Randy has ruined this company with his ego. Everyone is afraid to tell him no because they don’t want him to fire them. Randy has created a culture of yes men around him. Anyone that doesn’t agree with him will find the door. All of those Vice President, area supervisors and store directors allowed him to run this company into the ground. The market grills have lost million of dollars for years. The f&f clothing was a giant fail. I feel sorry for the store director that gave HyVee everything and in return have demoted them. Don’t forget about Randy big idea about doing only monthly ads that tanked HyVee profit for the quarter. He blame the stores for that one too. Time for a change! Time for rick and Ron to fire Randy.
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Let’s sum up HyVee cooperate leadership and Randy’s. They keep trying to put a square into a triangle peg hole. Hey r—ds it’s not working. Oh wait you can’t because Randy said it will work. If Randy stood at the podium and said gravity is fake. You should all be able to fly. Everyone there would be like yes that’s so true. He is so smart. This guy has vision. Randy blames the store and company for failing him. Good leader accept responsibility for their actions. Bad leaders blame everyone around them. Randy all by himself and his terrible idea was able to bring this company to bankruptcy. He is now on the ropes with no way to recover than to start cutting employees at store level.
This will surely be an unpopular opinion in this fun little forum...
Many of the shifts being made at Hy-Vee are long overdue. Those of us who intend to be with the company for years to come are excited that they’re finally happening.
Without the willingness to innovate and try new things to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers, we’d be left in the dust. Some things don’t work and we learn lessons, make adjustments and move on. The retail space is not somewhere we can sit on our hands and be complacent. We must continue to grow and evolve with the times in order to remain relevant. We can’t wait for things to happen, we have to make them happen.
Our leadership team works incredibly hard to help us grow and adapt to today’s society and the demands of a new generation of customers. People don’t shop the way they did 30 years ago, so why is it some think the stores can operate as they did back then? Some of the changes that the corporate office tried to make within the last several years that didn’t stick should have, but the double-edged sword of autonomy and the lack of execution at store level resulted in failed attempts. The tools provided could have worked harder and smarter than anything stores have ever been given, yet the resistance of those stuck in their antiquated ways hindered the success of so many things that should have been a win for us.
The opportunities for growth at Hy-Vee are endless for those willing to work harder, make the tough decisions and do whatever it takes to be a part of the solution, not the problem. The cream rising to the top aren’t the ones just “checking the box” and those who have been demoted or moved from their positions weren’t done so without reason.
Hy-Vee is on the list of the 10 best supermarkets in the United States. We’ve been voted Retailer of the Year (numerous times by several sources), Brand of the Year, Retail Innovator of the Year, we’ve received so many community outreach awards tied to countless charitable efforts and many of our leaders have been recognized for their contributions in their respective fields. We’re the favorite grocery store in 5 of the 8 states we operate in and we’re one of the largest privately owned companies in the U.S.
Those things don’t happen without strong leadership. I can only imagine how stressful and demanding the jobs of our leadership team are and I don’t believe a soul on this website could handle the pressure they’re under for a single day.
Hy-Vee is doing well, especially when compared to others in our industry. With the changes we’re making, we will be stronger and more successful than ever. I hope the naysayers here aren’t around to reap the benefits of those of us willing to put in the work necessary to thrive for another 90 years.
You should feel privileged to have worked for such a great company and ashamed to hide behind your keyboard and bite the hand that feeds you.
It is a bit condescending to refer to a person as “Sweetie” while telling them to use spell checker before posting. Times certainly are changing, which is true every day that we live and breathe. Some good people have recently lost their full time jobs with Hy-Vee. When those people went to work in the morning, they had no idea that the ax was about to fall. The rush to get rid of full time employees may eventually kick the decision makers in the rear end. Who are the employees who have broad skill sets, show up for work on time, work up to their capabilities and with a sense of urgency, all the while greeting almost every customer whom they encounter in the aisle or front end of the store? It is most likely to be a full time employee who needs a steady paycheck and healthcare coverage for their family. Part time employees tend to call in sick more, show up late for work more often and jump ship frequently. Does Hy-Vee need to sell clothing, fancy soaps or Wahlburgers to stay competitive? Probably not, but the emphasis now seems to be let’s rub elbows with Patrick Mahomes, Mark Wahlburg, Lori Loughlin or Curtis Stone. How many millions of dollars did those expenditures cost Hy-Vee? What is wrong with just being the best grocery store that Hy-Vee can be? Concentrate on the things that made Hy-Vee successful. Customer service, clean, well stocked stores and a helpful smile in every aisle, not every fourth aisle. Overwhelming customers with 5-6 different ads a week stresses both the Hy-Vee team while confusing customers. Walk the stores and see how all of the signage clutters an otherwise clean and orderly aisle. Keeping a customer relates to the people in the trenches doing the grunt work, working the nights, weekends and holidays, all the while smiling and serving customers. Moving forward it appears that their will be fewer of those good people in the stores.
Randy has said he won’t consider an opinion if it’s anonymous. I’ve also seen him swat down people several times for having a differing opinion or even just bringing up an issue. He takes everything as a personal attack. Really make you feel like he’s approachable. Sure he’s approachable if you are going to tell him how good his last speech was or send him an article that backs up his position. Not so much if you have even the slightest differing opinion. Then you are not a team player.
Oh sweetie, it sounds like the issue is with your self confidence - with today’s technology there are many ways you could have shared your opinions and ideas with the leadership outside of the big room- most are very assessable. Instead you chose to be negative and bitter on an “anonymous” forum.
Plus his 1.4 million dollar mansion.
Look at the old fable called The Emporors New Clothes. It's the same deal.
Recently retired after 22 years at Hy-Vee. Is there a reason why I knew the S was about to hit the fan.
As a store director and 30+ year employee, I feel the need to respond to some of the thoughts and feelings I’m reading here. If our leaders had never taken chances and tried new ideas, where would Hy-Vee be today? We would not have Healthmarkets, C-Stores, pharmacies, Wine & Spirits, floral, self-checkout, online shopping, and the list goes on. It is through change that we now offer these conveniences to our customers and are a part of a strong company that is able to stay competitive in a fast changing retail environment. The current changes will offer training and improvement in all stores, allowing us the ability to provide the best shopping experience for our customers and to provide the best training for our employees. As our company grows, opportunities for our employees increase. I do not know of any business that has not made changes over the years in order to keep growing and stay relevant. Hy-Vee has always had a vision to keep our stores moving forward and this keeps us in a position to always offer services that guarantee a better customer service experience.
Hy-Vee provides strong work packages for its employees. At our company meetings we always hear about ways to improve what we offer to make it the best place to work such as better vacation packages, flex days, 401K benefits, competitive health insurance, etc. Providing for our employees will always be of the highest importance
I have always felt it is a privilege to work for a company that invests in their communities and neighborhoods. A few of the things that I have had the honor to be involved in through Hy-Vee are Variety, the Children's Charity, JDRF, Hy-Vee Homefront, and Honor Flight. Hy-Vee's "One Step" program, which takes health and wellness one step further by funding projects locally and worldwide to help people lead healthier lives is another example of Hy-Vee’s commitment to our communities and the world we live in. This alone tells you what kind of company Hy-Vee is.
There always has been and always will be changes. Without it we would fall behind in the current retail world. No change is ever easy and can be unnerving and very difficult. I am proud to be a part of a company that is willing to stay relevant and competitive. I have confidence in our leaders making these tough decisions to keep Hy-Vee strong for decades to come.
Reading thru these comments as a current store director I feel some perspective needs to be shared. I will tell you that the company is as strong as it has ever been in its 90 year history. I believe many of these comments are the vocal minority. I love Hy-Vee along with the vast majority of our employees who I work with every day. Our results over the last five years have been fantastic especially comparing them to any of our peers in the industry. Senior leadership mentoring less seasoned leaders (what this is) is very common throughout the business world and beyond. It’s a good thing designed to help employees meet their goals, and for our company to continue to grow and prosper!
The Hy-Vee fundamentals I was raised on and that our company was founded on are talked about at every meeting, and it is something we are focused on with our customers and in our stores every day. As many of our retail peers have faltered and closed in the “retail ice age”, we have been successfully navigating a rapidly changing retail evolution for some time now, all while expanding and growing the company. I will tell you that every day, all the decisions our company makes are focused on improving our customers experience. Sometimes you take chances on a number of different ideas to make sure you stay relevant for the future (some stick, some don’t). A sign of a growing and healthy company is one that continues to evolve with new ideas and offerings to meet an ever changing customer lifestyle. I am very confident with the plan laid out by our leadership, along with the store directors to continue to be relevant and successful for another 90 years.
Speaking of the big room.
We need to be more competitively priced. Every survey has shown us that.
To be competitive with WalMart we had to price Dollar Fresh at X% grocery gross.
Make sure you have an Y% grocery gross. With Y being about twice X.
That’s the companies entire problem summed up in one example. The message is never clear and the plan changes monthly.
Oh sweetie, but I do know what I’m talking about. I sat in the big room and heard all the ideas. A million brilliant ideas don’t mean anything when you fail to execute on all of them. Only a marketing “genius” could pull that trick off. When you surround yourself with people who are afraid to tell when an idea won’t work, that’s not autonomy, it’s a dictatorship.
The market grills lost millions and they keep building them. Just a matter of time when they take the store bonus away from store employees sweetie. Don’t cry when R.E takes money out of your pocket. Just chalk it up to change honey.
1) You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about.
2) Some of these changes have been needed for years and others chose not to address it. Times are a changing sweetie and someone had to finally step up to the plate- it’s not ego- it called leadership.
3) Check out Walmart, Kroger, Target any retail chain and see what changes that have been made- yep- same changes going on there.
4) Try auto correct and spell checker before posting next time.
Time for the stock holders to vote Randy out of the CEO position. I would also vote out the CFO.