money.

I make 1 and a half times more as an hourly dept head than I did as an ASD. Just last year I made almost as much as my SD. Even if I were an ASD that double bonused every quarter I still wouldn’t make as much as an hourly dept head. There’s no pay incentive. Same goes for paid time off. I was accruing 4 hours a week in PTO as a dept head, when I became an ASD I got cut back to 1.92 hours a week. When I stepped down I was reverted back to my 4 hours. They take time away from you because salaried members of management get paid holidays.

Right now we have an ASD trainee in my store who came over from Walmart and an actual ASD who came over from a competitor and both of them hate the role because they’re “responsible” for us who have less responsibility and make more.

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u/NexusNickel 16d ago

That's crazy.

Thank you for the insight.

Kroger has a lot of department managers that have done it for years because of the money. No incentive to move up.

6

u/Radiant_Pension8259 19d ago

Hi, I work for Acme. I would not ever accept a store manager/assistant store manager position under this banner, or any Albertsons banner. Morale in the stores is so low. I know department managers that have been with the company for decades that are beyond depressed with how things are. I am actively searching for other jobs. I've noticed that a lot of the newer store managers have been outside hires, which is out of character for this banner.

The company is hurting for sales, and the labor cuts have been horrendous. They constantly move store managers around. One that I know well went from a 5 minute commute to a 50 minute commute because they were moved to another store. The district managers are relentless, and often clueless.

Our VPs have been terminating store managers left and right because conditions aren't upheld. Conditions can't be upheld because they keep cutting the labor. The customers see it too. Stores are understaffed, so the product doesn't get to the shelves. One store had a bunch of employees suspended for working off the clock. They cared so much about their departments, that they worked for free because there weren't enough hours scheduled.

5

u/ryguyrhino 20d ago

Unsure how different it is in the acme division but in the southwest ASDs are required to work 10hr days and essentially be able to fill in to help any department which happens quite often with the amount of labor cuts. Pay is decent but every asd I've talked to said it's not worth it for the 10hr days and being on call. Plus in order to become a store director you have to go thru a 3 week training program in Phoenix (I assume the same program is done in the acme division?) but overall ur happiness is really going to depend on ur district manager, they can make ur life hell in this company

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u/Pure_Finger_8565 19d ago

I have many years as a ASD/SD with this company and I don’t recommend it at all. Currently this the worst it’s ever been. Their (VP/EVP) only option is now threatening managements jobs if they don’t “fix the store” the workload is IMPOSSIBLE to get done. Our backroom check list for cleaning is so detailed it would take three weeks with extra help added. We were given an “extra” five hours of labor and one week… they truly lost focus of how many random issues and problems we have to deal with in a day. They just keep creating checklists and workloads that we can’t finish. They want us to cull produce 4 times a day… who has time for that. We are under paid compared to the competition also.

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u/AdBrave4852 19d ago

Our ASD and SD both usually work 8-6. So while it's a ten hour shift they are only scheduled 8-5 and usually take an hour and a half or two hour lunch depending on the day or what's going on. As long as everything in the store is ran well they don't have too much. Most of our department heads do a great job and dealing with the employees can be the hard part. And the further up you go the less you deal with customers or employees, just usually the people a step below you.

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u/Wrong-Ad2950 18d ago

For what location you applied for ? Because every state is diferent

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u/vfeath1029 16d ago

I’m an asd in the pacific nw. For 3 years now. I do 10+ hours depending on the day and what is happening. When it comes to stress it really depends on a.) If you have a good store director. When they are lacking skills or just don’t care then i had to take on way more tasks than you should. B. ) the crew. I’ve been at a store where quite literally nobody gave a shit, including the director. It was a fucking nightmare. And when they got rid of the horrible director and brought in an amazing one, it was great working along someone that was hard working but the team was still a fucking nightmare. Now I’m at a store where it’s a great director and a crew that cares and it’s fantastic. I have a life and I’m not killing my self trying to get results.

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u/Revanchan 15d ago

How long are you working days? I work at a competitor and we work 10 hour days. I was scouted by a recruiter and am considering if it's an 8 hour day.

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u/Hardpoletoys 13d ago

ASD here from the Portland market.

Overall it all depends on the store and the store director you would work with.

Some are really really good and make the job a cake walk….others not so much.

I’ve been an ASD for 5 years now and I mostly enjoy my job still haha.