Human Resources

While consultants have argued for decades that workforce management (WFM) is a mixture of art and science, it is neither. It comes down to profit and applying practical – not over-engineered – workforce management practices that enable higher performing retail operations.   

Influential and longtime Walmart executive Don Soderquist died after complications related to heart surgery. He was 82.   Soderquist joined Walmart in 1980 as executive VP of administration and logistics and was a driving force behind the company’s growth. From 1988 to 1999, he served as vice chairman and COO. He retired in 2000 and remained on the Walmart board until 2002.   

That sound of nervous pacing you hear every night at 3 a.m.? It’s America’s retail executives. They’re feeling the pressures of a rapidly evolving sales landscape and trying to figure out how to stay one step ahead — or just keep up.   From demanding consumers who expect a bargain at every turn to new technologies, from an aggressive e-commerce marketplace to a U.S. economy that refuses to kick into gear with any consistency, the challenges retailers are facing demand a shift in thinking and strategy.

Central Florida developer Butler Enterprises named Joey Mandese its director of development. He will oversee all elements — from design through construction--of the redevelopment of Butler Town Center, a Main Street-style, mixed-use complex going up in Gainesville.   Formerly the owner of a construction business in Gainesville, Mandese studied architecture for two years before earning a degree in building construction and the University of Florida.   

Amazon.com is continuing its rapid pace of distribution infrastructure expansion with a planned new center in Houston.   The 855,000-sq.-ft. fulfillment center will employ more than 1,000 full-time workers. Employees will pick, pack and ship smaller customer items, such as books, electronics and toys.  

Some three years after he returned to save J.C. Penney, industry veteran Myron E. (Mike) Ullman will retire from the company on Aug. 1.    Ullman is passing the reins of chairman of Penney’s board of directors to current CEO Marvin R. Ellison. The succession is in accordance with a transition plan the company outlined in 2014.  

Party City Holdco Inc. on Thursday named Daniel J. Sullivan as CFO.   Sullivan succeeds Michael A. Correale, who is stepping down as Party City CFO to focus on the newly created position of executive VP chief accounting officer and treasurer, effective Aug. 29. In his new role, Correale will be responsible for all of the company’s external financial reporting, treasury functions, banking and credit relationships.  

At least one retail industry participant is expecting the 2016 holiday season to be prosperous.   Omnichannel commerce technology and services provider Radial plans to hire an additional 550 workers in Reno, Nevada to support an expected 10-fold increase in demand during the upcoming holiday season. Radial operates fulfillment centers in Reno, which are in need of workers to help support its retail clients.