Target CEO Brian Cornell presented the Target Corporation Scholarship to 精东影业 Carroll School of Management student Kimberly Sieloff 鈥�19, during his appearance at the Boston College Chief Executives Club on February 3. Cornell and Sieloff are flanked by the event's host, BJ's Wholesale Club Non-Executive CEO and 精东影业 alumna Laura Sen and 精东影业 CEO Club Executive Director Warren Zola. (Photo by Justin Knight)
Brian Cornell, chairman and CEO of Target Corporation, shared insights and lessons learned as the retailer transforms its business and adapts to the shifting consumer landscape in a speech to the Boston College Chief Executives Club on Wednesday, February 3, at the Boston Harbor Hotel.
Cornell discussed the company鈥檚 focus on creating an on-demand shopping experience; modernizing the supply chain; providing an increasingly localized and personalized experience, and reaching guests in urban areas with flexible format stores that meet the specific wants and needs of a neighborhood. Cornell considers Target鈥檚 store near Boston's Fenway Park, which opened last summer, one of the chain鈥檚 鈥渃rown jewels.鈥�
He also called breaches to cyber security one of the biggest threats to commerce in America. Two years ago, Target was the victim of one the country鈥檚 largest data thefts.
Read coverage of his remarks in the , and .
The event鈥攈osted by Laura Sen, an alumna of Boston College and the non-executive chief executive officer of BJ's Wholesale Club鈥攊ncluded the presentation of the Target Corporation Scholarship Fund to Carroll School of Management freshman Kimberly Sieloff of Plainview, NY. The award is part of the Chief Executives Club Speakers Forum Scholarship, established in 2002 by Patrick Stokes, former president and CEO of Anheuser-Busch Companies and former chairman of the Boston College鈥檚 Board of Trustees.聽 This scholarship honors corporations and their CEOs whose exceptional business leadership and initiatives connect to the educational mission of the University.
The first CEO hired from outside the company, Cornell joined Target in August 2014 after more than 30 years in escalating leadership positions at leading retail and global consumer product companies, including three CEO roles and more than two decades doing business in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America. His past experience includes time as both a vendor partner and a competitor to Target, and he brings insights from those roles to the company today. 聽
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn. with a worldwide workforce of 347,000 employees, Target has more than 1,800 stores in the United States. The 54-year-old company is committed to providing a one-stop shopping experience by delivering differentiated merchandise and outstanding value with its Expect More. Pay Less庐 brand promise. Target currently is the second largest general merchandise retailer in America with total sales of $72.6 billion in 2014.
Several times a year, Boston business leaders gather at the to hear global thought-leaders who welcome the opportunity to address an audience of their peers, a program of the University鈥檚 .