He was born on October 17, 1966 (57 years old) in Tennessee, United States, and has been leading one of the country’s largest multinational companies for several years. Since 2014, he has served as Chief Executive Officer and was the first to become the youngest CEO. McMillon’s story is very interesting because he is a businessman who built his career from the smallest roots within Walmart, being one of those who unloaded the warehouse for the company.
The first experiences of McMillon
Before finishing high school, even before starting university, a summer internship allowed Doug to enter the world of Walmart for the first time. During summer vacation, his job was unloading trucks.
After that first contact with the company—which would be far from minor—he enrolled at the University of Arkansas, where he studied for a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, and years later pursued an MBA at the University of Tulsa, the same city where he again interacted with a Walmart store.
The strategic decision McMillon made before finishing his Master’s degree was to reach out to the local Walmart in that city, expressing his interest in training. That allowed him to become the assistant manager. A clear sign that the American was actively seeking out his own opportunities.
At 25, along with his family, he moved to another town in the United States, but he did not lose sight of the multinational. In that city, he took on a greater role as a merchant and buyer, gaining more interaction within the company.
Sam’s Club
To clarify, Walmart is a multinational retail corporation and the largest retailer in the world, with an extremely high number of employees. Its owner is Sam Walton, who owns just under half of the company’s shares.
At the same time, they have Sam’s Club, a membership-based retail store that sells exclusive items. And precisely, the name in question in this section is Doug McMillon. In 2005, he was named General Manager of Merchandise.
Up to this point, McMillon’s journey was one he forged entirely on his own, opening up opportunities through the fruits of his labor.
That same year, he was promoted directly to CEO and president of the club, and the numbers backed him up, with annual sales in the millions. His work did not go unnoticed, and before 2010, Walmart International contacted him to continue his professional path there.
Walmart International
The international branch of Walmart is not an easy field for any manager or entrepreneur. Why? This multinational is very well positioned in the United States as the largest retailer, but at the international level, there have been cases where the brand did not succeed.
However, Doug’s efforts paid off. One of the American’s missions was to work with the neighboring market of Canada in North America, then with China and also the United Kingdom. Even though these are different markets, Walmart’s strategy was the same for all: low prices.
And things could not have gone better for him. The data led to yet another promotion. Not only did Walmart perform well internationally, but sales in other countries were better than domestically. Performance grew by up to 29% across nearly 7,000 stores.
CEO of Walmart
In 2014, Doug McMillon became the youngest CEO in Walmart’s history. Clearly, the executive board was interested in him because of all his prior experience, which had been more than beneficial.
His initial actions focused on employee training and compensation. Walmart invested millions in its workforce, and Doug showed a strong commitment to maintaining balance with all its workers. A strategy that truly paid off for the company.
Walmart also partnered with Chinese companies after struggling to compete directly with other market giants. McMillon also serves on a board of advisors and has connections with an Asian university.
Between 2014 and 2016, Forbes ranked him as a highly powerful figure in the business world, placing him within the top 30.
What does the story of Walmart’s CEO leave us with?
Doug McMillon, from unloading trucks during a summer job to becoming Chief Executive Officer, held many roles along the way—and excelled in all of them.
Opportunities didn’t come to him; he went out to find them. From calling Walmart to express interest in training, to his deep commitment to employees. Today, Walmart remains at the top in the United States as the largest retailer and has also expanded globally, something that was once a challenge.