Williams-Sonoma Reviews

Pros

Laid back atmosphere and creative

Cons

little advancement opportunity within certain brands

Advice to Senior Management

Offer benefits to more employees

Pros

Hours during "Peak" season, up to 90 per week
double pay on 7th consecutive work day

Cons

Lack of competent employees through temp agencies

Advice to Senior Management

More stringent hiring practices through temp agencies.

Pros

Selling great products, great discount, fun work environment

Cons

Not easy to process orders, technology is not up to par with other companies, not enough resources or sufficient people to help customers and do shipment in the store.

Advice to Senior Management

Add people to the schedule and look at technology.

Pros

discount, good staffs, flexible schedule

Cons

holiday retail, sometimes you have to deal with needy or high-maintanence people

Pros

-Great brand; high-quality products
-Great location (beautiful view of the bay)

Cons

-Lack of clear direction from upper management (combined with micromanagement...creates a lot of confusion)
-Unrealistic expectations
-Disrespect from upper management
-Lack of transparency
-Poor training
-Old computers and systems

Advice to Senior Management

First and foremost, give new employees the training and support they need to get the job done. Provide clear expectations and directions; don't leave new employees to figure out everything on their own and then get upset with the product is not exactly how you wanted it to be. Respect those that you work for you. Everyone is working hard. If the company environment suffers, so does the product.

Pros

Awesome store discount. Nice perks if store wins a contest.

Cons

They pay less than the other companies that they own.

Advice to Senior Management

Don't have employees train a new manager.

Pros

One pro about working for williams sonomma is the discount. You may use your discount any at williams-sonoma affiliated store.

Cons

Like i said in the review headline, it's retail, and it is very corporate and all the care about is making numbers and not compensating or rewarding for improvements in sales.

Advice to Senior Management

more feedback to employees and associates and store management team. fairness in every aspect of business, and respect and to emploees' personal life.

Pros

You like change, challenge, hard work, camaraderie, and being involved with the art and science of cooking...

Cons

Can be stressful and require speed.

Pros

Employee discount that is also valid at Pottery Barn and West Elm, the WS brand is widely recognized and is known for excellence and luxury, "first look" at the coolest culinary products, inventions, and gadgets entering the marketplace.

Cons

Somewhat high manager turnover rate, no manager seems to follow the same set of rules, promoting/hiring from within doesn't happen very often, no training (even when they throw you into the thick of the holiday madness), complete lack of regard for store employees and their personal lives from senior and corporate management.

Advice to Senior Management

It would behoove WS to promote from within for managerial positions rather than continuing to hire people who have absolutely NO background in culinary retail. The tasks that are being brought down by corporate are downright pathetic anymore. For instance, the night before Thanksgiving, our store has nearly a full crew of employees scheduled to work until 11:00 PM even though our mall closes at 7:00 PM. Why? Because coporate has deemed it necessary to change an entire floor set that must be complete for the opening of the day after Thanksgiving. Not just changing out the window features, but an ENTIRE floor set. Is it really so important that a table of mixers has to move from the right side of the store to the left side of the store that your employees have to stay at work until 11:00 PM on a holiday? It can't be spread out over a few days? Worse, the same will be true of Christmas Eve (it was last year), and the mall closes even earlier on that day. All the while, they spout the "work and life balance" routine, and how not to let these tasks interfere with the employees' time with their families. As if a crew of elves comes in and completes these impossible demands in the timeline given. I would venture to guess that the corporate offices aren't even open on Christmas Eve, If they are, I'm sure it is only a half-day. Try to remember to "do unto others" corporate. You will have happier, more revived, and even more loyal employees. We are the legs you stand on. Show us some love...and respect.

Pros

Sample sale. Stable business. Employee discount.

Cons

Lip service to valuing employees. Not a company with a strong sense of principles. Leadership is not inspirational or truly visionary.

Advice to Senior Management

Vision to build greatness will truly set you apart from the pack not just in money-making but as a company culture. True and impactful energy and follow through spent on deciding what values and principals you want your company and organization to stand for is needed to build a company that will last.