Archived Christmas card to Gregg

[pfreshdude]

Dear Greg,

Why is it so hard to understand that if we are short staffed we cannot get done what needs to be done? If we had enough staff to get everything done that needs to be done we would have happier team members, a store that didn't look like a bomb hit it and happier guests. Why is this such a foreign concept? It didn't used to be. Yes, I understand that times have changed but corporate is so out of touch it's on another planet. You should spend a day on the floor of a higher volume understaffed store during a holiday week. Maybe your eyes would be opened to the problems this company is facing. You want vibe? It's impossible when your drowning...

You want to know why that wouldnt work. That store would over schedule for the day, having more than enough coverage and they would prepare for him a few days leading up to it, like our store ALWAYS seems to do when we find out we have a visit. The one thing I would change is that visits should be PURELY A SURPRISE!! That way we cant fake our way out into how things ACTUALLY are. Also it doesnt have to be higher volume, us lower volumes have got it pretty bad too. Except in the lower volume case our ETLS actually give a damn and have to be on the floor too, not planning lunch together and hiding in the office like I have read all to many times about on here haha.

 

[pzychopopgroove]

pzych, don't make me get my fire extinguisher this early in the day....

Maybe I want to, so I can feel the pleasure of you bashing me upside the head?

 

[salesfloor10]

You want to know why that wouldnt work. That store would over schedule for the day, having more than enough coverage and they would prepare for him a few days leading up to it, like our store ALWAYS seems to do when we find out we have a visit. The one thing I would change is that visits should be PURELY A SURPRISE!! That way we cant fake our way out into how things ACTUALLY are. Also it doesnt have to be higher volume, us lower volumes have got it pretty bad too. Except in the lower volume case our ETLS actually give a damn and have to be on the floor too, not planning lunch together and hiding in the office like I have read all to many times about on here haha.

This is exactly what would happen. Undercover Boss at target would be fun!
I'm at a low volume store but even my ETL's tend to work only 6 hours on weekends, especially now where we need all the help/leadership team we can get these crazy days leading up to Christmas!

 

[researchr]

This is exactly what would happen. Undercover Boss at target would be fun!
I'm at a low volume store but even my ETL's tend to work only 6 hours on weekends, especially now where we need all the help/leadership team we can get these crazy days leading up to Christmas!

That's exactly what I mean. Either an unannounced visit or send someone in undercover. We work our asses off and it's never good enough.

 

[Dr Laytex]

It was weird watching the Team Leads and ETLs have a Christmas party, while everyone else was working. Almost like something out of a Dickens story.

 

[commiecorvus]

It was weird watching the Team Leads and ETLs have a Christmas party, while everyone else was working. Almost like something out of a Dickens story.

Merry Christmas! ...
What's Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money;
a time for finding yourself a year older, and not an hour richer;
a time for balancing your books and having every item in 'em through a round dozen of months presented against you?
If I would work my will ... every idiot who goes about with "Merry Christmas," on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart.

 

[redeye58]

It was weird watching the Team Leads and ETLs have a Christmas party, while everyone else was working. Almost like something out of a Dickens story.

I was thinking along the lines of the French Revolution: "Let them eat cake."

 

[tellmeaboutatime]

Dear Greg
Some of your team members really like working for spot. We take great pride in the job we do and we do it to the best of our ability. Sometimes that includes outdated and sparse equipment, laughable raises, silly paperwork and meetings and erratic hours. Still we do the best we can so we can hold our heads high and know we gave it our all. What we would like in return is the same respect from you that we give the company. For a start you can cut down on a small percentage of profit to properly staff the stores. Let us give the guest service you would like us to and that will result in more sales. Sure we want to be the best leaders we can, but pencil pushing a form once a month is not going to do it. Let us lead our teams and learn. Realize that all stores are not the same. Some stores are working with outdated computers, old fixtures, poorly laid out back rooms and more. If you expect all stores to perform at the same level, then level the playing field and update the stores and give us some damn equipment. I would like to see you do your job without the aid of a computer (PDA) or phone (walkie) Treat all of your team members with respect not just the Minneapolis crew. Great perks if you work at headquarters, out here in the rest of the world we work holidays, nights and weekends. The least you could do is bring back the 40% off red and khaki once a month so we can look like the perky people in the handbook.The "Vibe"? Please I hope whoever came up with this is on Corrective Action for wasting company resources. Lastly every single person who designs planograms or rolls out a new and improved process must first work at a store for at least 6 weeks as they implement it. What looks good on paper does not always translate in real life.(Remember the MSAs?) So for this year my Christmas wish is that you would start thinking about the people who work for Spot and helped you to get that big fat juicy bonus check. While you are deciding how to invest that windfall, most of your team members are wondering how they are going to afford gas to get to work with the next cut in hours.
Merry Christmas

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

Access to the gym at hq too.

 

[OyeShopgirl]

Not that any of the loftier members of corporate who might be reading this would actually take heed of any of these posts-no, let me stop; I'm being presumptious-they MIGHT, but I'M not the one who's gonna bet a January paycheck on it, I'll tell you THAT much....

Greg, and your cohorts, if you want us to be a little more sincere with the Holiday cheer, give us just a few more things to cheer about all year round. If you want us to represent your brand's image in a well-groomed, well-kept, "on - trend"(bleah) way, sling us a few extra shirts and pants, or give us ALL a lil' Holiday bonus...then maybe i can replace these worn-out ol' khakis AND touch up my roots outa the same check...

I'm not asking for the mansion on the hill, or60K to do what i do every day. So what if I never travel outside the country, have a state-of-the-art kitchen, or a walk-in closet with its own friggin' zip code? All I want is a livable wage and maybe 35 hours a week. At this point I'd settle for one of the two...

 

[redeye58]

A few points to ponder, Gregg:
If you want to brag about how much we contribute to United Way, dig in your own pocket this year. Don't expect us to contribute after giving us nickle & dime raises. We simply can't afford it.
Your answer to rising health care costs was to eliminate HMOs/PPOs while shedding thousands of unqualified dependents & reducing hours so thousands more will no longer qualify for benefits. How is it that Costco (who makes millions less) does the right thing in keeping health care for their employees but Target can't?
Target has taken pages from Walmart's playbook. Many of our TMs are working second jobs & on foodstamps because Spot is cutting operating costs to the bone to pay for corporate flops (the big save, the shops, Neiman Marcus to name a few). Why should we be punished for someone else's bad ideas?
Your latest crop of ETL right-out-of-college hires may look good for Spot's youthful image but their inexperience is bad for business. Get some responsible adults in the house, please.
Most of all, bring back the idealism that made this a company we USED to be proud of. It's a long-term investment but well worth it.

 

[TargetOldTimer]

Pzycho is starting to bug.

Please move on to a chat site for your new employer.

 

[pzychopopgroove]

Pzycho is starting to bug.

Please move on to a chat site for your new employer.

No.

Well, on one condition...

Give me ~$20k, so i can complete an engine swap, supercharger and turbocharger install and high flow cat exhaust and I'll never come back to this forum. Ever again, and that's a promise.

 

[pellinore]

No.

Well, on one condition...

Give me ~$20k, so i can complete an engine swap, supercharger and turbocharger install and high flow cat exhaust and I'll never come back to this forum. Ever again, and that's a promise.

Where do we send the money?

 

[bikebryan]

A few points to ponder, Gregg:
If you want to brag about how much we contribute to United Way, dig in your own pocket this year. Don't expect us to contribute after giving us nickle & dime raises. We simply can't afford it.
Your answer to rising health care costs was to eliminate HMOs/PPOs while shedding thousands of unqualified dependents & reducing hours so thousands more will no longer qualify for benefits. How is it that Costco (who makes millions less) does the right thing in keeping health care for their employees but Target can't?
Target has taken pages from Walmart's playbook. Many of our TMs are working second jobs & on foodstamps because Spot is cutting operating costs to the bone to pay for corporate flops (the big save, the shops, Neiman Marcus to name a few). Why should we be punished for someone else's bad ideas?
Your latest crop of ETL right-out-of-college hires may look good for Spot's youthful image but their inexperience is bad for business. Get some responsible adults in the house, please.
Most of all, bring back the idealism that made this a company we USED to be proud of. It's a long-term investment but well worth it.

It's not really a fair comparison to look at Costco vs Target. Costco has approximately 140,000 employees while Target has over 300,000, closer to 350,000. This makes a HUGE difference on the bottom line when comparing health care costs. You barely see the actual cost to the company of these plans.

 

[FormerSpecialist]

I guess you are one of those who is in perfect health and won't have to worry about those high deductibles. There is a thread floating around somewhere on here about target buying a historical building in MN to build the corporate folks a playground.

It's not really a fair comparison to look at Costco vs Target. Costco has approximately 140,000 employees while Target has over 300,000, closer to 350,000. This makes a HUGE difference on the bottom line when comparing health care costs. You barely see the actual cost to the company of these plans.

 

[commiecorvus]

It's not really a fair comparison to look at Costco vs Target. Costco has approximately 140,000 employees while Target has over 300,000, closer to 350,000. This makes a HUGE difference on the bottom line when comparing health care costs. You barely see the actual cost to the company of these plans.

How much more money does Spot take in than Costco, that it doesn't spend on race cars, fancy corp headquarters, and stock buy backs?

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

To Gregg, thanks for letting spot closed early on New Year's Eve at 9pm, instead of 10pm. That's a first.

 

[redeye58]

How much more money does Spot take in than Costco, that it doesn't spend on race cars, fancy corp headquarters, and stock buy backs?

Don't forget the naming rights for the sports arena & PAC donations.

 

[pfreshdude]

To Gregg, thanks for letting spot closed early on New Year's Eve at 9pm, instead of 10pm. That's a first.

Our store closes at 8pm on new years even, funny how we are open longer on christmas eve than new years eve.

 

[pfreshdude]

Don't forget the naming rights for the sports arena & PAC donations.

I wonder if they will be spending money on naming rights for the new Vikings Stadium. They just passed everything for it this year and it is set to be built by 2016 I believe.

 

[commiecorvus]

Don't forget the naming rights for the sports arena & PAC donations.

Or Gregg's salary as compared to the CEO of Costco?
In 2011 Jim Sinegal's (Costco CEO) total yearly compensation as a Costco company executive, including salary and bonuses, was $629,000.
Chief Executive Gregg Steinhafel's compensation package rose 84% to $24 million last year, according to a proxy filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

[greatteam]

Dear Gregg,


Thank you for giving us enough hours that we can't even give all the TL's 40 hours. Yay. Thanks!

 

[bikebryan]

I guess you are one of those who is in perfect health and won't have to worry about those high deductibles. There is a thread floating around somewhere on here about target buying a historical building in MN to build the corporate folks a playground.

Think about how much more you would pay if you dedicded NOT to pay for insurance. Office visits to Family Practice, Internists, or General Medicine runs over $100 on the average now.

 

[bikebryan]

How much more money does Spot take in than Costco, that it doesn't spend on race cars, fancy corp headquarters, and stock buy backs?

I don't have time to compare it all, but some rough numbers from FY2011:

Costco: Revenues of 88.9 billion, earnings/share was $3.97
Target: Revenues of 69.8 billion, earnings/share was $4.28

So Costco MAKES more than Target in revenues. I didn't look for profit figures. But the bottom line is that Costco can probably afford to spend more on health care given that they have LESS employees and almost $20 billion dollars more in revenue. However, as an investor, Target looks like a better place to park my money as it has a higher EPS figure.