We are, indeed, working in an unprecedented environment. Just over a week from now will the last day of work for about 500 of my co-workers, those who chose to opt into Best Buy’s voluntary severance package. Soon thereafter, we will learn how involuntary layoffs will impact our workforce.

So, in every hallway conversation, every meeting, every casual greeting, we hear a common refrain: Are you staying? And an even more common response, I hope so!

At the same time, we are beginning the last month of our fiscal year. Crunching data for year’s end.  Finishing projects. Prioritizing new work. Buttoning up plans for a new fiscal year that will undoubtedly be like no other in our history.

And of course, the day-to-day business rolls on. Weekly ads. New initiatives. Product lines. System upgrades. Contracts. All the things that need to happen every day to run a $40 billion retailer.

This leaves just about everyone feeling rather, well, weird.  We are all trying to get work done, trying to make a difference, plan for the future. At the same time, we wonder what the future here will look like. How we’ll accomplish all our goals. And to whom we’ll say farewell along the way.

Through all this angst, I hold onto two truths. First, that our company values have - and will continue to – guide us through this time. And second, that we work in an environment where we can talk, openly and honestly, about this time and how we’re dealing with it.

Because it is weird.  We’re transforming ourselves into a startup company with 40 years of history. If it weren’t weird, we’d probably be on the wrong track.

The evening started with doors opening to Soldier Field’s club level, which led the first 100 attendees to run in, either to claim their first player autograph, or to get in line for their complimentary gift bag.

For the next 90 minutes, the sold-out crowd of 850 women ate a light dinner, enjoyed wine tasting, and took tours of the Bears’ locker rooms. Most of these minutes were spent waiting in line – for food, wine, tours, autographs, and gift bags. But, the women didn’t seem to mind: they were just thrilled to be in the same room with Matt Forte, Mark Anderson and other Bears.

About halfway through the event, the “presentation” portion started, by far the coolest part of the evening. We watched game tapes, listened to players describe why they made the decisions they did, and got a chance for some Q&A. It was intriguing – not just because the content was engaging but because this event clearly filled a unique need of their fans.

And so, since that evening, I find myself thinking a lot about sports marketing. Not the boring run-of-the-mill marketing like naming a stadium or hanging banners behind home plate, but the potential unique sports marketing opportunities. Given creative minds and clear objectives, I am convinced that Best Buy’s most effective sports marketing opportunities will provide more than brand awareness – they will compliment our growth strategies and create unique brand positioning among fans.

After the Soldier Field event, we headed to the South Loop Best Buy store for what I referred to as an afterparty. (Marketing materials referred to it as an exclusive shopping event.)  In any case, women shopped the store, enjoyed snacks, won raffle prizes, and finally had their opportunity to take pictures and even chat a bit with Bears players. Overall, a successful night.

At the store, I met Daniela, who greeted me shyly, but warmly, in an effort to help me shop. After introducing myself – and my role in making Best Buy a better place for women – her demeanor changed. She now had something to SAY.

Daniela told me how, on occasion, she has been frustrated as female customers assume that she doesn’t have deep knowledge about the products she sells. She also talked about how much she enjoys her job, how her manager listens to her ideas, and how she never wants to leave the company. Daniela’s excitement about reaching her local Hispanic market was contagious; by the end of our conversation, I was convinced that she alone could drive this store to meet its growth plan.

And then, she floored me: Daniela has worked at Best Buy for one month.

Something is happening here. Daniela’s passion wasn’t the result of a talented recruiter. Or new employee training. Or big posters proclaiming Best Buy’s vision and values.

No, Daniela has connected with Best Buy. Somehow, after 30 days on the job, she embodies all that we want to strive to create: Passion. Empowerment. Engagement. Customer Focus. Drive for Growth.

Now, all we need to do is uncover the magic that brought Daniela to the place where she is. And then replicate that magic another 100,000 times. Because the more Danielas there are, the faster Best Buy will grow.

This is a great vision. The idea that our company is built on the strength of its people, and that we can grow stronger by relying even more on our people is, I believe, a differentiator and has the capacity to carry us far into the future. The principles of mass collaboration and open innovation are the waves that are transforming our society right now; building our company upon them ensures us a solid future.

This approach is driving some great behaviors throughout the organization. I see more openness, humility, teamwork and respect than ever before. Corporate leadership is getting to know our field employees. Complaints from retail staff about out-of-touch management are becoming more rare. People are connecting names to faces. And some great ideas are seeing the light of day.

It’s all making a difference. People are thinking differently, behaving differently, and pushing themselves to the boundaries of what open architectiture could mean. 

At the same time, I think we walk a fine line in this space. Not only do we need each employee to bring their best ideas to the table, but we need to listen carefully to the needs and work together to act upon them. The scary part is, the former is happening faster than the latter.

In recent weeks, I have been in countless rooms of retail teams who are diligently working to drive local growth. They discuss that “the answer is in the room.” They act as small business owners. They brainstorm. They prioritize. They decide. They test. They measure. They are, indeed, empowered. And, they are scared.

The fear sits behind their eyes, and hovers like a cloud above the tables. No one wants to talk about it. People finally have the power to make change, so how can they admit apprehension now?

This fear exists because the teams don’t have all they need. There is not a menu of options from which to choose to drive their businesses. There is no suite of tools to help them succeed. In general, there are just not a lot of resources to help them along the way.

We are making strides in providing more of these resources – local marketing is a great example - but we are not moving fast enough. So, right now the collaborative model is limited — by who you know, what you know, and when you have time to get it done. Not to mention your budget (or lack thereof).  And yet, the business needs move on, at lightning speed, in an economic environment that brings more pressure each day.

Meanwhile, the need to listen, to support, to collaborate, remains. We listen in pockets, when we have time. But we have not reframed our priorities to focus on the needs.

To a certain extent, we are sitting back and waiting for “the crowd” to come up with the answer. We need the entire organization to jump in with both feet to make it happen.