Bit of background on me, I just got hired on at an Ohio branch of Kroger's 4 weeks ago in the bakery. And thus far, have met some friendly enough peeps, and some peeps with personalities I'm already learning I won't be able to work with that well because they come up with 99 excuses why they can't do the work, etc. But that isn't what this post is about.
My post is actually about 1. How exactly is training supposed to go exactly? I mean I'm still a trainee and aside from one day of learning stuff out the training binder and another two to do some on the online ACT stuff on the computers. Is the majority of the training meant to be more on-the-job from various other experienced employees, vs. being trained solely by the one initial trainer your assigned to?(If so, can totally see why there is so much ineffective communication going on so far, with so many different takes on doing things right now).
And my 2nd question, since I'm mostly on the afternoon to evening shifts now, I've been tasked with either slacking out the doughnuts, cleaning drains, and so forth(or as I dub it, the easy stuff). However, the not so easy stuff is having to do this freaking Computer Assisted Production Report every night. Now given that I've been told how to do it like 4 different times and I still can't understand how to do it, and nobody ever seems to have enough time to show me a bit more one on one. I'm coming here. I think read a few posts back that someone was talking about the CAP report. I was just wondering if someone can break it down for me step by step. So I can get it down properly in my notes? Thanks.
Ok, assuming that you have the same RF gun as we do:
Log in, select 6. for CAP. Once in there, it will give you three options, there is 1. Bake for Today, 2. Bake for Tomorrow, and 3. Thaw and Sell.
If you are doing breakout (all the bread and dough, pies, etc) for tomorrow, select 2. bake for tomorrow. Then you scan each item that is baked in store. For example, we'll say small croissants for the first item. Scan the barcode for it, and then hit the blue f button, and 2 to edit. Count the good date croissants. Today is the 27th. 28s got marked down today, and you skip one more day, so we are counting 30s today. Say you have 3 packs of 30th dating crossiants. In the cap, put that you have 3 available for sale, then hit enter. It should then spit out a number. This is the number you are to break out tonight. In my example, it would say that we should break out 5 packs of mini croissants. Depending on your store, that number might be bigger or smaller. Then hit the blue button again, and hit 5 to save it. Do this for each item you are going to be breaking out tonight.
If you are doing CAP for filling tables, you would use 3. Thaw and Sell, and if you are using CAP for things you are making currently, like cookies, you would select 1. Bake for Today.
I hope this made a little sense. if not i'll try to explain better.
-- Edited by 4hourrush on Tuesday 27th of September 2016 09:41:18 PM
Oh my gosh thank you so much! That actually makes things MUCH, easier to understand. However I still have a few additional questions.
And will say that from how it sounds so far. We do have a similar RF gun at least in regards to the initial login, bake for today, bake for tomorrow, and thaw and sell, stuff. Although from the times I've been told about how to use it. It was just in regards for the bake for tomorrow. Although when I've seen other CAP reports done they had other products listed too(totally appreciate the help on how to do those other items as well). But this is where my additional questions into play:
1. AFS(which I remember being told stands for what you have on hand), but to clarify that further, does that mean the AFS also stands for the product that is still up-to-date? Vs. the total amount of the product already on the shelf already?
2. You mentioned that once you put in the number for the good dates you should get an automatic read out on what to break out(I also could be wrong in where I've been looking at it on the gun or misunderstanding it or given how old the guns are, I don't think our model may have it). Is that number in the space after the word Stand? Or does Stand just mean how many total the display table/case can hold at one time? I truly ask this particular question, because I believe I was told a time or two, as you explained it, to make sure to do the 2 days out count to see what good product is left and then considering how much the shelf is typically meant to hold(3 high through the week and on weekends 4 high), figure from there how much should be brought out from the freezer or made.
3. Do you have to scan/count anything from the freezer as well? Add on question to this one as well. When it comes to counting the items in reserve, should you do this before or after assessing the floor for the last time that night? I always get this so confused. Because they want us to scan the stuff in reserve and yet still also fill holes too. And I'm like, dude, this is too much math and figuring this with that. So I've kind of gotten into the habit of counting what was in reserve first before any goes out on the floor again first. But now that I'm thinking about it(without being in a rush to do it right at the moment) it would likely be better to do it afterward cause then that way, we would have less holes to account for/fill in the morning right?
4. And one last question for the night/morning here. My trainer had showed me a way of where you write it down on a piece of pair. Two columns and at the top of each you write Fill and Pull. Now I get the Pull side is for how much will need to be brought out from the freezer. But for the Fill side, again will that be for your stuff that is up-to-date and still good?(like you said for the 30 days example).
Thanks again 4hourrush too for all the help by the way. I think you've been the most informative person I've gotten answers from about the CAP report situation. And thankfully I'm off for the next two days but I'm going to take all your answers and jot em down in my notes so I can finally master this thing! :D
AFS means available for sale. That is the number of items that are out for sale that is up-to-date.
Stand is the standard which is how many of a product can fit on the shelf or the minimum of that item that should be out at a time.
The number that tells you how many to make is the bottom number. I forget what that ones called right now.
You shouldn't have to count anything from the freezer in breakout cap. However you should count any good date items that you might have on backstock. Items that have been made but not yet put out. What I do for that is write down everything that is on the backstock cart that way I dent have to try to remember it all or guess.
Not sure about your last question because we done do that here. That must be something your department has come up with. Glad I could help a little bit though. :)
Again thank you so much for explaining all of this. And for sure with as much scanning one has to do, I swear we need like 3 people to do CAP. Like the bakers for the morning stuff. Whoever they want on the cookies for the day and also who is helping to keep the floor filled.
But given that we are moving to a new store and there are so many trainees right now mixed in with the crew at the current location at the moment. Shifts have either been uber over crowded or very few peeps on a shift at a time.
But yea now I can say I have some know how on the CAP situation understood finally! Oh and one last question, in your opinion when assessing the floor for "holes" do you think it would go faster or not using the RF gun? As of now they want us to go out there with a pencil and paper and do it that way. But if your on the evening shift it's suddenly all about the RF gun and busting that out. Which now that I understand things more clearly, my thinking is that it would make far more sense to probably use the RF gun more frequently that way to do the CAP report throughout the day maybe just to keep track of things a little better.
i'm surprised they're telling you just to write it down, because here they're all about making sure we get as many cap scans as possible. so i'd recommend doing it that way.
My only guess is because the guns are used for so many other things during the day. And with them being so old and temperamental, they probably want to save the CAP reports to just once a day and during the end of the day. But as we also have quite a few new hires in there at one time, they probably figure it's the best way to train/give us something to do. And it's much easier to tell us to grab one of the yellow legal pads and a pen and get out on the floor and do the assessment. But to be honest with you, I don't really like doing it that way. As we tend to have a wee bit*cough*read as a major problem*cough* with communication and people listening to each other. So makes the assessment even more trying.
