Barnes & Noble Reviews

Pros

Management very organized and professional, while friendly and personable
Efficient flow of work, if you like feeling productive then you'll like being here.
Got to socialize with people from every part of the store, and everybody was kind and accepting.

Cons

Working at the cafe was not nearly the same as working on the book side. The rules were stricter, often felt like the "side attraction."

Advice to Senior Management

Apply the same rules to the cafe registers as you do to the people at the book registers. Not being able to strike more than several items from the pending order is ridiculous, which was a rule only enforced in the cafe, not at the book registers. Having a daily limit was extremely stressful, especially during lunchtime, where customers often change their minds on orders, or drop them altogether and walk away - having to call a manager after a given amount is pointless. I understand it was to prevent shrinkage - but if I wanted to ever give away free food, I wouldn't bother putting it on the receipt then striking it, I'd just give it away.

Pros

Nice coworkers
Friendly environment
Employee discount

Cons

Pay and benefits could be better

Pros

Good benefits, decent discount, 50% off in Cafe rocks

Cons

-Management does not stick up for you, it's always about their jobs on the line
-Positive re-enforcement does not exist here
-Upper Management always convey the doom and gloom mentality to employees, and it trickles down to the point where everyone feels that way.
-Hard work is not rewarded, its looked at as "be lucky you have a job"
-Way too much emphasis on the nook, ignoring the rest of the store
-Less hours available, means less customers will get help
-They do not honor the online price of bn.com which makes customers super angry
-Corporate do not understand the concept of learning and taking feedback from your staff. Their input can actually increase sales, if they listened.
-Full timers are being trimmed to Part time, so that they will not get befits and the end of the year.

Advice to Senior Management

Listen to your employees, we have a wealth of experience and knowledge to share, if you actually listened.

Pros

A good place to work unnerved by its placement in the market -- this has lead to constant change among upper management, though that has settled down recently. The website, after years of no change, has become a product invested in, and the work the business and technology folks put into it is lately more appreciated.

Cons

Constant change creates an uneasy feeling. There's definitely a David & Goliath vibe with respect to Amazon, despite the fact that Amazon is more of a direct competitor to Wal-Mart. BN management does not hesitate to let people go, but decisions that lead to who goes and who stays are sometimes personally motivated and suspect.

Advice to Senior Management

Attempt to foster an environment that is less strung out about its place in the market (this is probably impossible).

Pros

if you love books...it is wonderful...i work with a lot of great people...the interpersonal relationships i have formed are one of the reasons i stay

Cons

you are stretched thin...too much expectations for corporate on sales per hour...they don't realize that helping people doesn't always turn into a sale...but still takes time

Advice to Senior Management

realize that each location is unique...what happens across town probably won't work at another location

Pros

Great discounts and wonderful staff. Sometimes it is an amazing place to work and you have the opportunity to surround yourself with knowledge.

Cons

The customers can be out of this world. Some are even a little crazy. The pay is ok but sometimes you are taken advantage with no hope for reward for hard work.

Advice to Senior Management

Start looking at your employees on how to improve customer service and sales. Also you need more hours and longer breaks.

Pros

You get a better quality retail person applying for positions. If you love books, it is a great place to work.

Cons

As most large retail companies, they make bad decisions trying to keep unions out. Not enough payroll hours are available to keep the store to standards and service customers.

Advice to Senior Management

Great job making the transition from solely a bricks and mortar business to an online one as well. Love the nook

Pros

It's relatively easy work once you get the hang of everything especially for the wage one gets. My particular branch made it easy for one to get time off, leave early, etc. The discount one also gets is pretty solid, however, i rarely if ever got the stuff there save for drinks.

Cons

The customers can be hit or miss. Some are terrible and others are absolutely great.

Pros

Discount on books and magazines

Cons

Horrible pay
Too much focus on ereader sales
Incompetent management
Favoritism runs rampant

Advice to Senior Management

Stop trying to sell someone an ereader when they come in looking for a book.
Pay your employees better and actually listen to what they have to say.

Pros

The managers (at my store, at least) go out of their way to support their employees. I genuinely feel that they care about me as an individual and want to support me. The store is fun, the managers are up-front with the employees, problems are resolved quickly, everyone is friendly, and they generally recognize that their employees are intelligent and have important things to add to the business.

Cons

The discount is basically no better than a perpetual coupon... although this is true of almost any retail store. Many of the problems all retail stores face - odd hours, etc. - are present here. Pushing Memberships, sales, and strange customer requests ("I think the book had a purple cover... and was about a cat? Do you have that?).

Advice to Senior Management

Continue the in-store contests! It really got us fired up about our jobs, and it's fun to be up-selling for some reward every once in a while, instead of just because it's our job.