Table of Contents
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart has promoted Judith McKenna to chief operating officer of Walmart U.S. McKenna succeeds Gisel Ruiz, who was transferred to Walmart International as executive vice president of the unit’s people division earlier this month.
Walmart has promoted Judith McKenna to chief operating officer of Walmart U.S. McKenna succeeds Gisel Ruiz, who was transferred to Walmart International as executive vice president of the unit’s people division earlier this month.
The moves, effective immediately, followed by two weeks the departure of chief merchant Duncan Mac Naughton, who resigned amid an overhaul of Walmart’s U.S. merchandising operations.
Mac Naughton had been assumed to be a candidate to succeed Bill Simon as chief executive of Walmart U.S. following Simon’s resignation in August, but that job went to Greg Foran, who had been running Walmart’s Asia operations.
Instead of naming a new chief merchant to replace Mac Naughton, Walmart U.S. is relying on a group of merchandising executives reporting to Foran as he strives to revive U.S. sales. The reorganization began in June, when Doug McMillon, Walmart’s president and chief executive officer, named 13 executives to U.S. merchandising operations.
Like Foran, McKenna began working for Walmart in the company’s international unit. She moved to Bentonville in April. As chief development officer of Walmart U.S., McKenna led the development of new store formats.
"One of the great things about Walmart is the depth and breadth of talent at all levels of our organization," Foran said in a statement announcing the personnel shuffle. "Around the globe, we have some of the best leaders in retail because of our focus on developing talent and our commitment to creating opportunities for diverse experiences. The announcements we’re making today are examples of just that."
McKenna will lead a team that runs 5,000 stores and is the nation’s largest private-sector employer, with 1.3 million associates. She will continue to lead Walmart’s small-format stores, develop new formats and oversee integration of digital commerce and brick-and-mortar stores in the United States.
"At her core and by experience, Judith is a retailer who has made major contributions to our business throughout her career," Foran added. "It’s exciting to bring her skills in managing store operations, small-format growth, logistics and e-commerce to an expanded role in our U.S. operations. Her knowledge of global best practices and her success in leading our associates around the world will help drive our Walmart U.S. business forward."
Ruiz had been COO at Walmart U.S. since early 2012. Previously, she had been executive vice president of the unit’s people division. In her new role, she will lead the retailer’s international people leadership team reporting to international CEO David Cheesewright.
"The expertise and leadership that Gisel brings are needed as we take our international division to the next level," said Cheesewright.
The shake-up was announced as Walmart was preparing for the rush of holiday sales that kicked off on Thanksgiving. Among other recent personnel moves:
• Steve Bratspies is transitioning from his role as executive vice president of general merchandise to executive vice president of food, including a "strong focus" on fresh, according to Foran.
• Andy Barron retains his role as executive vice president of soft lines and assumes responsibility for general merchandise.
• Jack Sinclair, the head of grocery, is helping to transition the food business before taking a yet-to-be-announced role within Walmart.
• Labeed Diab, senior vice president and president of Walmart’s health and wellness business, now reports to Michelle Gloeckler, executive vice president of consumables and U.S. manufacturing.
