Through a special arrangement, what follows is an excerpt of an article from FierceRetail, an e-newsletter and website covering the latest retail technology news and analysis.
Never has the role of the CIO been more important to retailers. This is evidenced by the recent tussle between Kohl's and its former CIO Janet Schalk.
Ms. Schalk announced she was leaving Kohl's to join Hudson's Bay Co. (HBC) and was promptly served a temporary restraining order to enforce a non-compete clause in her contract that barred her from working in a similar position with a retailer for a period of one year.
A judge denied Kohl's request on Aug. 11. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Robert G. Mawdsley said the agreement was more restrictive than non-compete pacts of more senior Kohl's managers, including the CEO. He also didn't see the mid-tier department store operator and HBC, primarily in the luxury space, as competitors.
Kohl's was given a week to appeal. HBC, the parent of Hudson's Bay, Lord & Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5TH, announced she joined the company on Aug. 18.
While a non-compete clause is standard for retail executives, the importance that Kohl's has placed on Ms. Schalk's role within the organization serves to highlight the critical importance that IT now plays in retail.
"Armed with the knowledge gained during her employment at Kohl's, Schalk poses a competitive threat far more dangerous to Kohl's than other competitors who are not privy to the very private information to which Schalk was provided access," stated Kohl's in a legal brief.
Source: kohlscareers.com
Under Ms. Schalk, Kohl's completed a series of business changes designed to support more targeted planning, more fluid cross-channel fulfillment, and new mobile and e-commerce offerings.
"Kohl's didn't used to be viewed as an innovator, in terms of the technology that supports us, and that's one of the things we're aiming for," Ms. Schalk told FierceRetailIT in February. "We've put in enough foundational investments that we've now been able to be more innovative."
Ms. Schalk also had knowledge of future programs now in the works.
Since mobile and digital retail is such a focus for retailers today, the development and implementation of technology says as much about what that retailer plans to do as it does about its current capabilities. For example, Kohl's has been busy integrating its popular Yes2You rewards program into its mobile app and developing a mobile wallet.
It's not hard to imagine that much of the retailer's fourth quarter holiday promotional planning is tightly tied to new digital features.
Kohl's wasn't able to enforce its non-compete clause, but it has certainly made a point about technology. There really is no more important component in retail today.
- Kohl's CIO lawsuit shows the power of IT in the enterprise - FierceRetail
- Judge denies Kohl's call to block chief information officer's hiring at Hudson's Bay - Milwaukee Business Journal
- Kohl's loses effort to block key exec from moving to another retailer - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- Hudson's Bay Company Appoints Janet Schalk as Chief Information Officer - Hudson's Bay Company/Business Wire