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.

Respect for the Individual is one of our core values. As we continue taking steps to be an even more inclusive company, it’s important to constantly listen and educate ourselves about race and racism in our country. On this new episode of The Huddle with John Furner, he talks with Deena Hayes-Greene, Co-Founder of the Racial Equity Institute. She has a fantastic story and is so passionate about her work. Listen to this new episode to better understand how you can become an ally.

We are so excited to announce the launch of our membership program, Walmart+! It gives customers access to services like unlimited free home deliveries from our stores, Scan & Go for fast checkout, and a 5-cent per gallon discount on fuel. Janey Whiteside is our Chief Customer Officer, and her team worked hard to get Walmart+ off the ground. Listen to this new episode of The Huddle with John Furner to hear about this “life hack” and how it’ll save our customers money and time.

Steve Schmitt is the CFO for Walmart U.S. eCommerce and had great news to share this week. Walmart U.S. eComm sales grew by 97% in the second quarter! There are a lot of people behind that number – it doesn’t just happen. We’re evolving for our customers and making a difference. Listen to this newest episode of The Huddle with John Furner to hear Steve talk about Earnings, his love for Louisville, KY, and that one time he met Rob Gronkowski.

John Furner met with Fiona Tan back in January. She wears many hats as the SVP of U.S. Technology, but a big part of her team’s job is building experiences that save our customers time and money. While we couldn’t have predicted the impact of the pandemic, we’ve always worked to serve our customers. Listen to this newest episode of The Huddle to hear how we’ve gathered feedback, adjusted, been challenged, and met every challenge.

From bottles of bourbon to more than 5 million bottles of hand sanitizer, Sazerac switched up production at the start of the pandemic. The Louisville-based company has helped keep American spirits up for 150 years, and has been one of our most important spirit suppliers since 1985. Listen to this new episode of The Huddle to hear from Sazerac CEO Mark Brown and COO Matt Maimone on how their teams coordinated the large-scale shift in nine days.