Lorissa Martin, talent acquisition and performance manager for the Wills Group, has been busy implementing new human resources (HR) programs and updating processes to help boost employee retention and engagement.
Martin has held her current HR position for 13 months, but she’s worked in retail since she was 16.
“(I was) a store manager, and, of course, managing operations and hiring and loving all of that aspect. And then (I transitioned) into HR on the staffing side,” said Martin. “It’s a totally different kind of ballgame with staffing. You get really great foundational skills (such as) recruiting and how to manage processes. …”
In 2019, Martin began her tenure with the Wills Group, which operates 60-plus Dash In convenience stores in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, as well as 50-plus Splash In Eco Car Washes and SMO Motor Fuels.
She started with the company as a recruiting coordinator and found a quick career path into management.
CStore Decisions is recognizing Martin with an HR Award for her drive to give employees the tools needed to succeed at the company and her commitment to improving everyday processes.
“I love having the ability to interface with so many different people on a given day,” said Martin. “Taking the feedback and the wants and needs from our hiring managers and being able to interpret those into either process improvements or new programs, that’s what brings me a lot of joy. I also love the fact that I get to really help with people’s career path and development.”
Lorissa Martin
Strengthening Development Programs
Martin manages talent acquisition for the retail stores with both Dash In and Splash In as well as the headquarters positions; she also handles the entire performance management process.
“A lot of development gets woven into there; how we connect the dots between our company’s culture, values and competencies all into performance,” she said. “For me, (performance) makes me super excited. … And it ties in so well with talent acquisition because it’s that hand off.”
In her role, Martin also oversees onboarding and compensation, in addition to the constant evaluation and iteration of new processes with the solutions that are in place.
In 2021, Martin created the LEAD program, which stands for Leadership, Excellence, Achievement and Development. It gives assistant managers a path toward store manager positions.
“We recognize that there is a gap for our assistant managers to really be successful as store managers. And so, I wanted to create a program that gives them that foundation to really be able to hit the ground running and gives them real-life application and exposure into the role prior to actually moving into it. It gives them also a lot of tools to prepare them for that,” said Martin.
Since its start, four assistant managers have been transitioned into store manager positions after
completing the year-long program.
Another development Martin is proud of is the General Education Development Test (GED) program offered to hourly employees that haven’t received a high school diploma or GED. The Wills Group pays for 100% of the cost, and through a partnership with GEDWorks, these employees are given hands-on, one-on-one guidance with a counselor to support them through the process.
In the past year, Martin also helped revamp the talent referral program.
“Now, for every sales associate referral, an employee receives $500 all the way up to $2,000 in a referral bonus based off of the specific position,” said Martin. “We are all fighting to get the best talent, and some of the best talent that you can get is from referrals. So being able to revamp it with a better incentive program has really worked out in our favor.”
This year, Martin is launching the Wills Group’s first formal internship program.
“I’m beyond excited. I feel like I have all those nervous excitement butterflies in my tummy each time I think about it. But we have a lot of fun stuff coming up to really just help continue driving our organization forward,” Martin said.
The company’s new Series 3 modeling concept, an initiative every department has had a hand in, is one of these upcoming moves. A soft open for Dash In’s new c-store concept just launched in a brand-new market for the company in Virginia.
Employee Retention
One of the biggest HR challenges Martin has noticed aside from attracting talent is retention. She believes it’s important to have programs in place focused on employee development, recognition and engagement.
“We feel like if we have those things in place, we typically will see increased feelings of connection and belonging. And that’ll result in better improvement of retention,” she said.
To boost retention, the Wills Group uses engagement surveys twice a year to gather employee feedback. The company then takes the data and turns it into action plans that will resonate with employees’ exact needs.
The Wills Group has just been re-certified as a great place to work through the Great Place to Work survey and has seen an increase in employee ratings and participation.
