I applied online. I interviewed at Sears (Hoffman Estates, IL) in Dec 2013
Interview
I applied online and a recruiter emailed me over a month later to set up a phone interview. She was very pleasant on the phone and asked very relevant questions. Be prepared to answer "Why Sears?"
A week and a half later I was emailed and asked to select dates I was available to do an in person interview. They pay for a flight and car to take you to the hotel and back to the airport.
You will take a short math test mostly based on the guide you are provided. There were two 1:2 interviews with merchandisers or buyer teams.
Finally there is a case study. You are giving ten minutes to read over a case about who to invest in. You are supposed to argue your case to the other interviewees and come to a decision on who to invest in.
I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Sears (Hoffman, IL) in Dec 2015
Interview
The interview process was pretty long. First They conduct a phone interview and if they like you they bring you into for an in person interview. The in person interview was a little stressful but everyone involved was extremely nice and encouraging. The in person interview was 4 hours long and consisted of a retail math test, two separate 30 minute interviews conducted with two current head buyers from different departments and then a group case study where they give you a sheet of information about a business unit (refrigerators, hair care, tools, etc.) and it is your job to discuss amongst yourselves (usually groups of 8 people interview at a time) to decided which persons business unit get a grant for 100 million dollars.Overall the interview seems really nerve wrecking but it really wasn't. They give you a study guide for the test and the case study isn't necessarily about who can "win" the money but more about how you interact in a group and how you make decisions in a group since you all have to decided together what business unit gets the grant. After the test, interviews and case study, you get a tour of the building and trust me, the tour alone will sell you on the job.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What does a buyer do?
Why Sears?
Tell me about a time where you implemented a change.
What sets you apart?
Typical interview questions and a lot of behavioral interview questions so make sure you study up on past experiences to try to relate when they ask those questiosn
You will be interviewed in groups. Make sure you stand out by volunteering/answering first. Also, prepared to answer, "Tell me about a time when..." questions. You will also be administered a retail math test.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about a time you had to make a decision and didn't have enough information.
I applied online. I interviewed at Sears (Hoffman Estates, IL) in Dec 2013
Interview
LONG, about four hours. First you have to take a retail math test, but you are given a calculator and a study guide to look over days before. After that, you interview with two sets of people. Basically 2 - 2 on 1 interviews. One side is Kmart and one side is Sears. Then you have a group interview and are given a paper and have to decide as a team who should get funding for their products and why. The point here is not to win, but to figure out who would profit most and why.
