BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Sam’s Club is equipping its frontline leadership with enterprise-grade ChatGPT tools in a move that president and CEO Chris Nicholas called “transformational” for both associates and members.
In a LinkedIn post this week, Nicholas said the warehouse club chain believes it is the first retailer to provide its field managers with direct access to advanced generative AI. The goal, he emphasized, is to “democratize new tools and empower the people who interact with our members every day.”
“Retail has always been about people,” Nicholas wrote. “Technology has evolved how we shop, making it easier, faster and more convenient for consumers. But often, it has come at the cost of that connection. At Sam’s Club, we know there is a moment of joy when someone walks in and feels taken care of by one of our associates. And we believe technology can be used to deepen the human experience.”
Driving Decisions Closer to the Customer
According to Nicholas, early adopters are already reporting tangible results. Club managers have used AI to uncover local products for consideration by merchants, quickly analyze P&L data, and flag opportunities to improve staffing, promotions, and inventory. “Instead of spending hours combing through P&L reports, managers are using AI to flag opportunities, highlight key revenue trends and break down financials into clear next steps,” he explained.
By shifting analytical power to the field, Sam’s Club is seeking to accelerate decision-making, reduce bottlenecks, and “ensure that the people closest to our members have the same power available to our office-based teams.” Nicholas said the change is intended to free leaders to focus on distinctly human strengths—“showing empathy, solving problems creatively and building meaningful relationships.”
Eliminating Repetitive Tasks
The rollout of AI tools is part of a broader effort to remove repetitive tasks from associates’ workloads. Nicholas noted that Sam’s Club is “on track to eliminate another 200 million tasks for our associates this year,” giving employees more time for development and customer engagement. The company has already seen improvements in associate engagement scores, he added.
Beginning next year, Walmart, the parent company of Sam’s Club, will extend free AI training to all U.S. frontline and office-based associates through the newly launched OpenAI Certification program.
A Human-Centered Vision for Retail
Nicholas framed the initiative as part of a larger redefinition of what it means to lead in retail. “Democratizing these tools will help good ideas come from everywhere, and this is just the beginning,” he wrote. “Retail’s future will be one where technology enables human connection.”
He added: “We’re leveraging technology to build the best jobs and the best experiences in our industry – and to ensure members feel a sense of belonging, identity and community when they come to our clubs. Together, we are proving that the world’s best club retailer will also be the world’s most human – and we are just getting started.”
