Data & Analytics

Brand marketing veterans Chris Burggraeve and Ted McConnell are the newest members of the board of industry advisors at Syncapse, a leading social performance management company.

Burggraeve is the former chief marketing officer of Anheuser-Busch InBev and founder of Vicomte LLC. McConnell is a former director of marketing innovation at Procter & Gambler and EVP of digital at the Advertising Research Foundation.

Smartphones will be retailers’ friend this holiday season, according to Deloitte’s annual survey of spending intentions and trends.

Gloucester -- TradeSone Software, provider of merchandise lifecycle management (MLM) solutions that unify the design, sourcing, ordering and delivery of retail goods, announced that Ascena Retail Group has gone live with TradeStone’s PLM for Retail and  Collaborative Sourcing in 18 weeks at its subsidiary, Tween Brands, which encompasses both the Justice and Brothers retail banners.

Minneapolis -- Best Buy has hired Sharon McCollam, formerly CFO of Williams- Sonoma Inc., as CFO, beginning Dec. 10.

McCollam, 50, had been COO and CFO at the home goods retailer before retiring. She also takes the title of chief administrative officer at Best Buy.

McCollam replaces James Muehlbauer, who said he was leaving in October. Muehlbauer will continue to advise the company until the end of the fiscal year in February.

Minneapolis -- Best Buy today announced that retired director, EVP, chief operating and CFO of Williams-Sonoma, Inc., Sharon McCollam, will join the company as its new chief administrative and CFO, effective Dec. 10, according to a Reuters report. McCollam, 50, left Williams-Sonoma earlier this year after serving as an executive officer for more than 12 years.

McCollam succeeds CFO James Muehlbauer, whose departure was announced last month. Muehlbauer will leave the company at the end of this fiscal year, allowing for a smooth transition.

Dallas -- Zale Corp. announced the addition of Genesis Financial Solutions to its U.S. alternative financing program. The new financing option, which became available in October, is offered in Zales, Zales Outlet and Gordon’s retail stores.

Naperville, Ill. -- OfficeMax today announced it is extending support to the thousands of people still without electricity by providing free in-store charging stations, fax, scan and email services to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy stay connected and get back to business. The retailer also partnered with nonprofit AdoptAClassroom.org to launch the Hurricane Relief for Teachers (HuRT) program to help restore damaged classrooms along the east coast.