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  • November 2003 (Revised May 2005)
  • Case
  • HBS Case Collection

Beverly Stern: Retail Executive

By: H. Kent Bowen and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:23
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Abstract

Beverly Stern has been a successful operating manager in three prominent retail chains: GAP, Pottery Barn, and Williams-Sonoma. Stern's last job at a start-up did not meet her expectations, and she must now decide what to do next. She has an offer to start a new retail division of Gymboree. The case allows students to understand the career of a successful "merchandising" executive and to determine key personal characteristics and skills that support a successful career. Contains examples of what Stern learned as she progressed in her career and provides insights into the professional challenges that would be criteria for job choice.

Keywords

Personal Development and Career; Experience and Expertise; Personal Characteristics; Jobs and Positions; Decisions; Retail Industry

Citation

Bowen, H. Kent, and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld. "Beverly Stern: Retail Executive." Harvard Business School Case 604-018, November 2003. (Revised May 2005.)
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About The Author

H. Kent Bowen

→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • April 2013 (Revised October 2013)
    • Faculty Research

    Google's Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?

    By: David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld and Liz Kind
    • November 2012
    • Faculty Research

    New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)

    By: H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Matthew Preble
    • September 2009
    • Faculty Research

    Peter Schultz at The Scripps Research Institute

    By: H. Kent Bowen, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld and Courtney Purrington
More from the Authors
  • Google's Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter? By: David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld and Liz Kind
  • New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) By: H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Matthew Preble
  • Peter Schultz at The Scripps Research Institute By: H. Kent Bowen, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld and Courtney Purrington
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