The Future Of Target's Leadership
By Erin Harris, Editor-In-Chief, Cell & Gene
Follow Me On Twitter @ErinHarris_1
As the dust settles from last Monday’s news of Gregg Steinhafel’s sudden step down as Target’s CEO, John Mulligan, CFO, heads up Target’s leadership as interim president and CEO. With Steinhafel’s resignation on the books, Target is undoubtedly in the process of assembling a dream team of leaders to improve the business in the wake of the retailer’s recent issues. When Target hired Bob DeRodes as CIO, one of the most seasoned and knowledgeable talents in his field, the message of redefining disaster was received. In the same vein as the DeRodes hire, surely, Target’s permanent CEO will be just as remarkable. He or she has to be, as Target’s new leadership team has their work cut out for them. Because, in addition to the breach, Target’s faced some other large-scale issues, including its 2013 entry into Canada, which has experienced some pretty severe supply chain and logistics issues.
With great power comes great responsibility, and as Target’s leadership team works to reshape the business, the question is, will the brand suffer? If history’s taught us anything, TJX didn’t lose customers after its devastating data breach. Sure, the company paid dearly in time, money, and effort to bounce back from security and operations standpoints. But, for the most part, consumers didn’t bail on the brand then, and they aren’t going to bail on the brand now. Target will most certainly pay for the breach, but it won’t pay in the soft costs associated with customers turning their backs on the brand.
From improved security strategies and technologies to omni-channel fulfillment and a top-notch customer experience, Target’s leadership will work in earnest to improve the company where people will continue to work and shop. But time’s a-tickin,’ especially as Walmart and Amazon improve the customer experience practically on a daily basis (i.e. Walmart’s new drive thru, Amazon’s same-day delivery in certain locations just to name a few).
Even as its competitors continue to improve the customer experience, Target’s also moving in the right direction. Just recently, the retailer announced plans to become the first major U.S. retailer to have store credit and debit cards with Chip and PIN security technology. As Target expands and enhances its security strategy and constructs a well-balanced and comprehensive approach to various aspects of the business, security will continue to be board-level critical.
According to the Associated Press, Steinhafel states, “From the beginning, I have been committed to ensuring Target emerges from the data breach a better company, more focused than ever on delivering for our guests. With several key milestones behind us, now is the right time for new leadership at Target.” As Target’s new leadership team implements transformational change, the retailer has the golden opportunity to improve the customer experience, embrace true omni-channel retailing and fulfillment, and more.
Indeed, consumers will still continue to shop the brand just as they always have. For example, a few months ago, I joked that, highly uncharacteristically, I went the entire weekend without shopping my local Target, and as a result, I was expecting a frantic call from the store manager checking on me to make sure I was still breathing. And, yes, I made that joke post-breach.
The Target breach, its aftermath, and its new leadership team can be (and has been) sliced and diced umpteen different ways, and retailers and industry luminaries will continue to provide feedback on the matter. It’s still too early to tell exactly how Target’s leadership will handle the company’s dilemmas and drive the company forward. But one thing is certain — implementing a fresh and experienced leadership team in the wake of a retail debacle can only improve the customer experience.