So as Dame #SharonWhite prepares to step down for the chair of John Lewis Partnership (after the shortest tenure of any of its chairs), the Q. will be whether the experiment with non-retail appointments will continue.

Either, she bought a new & vital perspective to the partnership's future, or her difficulties show that generalist management (with little specialist/sectoral experience) doesn't have what it takes to steer a firm through a crisis.

Take your pick on which conclusion you prefer