Majors

Target CEO, chairman resigns

MajorsAug 09, 2016

Target CEO, chairman resigns

Gregg Steinhafel has stepped down as CEO and chairman of the board at Target Corp., the latest fallout from the massive cyber attack that continues to plague the retailer. 


Gregg Steinhafel has stepped down as CEO and chairman of the board at Target Corp.
Minneapolis--Gregg Steinhafel has stepped down as CEO and chairman of the board at Target Corp., the latest fallout from the massive cyber attack that continues to plague the retailer.

John Mulligan, Target’s chief financial officer, will serve as interim president and CEO while Roxanne S. Austin, a member of the retailer’s board of directors, has been appointed interim non-executive chair of the board. 

Both will continue to serve until Target names permanent replacements. Target has retained talent firm Korn Ferry to advise on its CEO search. 

Steinhafel, who has been with Target for 35 years, has agreed to serve in an advisory capacity during the transition. 

In announcing Steinhafel’s resignation early Monday, the company’s board of directors acknowledged his leadership during the recession and his successful defense of the company through a high-profile proxy battle. 

However, the board also noted in its statement that Steinhafel held himself personally accountable for the massive data breach over this past holiday season that put millions of customers’ personal information at risk and will be extremely costly to the retailer moving forward. 

Steinhafel’s exit follows the departure of Chief Information Officer Beth Jacob in March. 

RELATED CONTENT: Target hires new CIO, announces security updates

Target announced last week that it has hired Bob DeRodes, who has served as an advisor to both the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department, to replace Jacob.

Based in Minneapolis, Target operates stores in the United States and Canada. In National Jeweler’s last State of the Majors report, which uses 2011 financial data, Target ranked as the 10th largest seller of fine jewelry in the country.  

Michelle Graffis the editor-in-chief at National Jeweler, directing the publication’s coverage both online and in print.

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