Personnel

A week after Gawker published an anonymous rant from a Target corporate employee that further revealed the extent to which the retailer's massive data breach has affected both employee and customer morale, the retailer's Chief Marketing Officer Jeff Jones responded with a LinkedIn post titled "The Truth Hurts." In the letter, which Gawker says was emailed to the website by a current midlevel employee at Target headquarters in Minneapolis, the employee writes about Target's unproductive staffing strategy that

Many companies say they want to change the world, but few elicit the kind of genuine emotion that the online handmade marketplace Etsy does. After almost a decade online, the site is now home to approximately 1 million active sellers from dozens of countries. From vintage-style furniture to eco-friendly jewelry to toddler craft kits, it's easy to get lost in the pages and pages of creative products. CEO Chad Dickerson is proud of what the Etsy community is able to provide for both sellers and buyers.

I think that Roger Farah (62) has another career in his future plans. It's just been announced the he would leave Ralph Lauren Corporation after spending 14 years as president and chief operating officer. Most recently he was executive vice chairman. In 2013, he turned over the reins of the company to Jackwyn Nemerov and has been phasing out of the daily operation of the company since that time. I'm speculating, but I think it's possible that this fall Mr. Farah will join J.C.Penney as the successor of Myron (Mike) Ullman III. 

Belk is now the official style destination of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (DCC). Along with a three-year partnership comes endorsements, appearances and numerous co-branded marketing initiatives such as the iPromise clothing line for the benefit of Susan G. Komen. Belk will also provide the wardrobe for the DCC director, Kelli Finglass, and choreographer, Judy Trammell, as they film season nine of their reality TV show, "Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders — Making the Team." Auditions and taping for the show start on May 10, and the ladies will wear Belk fashion brands throughout the 2014-2016 football seasons.

Target said Monday that Chief Executive and Chairman Gregg Steinhafel is leaving in the wake of the devastating data breach late last year that hurt profits, shook customer confidence in the No. 3 U.S. retailer and prompted congressional hearings. "After extensive discussions, the board and Gregg Steinhafel have decided that now is the right time for new leadership at Target," Target's board said in a statement released on Monday. Target named Chief Financial Officer John Mulligan as interim president and CEO, and Roxanne Austin, a current member of Target's board of directors, as interim non-executive chair of the board.

The American Postal Workers Union has organized protests at 50 of the office supplies stores in 27 states to oppose a deal where U.S. postal products and services are sold at Staples. It's not the first postal worker protest against the Staples mini post offices, but it will be the largest so far this year, according to the union. Members of other postal unions are also expected to join the protests. Since November, 82 Staples stores have been selling traditional mail services as part of a short-term "pilot project" scheduled through September. 

In an attempt to set the tone for a new, restructured and a hopefully one day resurrected Fab.com, CEO Jason Goldberg sent around a memo that's less rally-the-troops and more "you're lucky to be here." Titled "It's a f***ing startup. Why are you here?," the note, also posted on his personal website, continues to remind his employees that they could, very realistically, lose their jobs. "I can say with confidence that Fab will win or lose based on our ability to assemble and manage the right people for right now," he writes.

Patrick Byrne has relinquished his role as chairman of Overstock.com and Stormy Simon was named president of the online discount retailer. Byrne will continue to serve as CEO while current executive vice chairman Jonathan Johnson assumes the chairman responsibilities Byrne has held since 2006. Johnson's prior responsibilities as corporate secretary will be assumed by Mark Griffin, who serves as senior vice president and general counsel. Simon, who previously served as co-president of the company, was named president and retains her seat on the board, while David Nielsen will continue in his role as co-president.

Amazon.com hopes the workers in its scores of fulfillment centers across the country are happy in their jobs. But if they're not and would rather be doing something else, Amazon has a deal: The company will pay them a bonus — up to $5,000 — to leave. In a program that Amazon aptly calls Pay to Quit, those who aren't committed to their jobs are urged to leave on their own and can get $2,000 in severance pay in the first year of employment with the bonus topping out at $5,000 in the fourth year.

Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer and biggest employer of women, has done something unusual: it's improved its pregnancy policies. The changes took effect in March and were reported by The Washington Post on April 5. This morning, OUR Walmart, the union-backed group calling for higher wages and better working conditions, claimed victory. So did three legal organizations. Wal-Mart says it wasn't responding to outside pressure, it was just looking for ways to help its employees. The timing must be a coincidence.