Walmart International CEO Kath McLay says her first weeks on the job were like ‘drinking from a firehose’

McLay, an Australian alum of Woolworths and Qantas, landed her new job after four triumphant years as CEO of Sam’s Club, Walmart’s warehouse club division that logged net sales of $84.3 billion last fiscal year. The promotion saw her rise to No. 14 on this year’s Fortune Most Powerful Women list (she ranked No. 28 in 2022). During McLay’s tenure at Sam’s Club, the company increased total revenue by 43%. It also underwent something of an image transformation thanks to a combination of factors including refreshed stores and the brand’s first ever Super Bowl ad. 

Given McLay’s track record, Walmart chief Doug McMillon is no doubt counting on her to return the international division to growth after its revenue shrunk by around 21% between 2020 and 2022. “It’s very much like drinking from a firehose,” McLay told me, reflecting on her first weeks in the job. She added that she would spend her first 90 days “getting the rhythm of the organization and looking for the opportunities and the gaps.”

Stuart Isett—Fortune

Before announcing her retirement in August, McLay’s predecessor Judith McKenna laid out a strategy for Walmart International to double its sales over the next five years. (She planned to do this by scaling marketplaces in the 19 countries where the brand operates, while also providing complementary services such as digital payment platforms alongside its core offering of everyday products.) Does McLay intend to honor McKenna’s goals for the company?

“I don’t see any need to walk back from them,” she said. “We do have tough inflationary environments where we operate, but Walmart’s purpose is to save people money everyday. And so, now is a time where we are more than relevant in consumers’ lives.”

McLay noted that it was “wonderful” to take over from McKenna and be part of a rare handoff from female CEO to female CEO. Earlier this month, McKenna spoke to Fortune senior writer Phil Wahba about her exit and advised aspiring executives to avoid conforming to traditional expectations of leadership. “One of the benefits of age is that I’ve learned to be much more comfortable and authentic with who I am,” she said.

It’s a sentiment that McLay echoed. “I think we need to open up the perspective of what leadership looks like,” she said. “I don’t think I’m a traditional leader…I’m just going to be me.”

Before McMillon became Walmart CEO, he ran Walmart International and Sam’s Club. McLay has so far followed in his footsteps. Would she like the top job when her boss eventually steps down?

“I have the biggest job in front of me right now,” she told me. “As I’ve said before, everyday, do your absolute best.”

Ellie Austin
ellie.austin@fortune.com
@Ellie_Austin_

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PARTING WORDS

"Speak up. Be loud. Know your worth. Inspire people and most of all, just be kind."

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