Target today announced a number of leadership changes in the U.S. and Canada that will further the company’s efforts to drive U.S. traffic and sales, improve its Canadian operations, and advance its ongoing digital transformation.
Effective immediately, Tony Fisher, president, Target Canada, will depart the company. Mark Schindele, senior vice president, merchandising operations, will assume the role of president, Target Canada. In this position, Mark will report to Kathee Tesija, chief merchandising and supply chain officer, whose responsibilities include Target Canada.
Mark is a results-driven leader who brings 22 years of retail experience, including 15 years at Target, to the position. During his Target tenure, he has played an integral role in launching new store formats, including PFresh, CityTarget, and Target Express. Mark has also enhanced Target’s guest insights and analytics capabilities and led multiple business categories and vendor partnerships. In his current role, he leads a global team and provides senior-level oversight to Target’s merchandising operations, including systems, global sourcing, and product development.
“We are grateful to Tony for leading Target's first international launch. One of our key priorities is improving performance in Canada more rapidly and we believe it is important to be aggressive. We have a committed team who is focused on delivering an outstanding shopping experience to our Canadian guests and getting our performance on track,” said John Mulligan, Target’s interim president and CEO. “Mark’s broad understanding of the retail industry and his record of leading global operations will help accelerate efforts to drive improvements across our Canadian business.”
Mark will join the Target Canada leadership team, which includes:
- Janna Adair Potts, senior vice president, stores and distribution
- John Butcher, senior vice president, merchandising
- Livia Zufferli, vice president, marketing
- Tiffany Monroe, vice president, human resources
- Mark Wong, general counsel
To bring further strategic counsel and deep Canadian market expertise to the team, Target will also be naming a non-executive chair in Canada. In this newly created advisory role, the non-executive chair will provide counsel and support to the president of Target Canada to ensure all strategies and tactics align with the Canadian marketplace.
“Target is committed to making more rapid progress in Canada and I am personally very excited about working alongside the team to improve operations and deliver a Target experience that will earn us the trust and loyalty of our Canadian guests,” said Schindele.
U.S. Leadership Changes
In the U.S., Target is also elevating three senior merchandising leaders and realigning the team to better leverage functional expertise as the company focuses on driving improved performance.
- Trish Adams has been promoted to executive vice president, apparel and home
- Jose Barra has been promoted to executive vice president, essentials and hardlines
- Keri Jones has been promoted to executive vice president, merchandising planning and operations
“Moving more quickly to bring bold, innovative ideas to the marketplace will help us connect with our guests in more meaningful ways. By realigning the merchandising team we can better leverage our senior-level leaders, be more agile and deliver for our guests with a greater sense of urgency,” said Tesija.
The timing of these changes is unrelated to Target’s first quarter 2014 financial results, which the company plans to announce at 7 a.m. CDT on May 21, 2014.
About Target
Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) serves guests at 1,924 stores – 1,797 in the United States and 127 in Canada – and at Target.com. Since 1946, Target has given 5 percent of its profit through community grants and programs; today, that giving equals more than $4 million a week. For more information about Target’s commitment to corporate responsibility, visit target.com/corporateresponsibility.