Pros
Challenging, good company vision, discount.
Cons
HR is a joke, so don't waste your time unless you really enjoy soulless machines. It's all about gossip, backstabbing, and complaining. You're treated like a child, and it shows in the staff that have been there forever: they act like children. There's no clear rules at Nordstrom. They like to say that everything is a guideline, but there really isn't any clear direction for employees to take. Departments make their own rules with regard to "saving sales," who goes home early, who gets fired, who gets hired, etc. They claim to have an "upside down pyramid" approach to employment, but that's clearly not the case. Management acts like it walks on water, and clearly thinks its better than the employees who are treated as expendable numbers. If I hadn't had previous experience in sales in a department store, I would've failed immediately. I've survived at this job by realizing that as long as you sell well, you can honestly get away with saying and doing anything. Never have I worked a job where it's VERY clear that favoritism exists between management and employees. I've challenged the company several times on policies they try to enforce on employees and never really have gotten clear answers as to why certain policies exist. If a return comes back at Nordstrom, FOR ANY REASON, it comes out of your pay. How absurd is that? It wouldn't bother me so much, but there is NO hourly pay. It's obscene that if a customer has a valid concern with a purchase (like a defect, snag, etc), that I have to lose pay. It's also INSANE how Nordstrom lets thieves get away with murder --- targeting salespeople and buying tons on fraudulent cards (gift cards, stolen credit cards), and then the thieves return for cash. Working here is like a trainwreck. You cannot walk away because it's fascinating to look at, but the longer you stand there, the more it stinks. Management often travels in cliques around the store, gossiping (while they collect their salaries).