RetailFirst AG
Retail
850 Seasonal Hires in 6 Weeks
How a retail chain conquered the annual holiday hiring rush with AI-powered interviews
RetailFirst AG, a Swiss retail chain with 50 store locations, faces the same challenge every year: hire 800-900 seasonal workers in a compressed 6-week window before the holiday shopping season. The process had traditionally been chaotic and recruiter-intensive, with store managers overwhelmed by applications and corporate recruiters struggling to coordinate across dozens of locations. This case study shows how RetailFirst used AI interviews to standardize and accelerate seasonal hiring while improving both candidate experience and quality of hire.
The Results
The Challenge
RetailFirst's seasonal hiring process had evolved organically over the years into an inefficient patchwork. Each of the 50 store managers had their own approach to screening candidates, leading to wildly inconsistent hiring standards. Some stores were highly selective while others hired almost anyone who applied, resulting in uneven customer service quality during the critical holiday season. The corporate recruiting team tried to provide oversight, but with only 8 recruiters supporting 50 stores, they were spread impossibly thin. The volume and timing created additional pressure. Applications flooded in during a narrow 3-week window in October, with most candidates expecting to hear back within days. Store managers, already busy preparing for the holiday season, struggled to find time for phone screens and interviews. The result was a poor candidate experience - long wait times, inconsistent communication, and a general sense of disorganization that caused top candidates to accept offers from competing retailers.
- !Inconsistent screening standards: 50 different store managers using 50 different approaches to candidate evaluation
- !Compressed timeline: Need to screen 2,000+ applications and hire 850 workers in just 6 weeks
- !Store manager overload: Managers already busy with holiday prep, struggling to find time for recruiting
- !Poor candidate experience: Long wait times and inconsistent communication causing top candidates to accept competing offers
The Solution
RetailFirst implemented Talky to create a standardized, automated screening process that could handle high application volumes while maintaining consistent evaluation criteria across all locations. The solution centered on a 10-12 minute AI interview accessible via WhatsApp, phone, or web - giving candidates maximum flexibility to complete screening at their convenience. The interview was designed to assess the key qualities RetailFirst had identified in successful seasonal employees: customer service orientation, availability during peak shopping days (including weekends and evenings), reliability, and ability to handle high-pressure situations. The AI used scenario-based questions like "Describe how you would handle an upset customer who wants to return an item without a receipt" to evaluate both problem-solving and communication skills. Candidates who passed the AI screening were automatically scheduled for in-person interviews with their local store manager, with the scheduling coordinated through the Talky platform.
- Standardized evaluation: Same screening criteria and questions across all 50 store locations
- Multi-channel flexibility: Candidates could interview via WhatsApp, phone, or web based on preference
- Scenario-based assessment: Real-world customer service scenarios to evaluate problem-solving and communication
- Automated scheduling: Qualified candidates automatically offered in-person interview slots with local store managers
Implementation Process
RetailFirst began implementation in late August, giving themselves a 6-week runway before the October hiring push. The project was led by the corporate recruiting team in partnership with a task force of experienced store managers who helped design the interview questions and scoring rubric. A key implementation decision was to make the AI interview the first step in the process, with all applicants receiving an automated interview invitation within 1 hour of submitting their application. This ensured fast, consistent candidate engagement across all locations while allowing store managers to focus their time only on candidates who had already been vetted.
Question Design & Calibration (Weeks 1-2)
Task force of top-performing store managers identified key competencies and designed scenario-based interview questions. Tested questions with internal staff and previous high-performing seasonal workers. Established scoring thresholds by comparing AI evaluations to manager assessments.
System Integration (Weeks 3-4)
Integrated Talky with RetailFirst's ATS and implemented automated workflows. Configured location-based routing to ensure candidates were connected with their nearest store. Set up manager dashboards for each store location.
Manager Training (Week 5)
Trained all 50 store managers on interpreting AI scorecards, reviewing interview transcripts, and using the scheduling system. Created quick-reference guides and established a support channel for technical questions.
Pilot & Refinement (Week 6)
Soft-launched at 5 pilot stores with early job postings. Monitored completion rates, candidate feedback, and manager satisfaction. Made final adjustments to interview flow and scheduling logic before full October launch.
The Results
The 2024 holiday hiring season was RetailFirst's smoothest ever. The AI system screened 2,341 candidates in 6 weeks - a volume that would have been impossible to handle with traditional phone screens. The average time from application to completed screening dropped from 11 days to 2 hours, dramatically improving candidate engagement. Store managers praised the quality of candidates reaching in-person interviews, noting that they could now focus their time on culture-fit assessment rather than basic qualification screening. RetailFirst successfully hired 867 seasonal workers, exceeding their target by 17. More importantly, the quality of hires showed measurable improvement. Holiday season customer satisfaction scores were 8% higher than the previous year, and seasonal worker retention (completing the full holiday season) increased from 82% to 91%. Store managers reported saving an average of 15 hours per store on recruiting activities, allowing them to focus on training and operations during the critical November-December period.
"Talky transformed our seasonal hiring from a dreaded annual chaos into a well-oiled machine. Our store managers can now focus on running their stores instead of being buried in phone screens, and we're hiring better people faster. It's been a game-changer for our holiday operations."
Anna Becker
Head of Talent Acquisition, RetailFirst AG
Key Takeaways
Standardized AI screening ensures consistent hiring standards across multiple locations
Multi-channel interview options (WhatsApp, phone, web) maximize completion rates for seasonal candidates
Automated, immediate candidate engagement (within 1 hour) is critical during high-competition hiring periods
Scenario-based interview questions are more effective than traditional Q&A for assessing customer service skills
Freeing managers from screening allows them to focus on culture-fit assessment and operations during peak seasons
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