Pros
Good benefits, nice colleagues, at times excellent work/life balance, open-door policy, overall management supports staff and promotes a culture of listening. Excellent merchandisers. Great discount. Decent pay. Fantastic bonus potential. Great leaders at the very top. Deeply respect Nordstrom as a retailer.
Cons
No management training which results in poor quality, immature & ineffective managers (varies within department) that drive out talented employees across all departments. Management is allowed to behave unprofessionally because of non-confrontational culture. Bullies thrive here. Environment is highly passive-aggressive and inefficient. Corporate offices are uninspiring and lack work space & cleanliness. Design is not supported or respected. Success is not measured by actual output/work but instead by people relations and ability to manage the emotions of the boss. Not a place for productive & passionate designers accustomed to working in a fast-paced environment- for majority, this is a "job". Design offices are in Seattle; isolated from fashion. No inspiration or factory travel for designers or senior designers. Extremely rigid calendar. Archaic technology. No diversity. Very hands-off environment. Design department is overworked but other areas spend much of their day on Facebook, work 4-days a week and leave before 5pm.