Kroger's leadership upheaval marks most turbulent year since COVID-19
Kroger's leadership upheaval marks most turbulent year since COVID-19
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What are those robots at Kroger
Meet 'Barney.' Kroger's new test robot checks prices, shelves for missing items
Between the abrupt March resignation of CEO Rodney McMullen, two changes of its chief financial officer and the departure of its top marketing officer in December, Kroger is seeing the biggest changes among its senior executives ranks since the COVID-19 pandemic, company disclosures show.
Further change was revealed April 15 when Kroger disclosed Joe Kelley, its head of the King Soopers & City Market division in Colorado, was being promoted to senior vice president of retail divisions, one of Kroger's top roles overseeing store operations. He is replacing Kenny Kimball, who has been listed as one of Kroger's top dozen executives for the last three years, who will lead its Smith's Food and Drug division in Utah as president.
The latest switch marks the fifth exit among Kroger's top executive ranks in just over a year. When Kroger files its annual proxy statement next month, it will likely list two or three of its five highest-paid executives who no longer work for the company. The last time Kroger saw so much change was in 2021 when five top executives left amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
No timeline yet on finding next Kroger CEO
Interim CEO Ron Sargent, a Kroger board member and former Staples CEO, took over at the retailer after the sudden exit of McMullen. CEO for more than 11 years, McMullen resigned amid an investigation into his 'personal conduct' that 'was inconsistent' with the grocer's policy of business ethics, the grocer announced March 3.
In case you missed it: Kroger interim CEO Ron Sargent to receive $4.4 million via SEC filing
Sargent, 69, said on a conference call a few days later Kroger would conduct a national search for a successor and consider both internal and external candidates for the CEO position. The company hasn't given a timeline for naming McMullen's permanent successor.
Kroger disclosures show McMullen's departure was hasty: The company said it came about after the board 'was made aware' of the undisclosed conduct and 'immediately' hired an outside lawyer to investigate 10 days before the resignation. The company hasn't offered additional detail about the conduct, other than to say it was 'not related to the company's financial performance, operations or reporting, and it did not involve any Kroger associates.'
Recent departures began with top accountant leaving for Costco
At Kroger the recent spate of resignations, retirements and other changes began 13 months before McMullen left:
On Feb. 5, 2024, Kroger's chief financial officer Gary Millerchip left the grocer to take another job. Days later, Costco Wholesale revealed the company hired him for the same job. A review of the company's respective proxies suggest a good reason: Millerchip's total compensation package has more than doubled from $5.7 million in 2023 to $14.3 million in 2024 at the membership warehouse retailer.
That same day, Kroger named its corporate controller, Todd Foley, as the interim CFO, but made it clear it was looking elsewhere for a 'permanent' replacement.
The retailer said Mary Ellen Adcock, Kroger's senior vice president of operations, was replacing Aitken.
On Feb. 12, Kroger announced it had tapped a Pepsico executive for the top accounting job: David Kennerley, who was the beverage company's CFO for Europe, would take over in April. It added interim CFO Foley would retire at the end of the first quarter.
On March 11, Kroger named Yael Cosset, previously its chief information officer, its new executive vice president and chief digital officer, with oversight of the grocer's newly-formed eCommerce business unit.
On April 15, Kroger announced Kelley's promotion along with other divisional changes in the wake of his move.
Based in downtown Cincinnati, Kroger employs 409,000 workers nationwide, including roughly 20,000 in Greater Cincinnati. Kroger operates 76 stores in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, employing 14,500 associates.
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