 |
||
|
|
||
| |||||||||||
Right on Target Huge and sprawling, the Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (formerly known as Dayton Hudson until the company changed its name to reflect its largest subsidiary) is easily among the largest general merchandise companies in the United States. It employs over 281,000 people in 44 states, and operates approximately 1,200 stores nationwide. Target runs a bevy of operations, Mervyn's California, Dayton's, Hudson's, and Marshall Field's. Up against such discount debutantes as Wal-Mart and Kmart, Target has its fair share of competition. Nevertheless, the company is always looking for ways to bolster sales. With its acquisition of direct marketer Rivertown Trading in 1998, Target has even yielded to the lure of Internet commerce. Two is better than one The retailing powerhouse was created in 1969 by the merger of department stores owned by Dayton and Hudson. Both stores had their beginnings in the early 1900s. The founders made names for themselves by replacing bargaining with price marking, and offering return privileges and liberal credit. Dayton built the world's first fully-enclosed shopping mall in 1956, and opened the first Target discount store in 1962. Target now controls Dayton's and Hudson's stores along with retailers Target, Mervyn's, and Marshall Field's. In denial of diversity? The Target chain itself currently generates about 70 percent of the company's revenue. As an "upscale discounter," Target has, since its inception in 1962, presented itself as an inexpensive department store that offers more selection and class than competitors Kmart and Wal-Mart. The chain has taken flack for its militant approach to worker conduct and for its allegedly unfair employee practices. Company officials refused to file a company-wide affirmative action plan with Minneapolis - a decision that prompted a 1984 debarment order by the city's Civil Rights Commission. In 1998, company officials said that a proposed Target store in the same city had been the target of an "orchestrated" and "unfair" attack over affirmative action. In a rare public appearance, senior vice president Jim Hale defended the company's diversity, saying that a third of its 230,000 employees are minorities. In less controversial news, Target's Mervyn's subsidiary decided to cut costs to bolster sales in 1996. Given a one-year deadline to improve or face restructuring, Mervyn's replaced 70 percent of its senior management, improved its customer services, and reintroduced discontinued product lines such as women's dresses. (Wall) Street-wise Target has impressed Wall Street with its continued growth and impressive earnings. Says one securities analyst of Target's success (before the name change): "Dayton Hudson is a wonderful company. They have a great growth vehicle in Target, which has a significant amount of growth potential left." Target plans on opening 80 stores in 2000 after opening 70 in 1999. But Target's golden child at the same time is undermining sales at sibling Mervyn's - the company has indicated that it may unload the chain if sales do not improve. Out with the new! In 1998, Jerry Storch, Target's president of credit and new businesses, announced the company's dislike of the Internet. He ridiculed the Net as an inferior engine for selling merchandise, commenting that sales on the Web are snail-paced. "While it's topical and perhaps 'hip' to tinker with the Internet," proclaimed a scorching Storch, "this technology does not provide a license to ignore longstanding retailer-vendor relationships. We need a lot less thoughtless euphoria about the Internet and a lot more good, old-fashioned common sense." Storch's disdain notwithstanding, the company can't claim absolute aversion to the Internet. It's web site is www.target.com and for now its not being spun-off like many other brick and mortar retailers (including WalMart) have done with their e-commerce sites. Storch says Target is employing a "hyper clicks-and-mortar strategy. Every segment in our company will have an Internet component within the next five years." Target has also signed an agreement with E-Trade to open E-Trade trading centers in many of its stores.
"Intelligent, quick learners who are open to change and dedicated to doing a good job" will do well at Target, where a background in retail "is a plus, but not required." One insider advises, "learn a little bit about the company, and arrive on time!" Each of Target's operating companies - Target, Mervyn's, and department stores - conducts its own interviews. "Though Target's interviews are the most intense," one insider notes, "most of the companies will want to know the standard interview stuff." The typical interview process begins with an initial human resources screening, followed by two or more interviews with potential managers and co-workers in the specific department. Depending on the job, "second and third round interviews can be technical." Interviews can also involve "a programming test," which is "like flow charting and some basic math." Nevertheless, job offers are "not based on how well you do on the test." Another informant remarks "it helps to know someone on the inside." As is the case with most companies, interviewers are often "eager to hear about your assets from someone already here" Once through the door, "don't expect a lot of pay. Retail is extremely cheap." Regardless of pay, one insider advises: "Start in the management training program, not the selling floor. Unless you want to be a buyer or a part of upper management, retail will take you nowhere."
Impressions of pay and promotion Spread throughout the nation, Target employees praise the "flexible" corporate structure that offers "frequent chances for promotion." "The upward mobility is the best part of working here," reports one insider, "I have increased my income 25 percent in the past year!" While advancement "sometimes requires relocation," the size of Target's chains enables employees to stay "committed to a single geographic region." The size of the company also makes generalizations difficult. Pay, dress, and hours vary by location and department. While one insider in Information Services reports, "the job pays really well" and another insider describes it as "very competitive," others call the pay scale "unimpressive." Seasons change, hours change Though hours are typically 9 to 5, "long days are expected in departments with seasonal deadlines." Many departments offer "flexible scheduling," around the core hours of "9 to 3." Some employees "work 10 hour days Monday through Thursday, and take Friday off." Dress code "ranges" from "business casual to "just plain business." Most contacts report that Target people are "very friendly and helpful." Though the 401(k) plan is "excellent," and "probably the best in the industry," some note that health benefits "are average or below average." Sources also appreciate the "tuition reimbursement program," "discounted merchandise," and "free tickets to basketball games, concerts, and other events." Insight Despite the company's sullied reputation when it comes to diversity, insiders say "Target has done well in treating women." Furthermore, "there is a group called Insight which is like a social group for minorities." Another informant reveals, "Women and minorities seem to me to have as much chance as anyone around here - employee diversity is valued, and I think management is close to 50 percent female." Another chimes, "We were rated number one in the Midwest for our treatment of women and minorities." When the brain shuts down... Company culture is "a hard thing to understand," insists one insider. "My brain shuts down when the human resources people start droning on about mission statements, corporate culture, and other similar fluff." What she does understand, however, is that "Target values employees who do their jobs well." The company also "appreciates new ideas and the people who introduce them." Is there any drawback to living in Minneapolis, the Target headquarters? "Parking is expensive!" exclaims one. "And my garage is about seven blocks away from the office, which takes around 15 minutes to walk every morning and evening. But being a couple of blocks closer would cost $200 more each month."
Human Resources (612) 307-5227
Caldor More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
