Sarah Dorsett, VP of Ecommerce at Century 21 Stores, Michigan Native and Ecommerce Veteran  

A  Michigan native now living in New York City, Sarah McCollum Dorsett has managed Ecommerce at powerhouse companies like Bloomingdale’s and Coty, and is currently the Vice President of Ecommerce at Century 21 Department Stores, a business that is a lifesaver for bargain-hunting fashionistas, with its catchy motto of “up to 65% off, 100% of the time.”

Dorsett is a graduate of Michigan State University , and in her current position, manages, she says, “about ten departments, including operations, production, business strategy, creative and merchandising.”  She is also a go-to expert on the ultra-crucial art of Ecommerce, an area that she says “the sky’s the limit for how big it can become”, but takes note of the “big challenges” that come with the online space and is excited about the “disruptors” in mobile and other potential digital technology synergies. A fan of Game of Thrones, noting that she spends almost every non-working moment with her family, she has very specific ideas on good leadership qualities, musing that the essential five are “collaboration, compassion, positive attitude, support and empowerment.”

Can you tell the readers a little bit about yourself?
I’m a VP of eCommerce at the iconic off-price NY department store, Century 21. I was hired to kick-start their eCommerce business after some unsuccessful attempts. I manage a full P&L, and about ten departments, including operations, production, business strategy, creative and merchandising.

I’ve lived in NYC for almost 15 years. Originally from Michigan, I came to NY to be a performer (dance or acting – whichever came first, but obviously neither one worked out!). I’m married, have a six-year old chocolate lab, and my two favorite things on the planet are named Mason and Parker, my two sons, ages three and two.

What was your very first job?
Does babysitting count? If not, then my first job where I had to pay taxes was bagging groceries at a local store. I was sixteen, and it was rough because this particular store required you to cart the groceries to the customer’s car, and in Michigan the weather can really work against you. I also had to run the bottle-return, which meant I went home covered in beer from pulling cans. 

What does a day in your shoes typically look like?
Honestly, every day is completely different. I could be immersed in concepts and designs with my creative team; reviewing racks of clothes for new stories; meeting with buyers all day to discuss merchandise and business opportunities — or I might be wrapped in up in HR related issues or even legal issues related to eCommerce.

What are the last three things you do before you go to bed?
I actually don’t do three things consistently, but I always cuddle with my kids!

What is your breakfast of choice?
Egg and cheese on an English muffin, fruit (no melon – yuck!), and a huge skinny latté with whip.

What keeps you energized and motivated at work?
Watching others succeed and/or get inspired.

What is your favorite part about your job?
Working with a great team and great people. Product. I love “stuff” and finding ways to successfully sell products online, is why I’m passionate about eCommerce.

What and who inspires your work?
It’s never one thing or a specific person…just about anything can inspire me if I’m paying attention. I can be in seven different meetings in a day and in each one I can walk out with a new idea just from a brief line that someone said, or an example they gave.

How does your culture/background influence your work?
I think it’s the combination of art (mom) and math (dad), and a very consistent learning environment as a child that partially influences my work in terms of attention to detail, symmetry, and information hierarchy. I can lapse into ‘teacher’ mode fairly often; I’m sure my team would agree! The rest of what influences me is just plain curiosity.

What has been your biggest obstacle in your career and how did you overcome it?
Early on, it was just going from a tiny, mid-western town to NYC and trying to find a job that I could grow into a career. I overcame it by avoiding a lot of drama and always seizing opportunities to take on more in my current role, or try a new one. Later in my career, it was age. I had to prove myself a little more because I was often the youngest one in the room with a lot of responsibility…but I’ve overcome that one by getting older (unfortunately!).

What is your favorite leisure activity after a stressful work week?
I don’t really have one because I try to spend any spare time with my family. When everyone’s asleep and I’m not too tired, there are a few shows that I love to watch…Game of Thrones most recently.

How many times have you changed your career direction?
Before officially choosing eCommerce as my career choice, I’d say I changed course about six times.

How has eCommerce changed since you were at Coty to now being at Century 21 Department Stores?
Ha! “How hasn’t it changed” might be the easier question to answer. At Coty, I was primarily building brand websites and trying to buy digital media with tiny budgets. No one cared too much about true eCommerce and digital marketing was a hard sell. At Coty, I helped to launch one of the first online exclusive fragrances (Marc Jacobs Daisy) for Bloomingdales.com when their site had almost no product to sell – I was hired at Bloomies a little over two years later, and their site still hadn’t changed much. It was essentially a start-up when I as hired.

Now there are so many choices and so much data! It’s really exciting to be in a similar “start-up” position at Century 21 because there are so many options but there are also, now, a lot of best practices with proven results so there’s a balance, it’s not uncharted territory like it was back at Coty. It’s a completely different animal.

Three questions you like to ask during an interview to know if the candidate (or job) is the right fit?
I actually don’t have any ‘go to’ questions. I prep each interview based on the resume, so I try to find a good question about something interesting on the resume to break the ice. I usually look more for a positive attitude,  a sense of willingness, and note how questions are answered…using a lot of non-verbal cues, to determine if the candidate is a fit.

What are the most important qualities of a good leader?
If I had to choose one, it’s probably the one that came most naturally to me when I started to manage others — and that was to take myself out of the equation and put my team first. Collaboration, Compassion, Positive Attitude, Support and Empowerment are other qualities that I believe in. I also believe in leadership at all levels.

On a personal note, I have a boss now who really cares about getting to know his people personally, he always dedicates some time to sharing personal stories. He’s the first boss I’ve had who did that in a big way, and I find it to be a nice leadership quality, it humanizes the employee/supervisor relationship.

What advantages do you see as a woman in the workplace?
I’ve always believed in women’s intuition, and I’ve admired women who didn’t let their emotions get the best of them, but instead used their natural feminine qualities to objectively evaluate a person or situation.

What advice would you give women starting their career?
“Actively listen.” Focus on your own career, and not what’s wrong with everyone or everything else. Avoid negativity. Find good role models. And, most of all, learn to love what you’re good at…it’ll provide you with the success and financial freedom to enjoy the things you love.

What book would you recommend for women just starting their career?
I don’t think I have a single book that has helped to guide me in my career. I’m definitely someone who instead remembers personal experience and advice given by trusted mentors.