IDG Contributor Network: Is Target leading in non-echo-chamber thinking?
Like all major retailers, Target is struggling with the challenges from mobile- and e-commerce-focused shoppers. But to a greater extent than others, Target is trying to be creative about finding approaches that resonate — and understands that it must break through the insular thinking that most Fortune 50 companies (it ranks at 36) suffer from.
Target is working, for example, with Techstars to create a three-month mentorship-driven startup accelerator right on Target's Minneapolis main campus. One of the leaders of that movement at Target, Target entrepreneur-in-residence West Stringfellow (he's one of three such EIRs), said this effort is all about getting unorthodox about ways to attack IT and related issues. Stringfellow rattled off quite a few areas of initial interest — including in-store retail, guest experience innovation, shopping personalization, supply chain, fulfillment, returns and sizing — but stressed that Target doesn't want to limit the thinking of companies in the program.
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