Readers have continued to make nominations and vote on possible new Barnes & Noble CEOs with book world experience--and we now have a clear leader.
There's been a striking groundswell of support for Heidi Fairchild, a Barnes & Noble staffer for more than 15 years who works in the company's Alpharetta, Ga., store and is well known to B&N employees across the country through the company's Facebook page. She has more than 120 write-in votes, more than any other vote-getter in the poll.
(Our survey is open until later this week. If you haven't already, make nominations and vote here. See the results here.)
Many respondents simply wrote her name, often with an exclamation point following it. But many others offered lavish accolades. Among them:
"She is old blood that feels new. She already knows books and wouldn't require months of misguided decisions trickling down to the minions. She can fix the issues and get back to the heart of what it means to be Barnes & Noble."
Other supporters also emphasized the distance between B&N booksellers and the executive suite: "She knows bookselling from top to bottom.... We need a woman who knows sales and merchandising, knows the daily reality of how stores actually work and what corporate nonsense DOESN'T work. Barnes & Noble is people; Heidi knows this and lives this."
"It's time to have someone who actually knows what it's like to work in the store and not just think they do! Heidi Heidi Heidi!! Also everyone in corporate needs to work in one of our stores for about six months. You can't claim to know what's best for the stores when you've never actually dealt with trying to have cash wrap, customer service, music, kids, and the book floor covered with four people! And the phones ringing! And why in the world would you get rid of receiving managers??!! They keep the store together and product coming out!"
In a similar vein, another Fairchild fan wrote: "The booksellers know what needs to be done to save the company, and it certainly isn't slashing payroll and firing many of the most knowledgeable and dedicated employees to appease stockholders."
One supporter mentioned Fairchild's role on the B&N Facebook group, saying in part: "We, the booksellers, have had our collected concerns addressed quickly and sincerely, and--should the occasion call for it--greeted with just the right mixture of brevity and wit befitting a leader who knows when to take charge, but also when to have fun and enjoy the more humor-filled moments that make this one of the best occupations in the world, wherein we get to share the joy of Story and the personal touch that can only come from dedicated booksellers in their respective communities."
Another fan, who has known Fairchild "for over a decade," wrote: "Her knowledge of and experience with the Barnes & Noble retail operation are obvious. Less obvious perhaps, unless one has seen her home library, is her vast, eclectic consumption of writing across an incredible range of genres. 'Voracious reader' only begins to describe her. A lofty intellect is evident in her perceptive grasp of human nature and behavior, as manifest by her quick wit and interpersonal skills, all of which are essential in individual and team leadership. Her leadership skills, based on my 40 years' experience in military and corporate leadership development, are underutilized. The above practical characteristics, perhaps most importantly, are built upon a moral foundation of impeccable integrity and genuine caring for others. People respect, admire, and follow a leader of such caliber."
Other nominations tomorrow.