The Huddle with John Furner

Sam Walton used to test new ideas at Walmart’s 8th store in Morrilton, Arkansas. Today, Store No. 8 is the name of our company’s incubation arm. Scott Eckert’s team is always looking around the corner to identify new tech trends - some might have uncertain outcomes, but big potential if the idea works. Srini Venkatesan’s team then tests, iterates, and develops a final product to be implemented in stores across the country. InHome delivery and Intelligent Retail Lab both started at Store No. 8! We’re constantly running startups inside Walmart to remove friction for our associates and continue innovating for our customers. Listen to this new episode of The Huddle with John Furner to hear how we’re honoring Walmart’s entrepreneurial history while encouraging our teams to perform and transform for the future with Store No. 8.

Today is an exciting day. We are really proud to share Walmart’s new commitment of an additional $350 billion in the future of U.S. manufacturing, which will support more than 750,000 new American jobs with products made, grown or assembled in the United States. One of the great companies we’ve partnered with is Techtronic Industries. John Furner recently visited Anderson, SC, and met with Steven Scheyer who serves as Global President for TTI. Steven joined John on The Huddle to talk about his history working with Walmart and the difference we’re making for his company and in his community.

Rachel Brand grew up in a small town in Iowa, graduated from Harvard Law School, began an amazing career as an attorney, was appointed to the Department of Justice - and now she’s our EVP of Global Governance, Chief Legal Officer, and Corporate Secretary. Wow! Her teams oversee everything from food safety and healthcare compliance to global security, aviation, and our Emergency Operations Center. Working at Walmart wasn’t something she planned to do, but her advice is to always be open to new opportunities. She saw how passionate we are about doing good for people in the world and wanted to be a part of it. Hear from her in this new episode of The Huddle with John Furner.

Walmart will play a critical role in giving people access to COVID-19 vaccines. Dr. Cheryl Pegus is our EVP of Health and Wellness, and she’s also a cardiologist who’s very passionate about immunizations. When it’s her turn to get the vaccine, she’s going to get it - and John Furner said he’ll do the same when it’s his turn. Dr. Cheryl joined John on The Huddle to talk about the science behind these vaccines, their effectiveness, the quick work we’re doing to be prepared to administer these vaccines, and why she’s encouraging everyone to get vaccinated.

When Bassel Aboutaha moved to America 17 years ago, he interviewed with Walmart and landed a job that ended up changing his life. Today he’s the Store Manager at 3296 in Houston, TX, leading a team that earned 3,000 five-star ratings from customers over a three-month period last year. Bassel’s associates represent the diverse community they serve, where 30 different languages are spoken. He says they can “move mountains.” Bassel is proof that if you look for opportunity and set your mind to it, you can accomplish anything. We know you’ll love hearing his inspiring story in this new episode of The Huddle with John Furner.

Trust is something we take very seriously at Walmart. We want our associates, customers, and the communities we serve to trust us. Nuala O’Connor is our SVP and Chief Counsel of Digital Citizenship. Her team makes sure we’re using data ethically and innovating responsibly to ultimately do the right thing for our customers. Listen to this new episode of The Huddle with John Furner to learn about Nuala’s career path and journey to Walmart, what Digital Citizenship means and how we’re using data and technology to build trust.

John Furner recently wrapped up his first year as Walmart U.S. CEO, so we decided to switch it up a bit for this new episode of The Huddle. Hear John reflect on everything our associates have accomplished, share his thinking behind some of the big decisions we’ve had to make as a company, and explain why we need to keep innovating to better serve our customers in the coming year.

“We are a single humanity, and we belong to each other. Our lives are inextricably linked.” Kelvin Buncum's perspective on leadership is to always treat others with dignity, respect and kindness. He’s an engineer, became an entrepreneur, and now leads our Neighborhood Market teams. He’s seen the true character of our associates firsthand during tough times. They’ve acted with courage and commitment to deliver for our customers in incredible ways. Listen to this new episode of The Huddle to hear Kelvin’s advice for those new to the world of retail, and why he believes we can accomplish more together.

Laura Phillips is a lifelong retailer and long-term Walmart associate. She leads our Global Sourcing and U.S. Manufacturing teams and played a huge role in our virtual Open Call event this year. Entrepreneurs and small businesses from 49 states pitched products manufactured in the U.S. to our merchants – and 4,800 were invited to marketplace. These suppliers have come up with innovative new items to meet the unique needs of our customers in several categories. Laura is a true merchant and is passionate about working with our customers, suppliers and associates. She joined The Huddle with John Furner to talk about how she started her career at Walmart as a store intern – and how we can continue making a positive difference in our country by investing in American jobs.

We wouldn’t be able to do what we do every day without our truck drivers. They keep our stores, Fulfillment Centers and Distribution Centers in stock, and have a pulse on the whole business. Sam Walton used to go and sit with drivers early in the morning for a couple of hours to listen and learn about what’s really going on, because they see it all. Steve Harper has a great story of how he became a Road Team member - from owning a flower shop to now training our drivers. Listen to this new episode of The Huddle to hear John talk with him about the culture of truck driving at Walmart, how we hire the best of the best, and the friendships he’s made through the years.