Working for Sears Holdings: Employment, Careers, and Jobs

By | July 18, 2023
Working for Sears Holdings
Working with Sears Holdings can afford you the opportunity to build a long-lasting customer relationships based on trust and honesty. Image source: wcyy.

This post provides complete information on working for the Sears Holdings Corporation, including employment, careers, and job opportunities you can find with Sears, to enhance your ability to start a career with the Company.

Please, read on:

Sears Holdings Company Overview

Sears Holdings Corporation is a leading retailer that engages in the provision of retail stores, through its subsidiaries.

Sears functions through two segments, which are Sears Domestic and Kmart.

The Sears Domestic segment offers home services, commercial sales, and in-line stores specialty stores.

The Kmart segment provides outdoor living, consumer electronics, food and consumables, seasonal merchandise, apparel, lawn and garden equipment, and toys.

Sears Holdings Corporation was established in 2004 and is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.

Sears Holdings Careers and Jobs

Sears Holdings Corporation is being transformed into an integrated retail company that offers superior value through great products, trusted brands, and reliable, convenient services.

Corporate Careers

Sears has been an important fraction of the American retail landscape for over a century.

For you to become one of the nation’s largest and most respected retailers, you need to start with a great idea, providing quality products at affordable prices, and working your way into long-lasting customer relationships built on trust and honesty.

Sears is known for industry leading brands and for exceptional service and experience provided through an integrated retail model.

Every associate at Sears Holdings Corporation may not face customers, but each role is committed to focusing on serving the needs of the customers and members.

Sears Holdings Corporation has a lot of opportunities for passionate, service-minded experts in corporate support areas such as:

  • Member Analytics
  • Design
  • Member Technology
  • Talent & Human Capital Services
  • E-commerce
  • Finance
  • Financial Services
  • Legal
  • Marketing
  • Retail Operations
  • Supply Chain
  • Shop Your Way
  • Real Estate

Technology

Member Technology is in the middle of a major technical transformation to reinvest in retail and greatly in advanced technology and employment, and employing aggressive development methodologies.

By joining Sears as they invest in their abilities and build more well-organized and clever applications, you will have the chance to improve your talents and apply business solutions, which are the most progressive technical advancements in today’s marketplace.

The Sears’s industry and technology are quickly changing so there is huge pressure to produce at an increased speed.

Member Technology is seeking technology professionals who have the right skill sets, drive, and desire to be part of these ground-breaking solutions.

If you’d like to maximize your digital IQ and be on the forefront of the advanced IT development, come join Sears’ Member Technology team.

They are dedicated to hiring individuals who can keep up with the ever-changing challenges in the marketplace and who are willing to produce results.

Opportunities in Member Technology

These include:

  • Web and Mobile Developers
  • Cloud Architects and Engineers
  • Engineering Software Developers
  • Data Architects
  • IT Cyber Security
  • Enterprise Architects
  • Program/Project Management.

Distribution Careers

Sears delivers goods to their huge international retail network before delivering value to their customers and members.

The Company’s priority is to ensure that their online outlets and retail stores are stocked to meet the various needs of those they serve, and to also deliver challenging and rewarding careers.

Distribution Professionals at Sears Holdings:

Sears employees who are engaged in the distribution arm of the Company commonly perform the functions:

  • Coordinate supply chain activity between Sears stores and Kmart stores across the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico, Canada, and the U.S. Virgin Islands
  • Embrace innovation as a driving force for SHC’s efficiency, productivity, performance and growth
  • Monitor and manage the physical flow of all apparel, appliances, hardware, consumables, household goods, automotive and general merchandise across the company’s retail network
  • Ensure sufficient resources exist to support the current and future needs of every Sears Holdings Corporation business.

Call Centers

Sears members are supported by associates in their Call Centers through their channel of choice: email, phone or chat.

The Company’s goal is to provide an exceptional member experience and offer services and products that improve the lives of their members, whether the goal is to assist with a simple product repair over the phone, schedule a kitchen remolding project, sell a Home Warranty or appliance replacement part, or resolve a delivery issue.

Career opportunities include support positions, Call Center Agent, Manager, including career path opportunities in each of their locations.

Successful Call Center Agent Candidates:

  • Are able to work the schedules available, which may include evenings and/or weekends
  • Use communications and influencing skills to serve customers and members by phone
  • Provide service and/or sales support, offering solutions and products that meet member needs
  • Care about helping others, use strong communications skills, have basic computer skills, and demonstrate the ability to offer solutions or products to the members

To find the right job for you at Sears Holdings, visit jobs.

Sears Holdings Training and Development Programs

To ensure their salaried associates are aligning their work and development with the strategic priorities and culture of their organization, Sears Holdings continues to focus on Performance Enablement.

Performance Enablement has designed a set of performance management processes and tools that support Sears’s strategic vision and help each other associate live their Members First culture, achieve their key results, and develop leadership abilities.

Salaried associates start each new financial year by creating or revising their Individual Priorities that represent an Associate’s broader key initiatives for the year, and are directly aligned to transparent business unit and Company priorities.

On a quarterly basis, associates create Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) in alignment with their Individual Priorities and the needs of the business.

The OKRs methodology is a framework used by other leading organizations to ensure a more lively focus on efforts than annual goals.

Sears offers development opportunities through their innovative learning platform, Segno Expertise, to continue to develop and train their associates.

Segno Expertise is an open-learning platform that helps associates to learn what they need to know.

In addition, Segno facilitates learning in areas the associate is interested in. Compliance training and learning content fastened to particular roles are also obtainable.

Sears Holdings has won multiple Brandon Hall awards for achievements in learning since the launch of Segno and the continual transformation of learning content and innovative strategies.

In 2017, Sears received a Gold Brandon Hall Award for Best Use of Games and Simulations for learning for one of their compliance courses.

Retail Leadership Development Programs

Sears makes a number of programs available to help develop Retail leadership, starting at the hourly level in their stores.

Both Sears and Kmart have a Growing Entry Level Management (GEM) program designed to build up talented store-level hourly associates who have the aspiration and potential to be considered for assistant store manager positions.

The program has been a successful investment in their future leadership.

Additionally, Sears provides new Sears and Kmart store managers with a structured learning program of study to prepare them with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful in their roles.

The content of the academies covers everything from financials to leadership through a series of eLearning programs, discussions, webinars and sessions at the corporate office.

The content is reinforced through hands-on opportunities at training stores.

Participation by new hires in the academies has shown an impact on key store performance metrics.

Sears offers similar leadership development programs for roles from assistant store manager to regional director roles.

In 2017, Sears was awarded two Brandon Hall Group Silver Awards for Excellence in Leadership Development in the categories of Best Advance in Leadership Development Strategy and Best Use of Blended Learning.

This was the second year in a row Sears Holdings has won awards for these programs.

Sears Roadshow for Home Appliance, Mattress and Lawn & Garden

Every year, many of Sears’s business units partner with their top vendors to take their new and exciting product offerings on the road.

In 2017, separate roadshows took place for Home Appliances, Mattress and Lawn & Garden businesses.

Sears’ instructors visited quite a number of major cities across the country to further build their associates’ selling skills and help their associates understand how to best meet the diverse needs of their customers with the up-to-date technological advancements in the products they offer.

In addition, the roadshows give Sears’ associates an opportunity to learn about the environmental offered by their own brand products and those of their valued partners, as well as learn about social benefits.

Portions of the roadshows are also recorded and made available to associates who were not able to take part in person.

These valuable learning opportunities prepare Sears’ associates to assist the Company’s customers throughout their purchase so they find the product that best fits their life.

Sears Student Internship Program and Recruitment Process

Sears and Kmart are innovative leaders in retail – serving and delighting customers and members with future that looks brighter than ever.

Prepare yourself to take everything you’ve learned in the classroom and make it work your way.

Imagine starting your career where you can put your passion and talent to work immediately, while continuing to learn and produce the skills that lead to accomplishment.

Retail Management Internship

Learn retail sales, merchandise-related, and customer service skills.

The ten-week internship assignment is designed to give you a feel of the unique culture of Sears, one of the nation’s biggest and most successful retailers, and the retail industry.

Asset and profit Protection Internship

The Sears Holdings Corporation’s Asset and Profit Protection Internship are designed to build up talented college students into high-performing managers and leaders, as they are introduced to the Asset & Profit Protection field.

The focal point of the program is to build blocks crucial to leadership development, such as Mentor Relationship, Structured Development, In-Store Rotations and Networking Opportunities.

Upon completion of the program, a lot of Asset Protection management opportunities will be available to you with career path options like Zone Asset Protection Manager within three to four years.

Business Analyst Program

The Sears’s Business Analyst (BA) Program exposes you to networking events, Senior Leadership, career and personal branding exercises, and growth opportunities.

You will benefit from the mentorship and direct leadership of a dedicated business unit director as a participant.

You will quickly lead projects within your assigned business unit and become an essential part of the Company’s continuing transformation and future success.

Buyer Apprentice Program

The Sears’s Buyer Apprentice Program (BAP) is a six-month training program that intends to help you quickly start your career on the buying track.

As a future Buyer, you will gain invaluable hands-on experience reporting to a Buyer in one of the Company’s several category areas, and receiving mentoring to expand into an attractive role.

You will engage in learning opportunities such as team guest speaks, field trips, meetings, and different assignments/projects to help you better conceptualize and build up competencies in your role as a participant.

Finance Development Program

Sears’s Finance group plays a vital role in the Company’s ability to successfully and accurately forecast and then implement plans for business.

The Finance Development Program serves as an entry point into one of their several finance teams, which include Treasury, Financial Services, FP&A, Merchandise, Marketing, etc., and a radiant introduction to the several business units and financial processes at Sears Holdings Corporation.

You will collaborate with business unit leaders to help determine the financial integrity of plans as a participant.

You’ll also reach out to other business leaders to analyze economic indicators, view outcomes at both a micro and macro level, provide analytical support, and support the planning process.

Full-time internship opportunities are available.

Technology Undergraduate Development Program

The focal point of Sears Holdings Technology is to create an innovative, talented, entrepreneurial channel of new technologies.

The Company partnered with the University of Florida to create a year-round experience for undergraduate students consisting of part-time employment during the school year, full-time employment during the summer, and near campus.

The program, unlike co-op programs, doesn’t require students to deny their graduation to obtain invaluable work experience.

Instead, while students are pursuing their academic studies they have the opportunity to gain practical hands-on experience with rising and proven technologies.

Sears Corporate Culture and Values

Sears is obviously a well-managed Company with tremendous leadership and helpful workers.

They provide quality products with great service.

Sears is admired everywhere and has been listed in many publications as one of the best companies to work for.

The success they experience however is by reason of hard work. They deserve the honor.

Sears provides original products and services at great value when and where Sears’s customers want them and builds long-lasting relationships with customers.

Sears has “core values” that are referred to as “our cultural beliefs”. These include:

  • Members first is to deliver a wonderful experience
  • Own It or take accountability happens when you can develop the “I See It, Own It, Solve It and Do It attitude”
  • To earn trust is to work hard to earn the trust of every member you interact with
  • To be authentic is to be genuine in all interactions – align words and action to achieve key results
  • To embrace feedback is to continually seek, accept and offer feedback
  • To show pride is to express pride and passion by leading by example
  • To learn and innovate is to learn new ways to serve members and embrace innovation and technology.

Sears Holdings Job Application – How to Start a Career with the Company (the Hiring Process)

There are a lot of various kinds of jobs available within Sears Holding Corporation. You can select from the following categories:

Online Application

Click on the careers link on the Company’s official website to submit an application.

As you get on to this page, you’ll have a chance to submit your application after learning more about the kinds of jobs that catch your attention.

Be conscious of the online application that takes approximately 30 to 45 minutes to complete.

You can either log in using your email address, or using one of your network accounts such as LinkedIn or Facebook to start the application process.

If you choose not to use either, you will be directed to the next page where you’ll be asked to choose a language to continue.

You will begin the application process by clicking the green start button.

You will have to answer a series of questions to determine if you are eligible for employment and you will be asked to provide the following information:

  • First, middle and last name
  • Zip code
  • Social Security number
  • Select whether you want to work at Store or Auto Center.

You will be asked questions related to your:

  • Date of birth
  • Education
  • Email address
  • Work history
  • Phone number
  • Employment availability

At Sears, you will be provided with the option to choose whether you want to work full-time, part-time, regular or seasonal.

Job Assessment

After completing the initial application, if you meet the minimum qualification you will take an online assessment test, which will help place you in a position that will match your interests and experience.

The assessment contains eighty-two (82) questions and can be completed in around 30 minutes.

The assessment consists of two different kinds of questions:

  1. Work situations and actions that could be taken
  2. Background and work experience

The Interview

The hiring manager or a Human Resource professional reviews an online application once it is submitted.

You will be contacted for an interview if you are a match for an open position.

Applicants usually are offered a series of two interviews before a decision will be made by the store’s management.

Learn more about the Sears Holdings hiring process.

Benefits and Compensation for Working with Sears Holdings

Sears Holdings recognizes and rewards the thousands of associates who are the real force behind their success.

The Company therefore provides different thoughtful benefits for their associates, such as:

Benefits:

  • Flexible Spending Accounts
  • Paid Holidays & Paid Time Off
  • Associate Points Program
  • Service Awards
  • Referral Bonus Program (select businesses)
  • 401K Plan
  • Stock Purchase Plan
  • Employee Assistance Program
  • Medical/Dental/Vision Plans
  • Life Insurance and Disability Plans
  • Healthcare & Dependent Care.

Additional Home Office Benefits:

  • Sample Sales
  • Business Casual Work Attire
  • Flexible Work Schedule
  • On-Site Fitness Center
  • On-Site Sears Auto Center
  • On-Site Day Care
  • On-Site Dry Cleaning
  • On-Site Cafeteria
  • On-Site Wellness Center.

Sears Holdings Work/Life Balance

Sears has great employees/co-workers, good pay, nice tech manager to work with, work/life balance and wonderful culture.

There is also flexible schedule, working around school schedules for part-time associates, vacation and paid holidays for part time workers after certain requirements are met.

There are good and wonderful people to work with in most locations, as well as availability of approved requested time off/vacations.

Apart from flexibility and great work/life balance, you will develop skills to help widen business administration degrees.

There is also room for development to the next level upper management.

Conclusion

If you are planning to start a career with Sears Holdings, this post will help you get the knowledge you need to actualize the dream.

If you find this post helpful in learning about careers and employment at Sears holdings, kindly leave a comment in the box below.

You can also share any experience you’ve had with Sears Holdings if you are or had been an employee of the company.

>> Are you billed to take a pre-employment assessment test with a company? If you are, then it is wise to learn about the test and prepare effectively for it with lots of practice questions and answers. Start your preparation for your coming test here: Make Top Scores in Employers’ Assessment Tests.