QVC – “Work here - feed the beast, it's always hungry”

Pros

Nice facility and pleasant work environment, good benefits including tuition reimbursement, opportunity to move around within the company and get diverse experience. Generally supportive mid-level management and clear objectives / measurements of success. Well-respected within the retail community and loved by loyal customers. Some attempts at "greening" the organization, as well as starting some flex time and working from home.

Cons

All new executive-level managment from the big, bad retail world has sucked the genuine energy and trust out of the company top to bottom. They are poor communicators and even worse visionaries. There is no strong long-term strategy for the company. Product quality has suffered big time, as evidenced by the much better brands on HSN recently. Everyone (particularly long-time employees) feels like they have a target on their back, even though the company is still very profitable. No raises or bonuses for the past 2 years, despite that profitability. Nothing gets done quickly, even though we like to say we are "nimble". Expectations are extremely high with respect to level of commitment - it is a 24/7 company in all aspects. It's all about face time and time spent at your desk or in endless meetings. Sadly, best efforts and good business results are never enough - they always want more.

Advice to Senior Management

Stop trying to reinvent the brand - go back to what made it successful in the first place, leverage that, and bring it into the present. Trust middle management and get the senior management to stop kissing up to each other and make something happen.