Discourse Communities April 25, 2017kellimooreenglishcomp2 Kelli Moore English Comp Professor Blasi 21 March 2017 The Specifics of Retail Discourse As written by Julia Gilstein from the Salem Press Encyclopedia, “A discourse community is a group of people who share certain characteristics and interests and, as a result of ongoing communications within that group, share language practices for communicating the group’s goals” (Gilstein) Our daily lives are being constantly ran through discourse and discourse communities without us even realizing it We have daily discourse with our families, peers at school, professors, or even just random people on the train Although discourse and speech between peers and others is a common, daily practice, most people belong to specific discourse communities in which they share thoughts and ideas The main discourse community that I belong to is that of my job in retail, at Hollister Co in Cherry Hill, New Jersey Much like most other retail stores, our overall common goal is to promote sales, make money for the company, and provide excellent customers service that will make the customer want to return Our style and vibe is “beachy”, so we like to keep our store feeling laid-back and care-free Although retail jobs are usually loathed and feared by many, our community has always been one that makes workers want to come back and be excited for their shifts The managers offer a positive, rewarding, and calm attitude This should not be fooled for being lazy and something to take advantage of They manage to be laid-back while still enforcing rules and encouraging their workers to work hard and complete their tasks As workers, we are always encouraged to approach customers with a smile and to offer help to anyone and everyone, even if it means dropping your current task to go and find a jean size in the stock room for someone I have been with the company for almost a year and a half, and the main reason I have stayed so long was the relationships and bonds that associates are able to form with each other, their managers, and even customers My discourse community often uses both verbal and textual communications on the daily basis There is an associate text message group chat in which each of the store associates joins when they start working with the store In this group chat, associates ask their peers for coverage for shifts, or even just general questions about the job or their schedule The group chat was created for there to be an easy, laid-back discourse between associates in order to have their problems solved before taking it up with a manager As for verbal, associates are almost constantly speaking with others at the job They speak within their own discourse community when talking to managers or other associates But since this community is found in a retail job, associates are always engaging in discourse with the customers of the store; another discourse community of its own Lastly, there is a “Company Corkboard” hanging up in the back of the store inside of the stock room On this board, there are multiple papers up in order to keep associates informed on how the store is doing, if there are any upcoming corporate events, or even “if there was an alternation of mall hours” (Chen) When surveying my fellow associates, I came to see that although each person believed both verbal and textual discourse were imperative to our community, their final answers on which was used more depended exactly on what position they work in the store I surveyed a mixture of both Brand Reps, which are sales associates who tasks such as folding clothes, helping customers, and running the cash registers, and Stock Associates, which are associates who work primarily in the stock room, performing tasks like back stocking clothes, censoring shipment boxes, and preparing for store floorset updates I began to realize that brand reps exclusively said they believed that verbal communication was used more commonly in the store, while stock associates also exclusively said they used textual communication more This is directly caused by the fact that stock associates spend most of their shifts alone in the stock room, while brand reps are almost always out in the front of the store speaking to customers When I asked the question, “Do you communicate with your coworkers more often through text messaging or verbal speaking?”, the only people to answer with “text messaging” were the stock associates They also seemed to be the associates that checked the text message group chat the most often, with one stock associate Corinne LaGrange answering with, “3-4 times a day” (LaGrange) Another associate that started out working stock when they first joined the company but now works brand rep shifts sometimes, Collin Blanchard, answered this question with “every day” (Blanchard) These answers are different than that of a full time brand rep Justine DeLa Cruz, a brand rep of almost two years, answered that she only check the group chat whenever she sees there is a notification on her phone (DeLa Cruz), as well as 7- month brand rep Sydney Gallagher, who replied “only check when someone texts in it” (Gallagher) Brand reps, or sales associates, are the ones who believe they use verbal communication more often at work, mainly between other associates and coworkers Gallagher again stated, “I feel that the interactions between associates and managers are always friendly and motivational” when asked how she felt about the discourse of the environment (Gallagher) When interviewing my fellow workers, I began to see that there were some discourse issues that had arisen Two separate associates, one brand rep and one stock associate, both said that the close-knit type of community that we hold is almost like a breeding ground for gossip Brand rep and key holder Ali Flanagan was asked how she felt about the discourse of our environment, and she stated, “I think we are all carried away (even me) talking to other associates and customers complain about it! So we should take care of the customers first then move to us!” (Flanagan) Stock associate Corinne LaGrange answered the same question with “I think we have a positive work environment with our communication I feel comfortable talking to my managers about any issues I think one communication problem is that we gossip too much and it takes us away from our work.” (LaGrange) Too much of a positive and laid-back discourse can lead to problems, such as gossip, feeling comfortable enough to be on your phone in front of customers and they in turn complain about incompetence, and lack of focus John Swales has came up with six key criteria in defining a discourse community He writes, “he defining characteristics of a discourse community might be (1) communality of interest, (2) mechanisms for intercommunication between members, (3) survival by providing information and feedback, (4) development of genre-specific discoursal expectations, (5) possession of an embedded dynamic towards an increasingly shared and specialized terminology, and (6) a critical mass of members with a suitable degree of relevant discoursal and content expertise.” (Swales) These six criteria are imperative when looking at the community of Cherry Hill Hollister Co We each have a common interest, which is primarily to make the company money and to promote a positive environment for ourselves and our customers Our text message group chat is our main mechanism for “intercommunication between members” (Swales) As workers, we are constantly receiving feedback from our managers during “five minute meetings”, which are short meeting with one of the managers during the end of your shift In these meetings, there is a discussion about your performance at the store recently, what you are doing right, and what could use improvement Our company has developed specialized speech as well Instead of calling people sales associates, we call them brand reps We have specific words for specific tasks, such as back stock, taking a lap, and standardizing Conclusion In summary, when looking at the deeper, bigger picture of all of this, it is important to see how the discourse community of Cherry Hill Hollister Co is crucial in shaping how all other retailers create a safe, fun, and supportive work environment for their workers Our leaders treat us with respect while still making sure we don’t hate coming to work every shift They give us opportunities to get involved with the surrounding communities For example, my discourse community worked with local Pennsylvania charity Operation Warm to donate our old, unused coats to children and families in need of a warm winter jacket My community is not just a group of workers coming together and speaking every few days about work activities, we have grown to be a family and a group that deeply cares for one another and others We have taken our care for one another and the company and translated that into care for others in surrounding communities References Blanchard, Collin Personal Interview March 2017 Chen, Amanda Personal Interview 10 March 2017 DeLa Cruz, Justine Personal Interview March 2017 Flanagan, Ali Personal Interview March 2017 Gallagher, Sydney Personal Interview March 2017 Gilstein, Julia “Discourse Community.” Salem Press Encyclopedia, January EBSCOhost, login.proxy.libraries.rutgers.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/ login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=90558295&site=eds-live LaGrange, Corrine Personal Interview March 2017 Swales, John “Approaching The Concept of Discourse Community.” (n.d.): n pag ERIC Web 18 Mar 2017