Bahrain Institute of Hospitality and Retail (BIHR) have entered into a partnership with the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) to deliver internationally recognized qualifications and locally relevant training programs to meet the needs of the fast growing retail industry (see ‘Our partners’ link). The partnership between BIHR and ARA will enable the retail industry to benefit from the  introduction of competency based accredited programs that will further develop retail standards and retail career pathways for Bahrain retailers. The ARA Retail Project is supported by Tamkeen, formerly the Bahraini Labour Fund and overseen and accredited by ARA.  The aim of the project is to train Bahraini Nationals in the basic retail skills required to enter employment in the retail industry and further develop the skills of existing employees currently working in the retail industry.  The project delivers qualifications from the Australian Retail Training Package developed by retailers and educational experts and accredited in Australia and designed to develop the skills and knowledge of retail employees from entry level to management level. 

The following Certificates are part of the Retail Training Package:

Certificate I Retail Operations
Certificate II Retail Operations
Certificate III Retail Operations
Certificate IV Retail Management
Diploma of Retail Management

Assessment strategies are based on the measurement of competency which must be consistently demonstrated over a period of time and observed by the assessor and/or a technical expert working in partnership with the assessor. The technical expert may include the workplace supervisor and/or an experienced industry person. The ultimate outcome of the assessment process must be validated by the ARA. Assessment Methods may include one or more of the following: observation of workplace tasks; written or oral questioning to assess knowledge; completing workplace documents; role plays; case studies; projects; and on the job training portfolio. The most appropriate method of assessing workplace competency is through demonstration and observation in the workplace, under normal working conditions and with the assistance from tools, equipment, job aids and work colleagues that would normally be available on the job.

Overview of Certificate II in Retail

Program Outcomes

Students who demonstrate competency in the competency standards within the Certificate II in Retail will achieve the following vocational outcomes:

• perform a range of tasks and roles using discretion and judgment about possible action within established routines and methods in a retail workplace;
• use pre-established standard methods and procedures to solve problems in a retail workplace;
• communicate clearly and coherently so that information is organised for a purpose within a retail workplace environment;
• assess and record information within a retail workplace environment;
• monitor the outcomes of their own work and follow through activities to learn from their performance;
• implement guidelines for Occupational Health and Safety;
• utilise technical skills to operate within a retail workplace environment; and
• work with others to achieve agreed objectives within specified time frames.

Job roles

Possible job titles include: sales assistant; customer service representative; crew member; and checkout operator.

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Overview of Certificate III in Retail

The Certificate III in Retail is designed to develop the skills and knowledge of those employees wishing to enter a more specialized role. Those who are undertaking a more specialized role would be responsible for advanced selling and/or visual merchandising.

Program Outcomes

• apply knowledge related to a broad range of tasks in the performance of those tasks in a retail workplace;
• apply specialized knowledge related to specified tasks in the performance of those specialized tasks in a retail workplace, e.g. visual merchandising;
• evaluate options, or exercise some discretion, and make judgments to resolve issues and solve problems in a retail environment;
• collaborate with others to resolve issues;
• apply and transfer knowledge and skills in a variety of retail environments;
• manage and evaluate their own performance, and/or co-ordinate the work of teams;
• interpret and represent information in a variety of retail contexts; and
• explain occupational health and safety and other regulatory matters.

Job roles

Possible job titles include: visual merchandise coordinator; sales assistant; customer service representative; crew leader; shift manager; team leader; department manager; assistant store manager; and checkout supervisor.

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Overview of Diploma in Retail Management

Program Outcomes

• apply a broad range of techniques, technical knowledge and expertise in the performance of a broad range of tasks in a retail workplace
• monitor the work performance of themselves and others
• develop strategies to allocate resources for a broad range of tasks in a retail workplace
• apply knowledge and skills in a variety of contexts within priorities, methods and procedures established by the retail employer/enterprise
• choose and execute appropriate communication mediums which meet the needs of various target groups within a retail environment
• manage and evaluate their own performance, and co-ordinate the work of teams
• obtain and distil broad information from a variety of sources and convey relevant information to various target groups within a retail environment
• apply Occupational Health and Safety and other regulatory codes

Job roles

Possible job titles include: store manager; merchandise manager; buyer; and sales manager.

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