The day you're hired, the bullet is fired

As most readers of this feature know, I worked for Target for nearly a decade. There was a saying in the field organization about working for the ol' bullseye -- the day you're hired, the bullet is fired. The plain meaning: unless you can outrun or otherwise avoid the bullet, you were eventually going to be gone. The sound of metaphorical gunfire rang out in downtown Minneapolis yesterday:

 Target Corp. will cut several thousand jobs at its Minneapolis headquarters over the next two years, taking the knife to itself as never before as it adapts to changing shopper habits.

The move could deal a sharp blow to the downtown area, where Target is the largest employer with 10,000 people at its Nicollet Mall offices. The company aims to produce $2 billion in annual savings through the layoffs and other initiatives.

Several thousand doesn't narrow the scope down very much and it's gotta scare the hell out of the Targeteers in the building. I tend to think of "several" as meaning more than 4 or more, which would mean that as many as half the people working at 1000 Nicollet Mall are going to be looking for new work soon. That's tough.

The rationale does make sense:

“It allows us to be a much more agile, effective organization,” Brian Cornell, Target’s chief executive, said Tuesday after a meeting with investors and analysts where the plan was revealed.

“These are some really tough decisions we’ve had to make, but these were the choices that were right for the business and right for our shareholders.”

It's been a dozen years since I worked for Target, but I've continued to observe what's happened there with interest. Agile is the key word -- successful businesses are decisive and it's tough to be that way when you have to run an idea past a dozen people first. I recall many days where nearly my entire day booked with meetings, often process related. I'd have to work on the weekends just to have uninterrupted time to get tasks done. The larger an organization becomes, the more bureaucratic it is and the more likely it will be festooned with layers of management. That's where Target is today.

These days I still work for a retail company, but a much smaller, privately held entity. I know nearly everyone in senior management personally and would be able to get an idea to them without having to run it by a dozen people first. It's a much better place to be. Still, my experience at Target was invaluable. The company does an excellent in teaching business fundamentals, especially how to move a number in a P & L. While I don't have to do that very much in my job now, understanding the process is a competitive edge.

Other companies in the Twin Cities and elsewhere will have the chance to bring on some talented new people as the Targeteers leave the building. While the news appears to be gloomy, there will be greater opportunities ahead.