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  • November 2015
  • Case
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Katherine Schuler at Boxes & Bins, Inc.

By: Linda A. Hill and James Kindley
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:8
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Abstract

This case is about Katherine Schuler, soon to become senior vice president of marketing at a fast-growing retail organization, Boxes & Bins (B&B). Part of Schuler's success has been due to her "fit" into a company with clear values and principles. In particular, B&B always put its employees first and eschewed debt in order to grow only as the company could afford it. Several years ago, the founders sold most of their stock to a private-equity firm, the Weichel Group, which leveraged B&B heavily in order to accelerate the opening of more stores and to pay off the founders. Even after a recent IPO, the Weichel Group remained a major shareholder, and it urged B&B to hire two senior managers from large discount retailers to run operations and merchandising. Schuler's move into her new role could lead to her becoming B&B's president if she is successful. Schuler understands that B&B needs to grow, and wants to help it do so, but is uncertain about the plans for how that growth will occur. She wants B&B to acknowledge its key success factors to date because she believes that doing so will help it move to a new future. Yet she knows that changing B&B may be impossible—therefore, leaving might be her best option.

Keywords

Change Management; Personal Development and Career; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry

Citation

Hill, Linda A., and James Kindley. "Katherine Schuler at Boxes & Bins, Inc." Harvard Business School Brief Case 916-501, November 2015.
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About The Author

Linda A. Hill

Organizational Behavior
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Related Work

    • November 2015
    • Faculty Research

    Katherine Schuler at Boxes & Bins, Inc. (Brief Case)

    By: Linda A. Hill and James Kindley
Related Work
  • Katherine Schuler at Boxes & Bins, Inc. (Brief Case) By: Linda A. Hill and James Kindley
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