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Doug McMillon

Executive

Type
Person
Role
Executive
Updated

The profile

Walmart chief executive from February 2014 to January 2026. In the pandemic's first fiscal year Walmart's revenue rose $35.2 billion to $559.2 billion, its U.S. e-commerce sales grew 79%, and it chose to repay a U.K. property-tax break.

Identity and role

C. Douglas McMillon was president and chief executive officer of Walmart Inc. from February 2014 through January 2026. He retired on January 31, 2026 and was succeeded by John Furner. Walmart is based in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Biography / career arc

McMillon began his Walmart career in 1984 as an hourly associate. He holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Arkansas and an MBA from the University of Tulsa. Before retiring he served on the boards of the Business Roundtable and the Consumer Goods Forum. He was 59 when his successor was named in November 2025.

Pandemic-relief / PPP-EIDL role

The first pandemic year raised Walmart's sales. For the fiscal year ended January 31, 2021, total revenue was $559.2 billion, up $35.2 billion or 6.7%. Walmart U.S. comparable sales rose 8.6% and Walmart U.S. e-commerce sales grew 79%; Sam's Club comparable sales rose 11.8%.

The pandemic also cost money. In the fourth quarter alone, incremental expenses related to COVID-19 were about $1.1 billion. The company said it was providing vaccinations across the country, including in areas the federal government defines as medically underserved, and said it would raise wages for another 425,000 frontline associates, after raises for 165,000 the previous fall, taking the U.S. average above $15 an hour. The same release increased the dividend for the 48th consecutive year and approved a new $20 billion share repurchase program. "This is a time to be even more aggressive because of the opportunity we see in front of us," McMillon said in the February 18, 2021 release.

Their own relief

The SBA's PPP loan-level data show no loan to Walmart Inc. The borrowers with "Walmart" or "Wal-Mart" in their names are unrelated small businesses, among them Wal-Mart Subway Inc. of Gulf Breeze, Florida. Walmart did take one government relief benefit abroad and gave it back: the same release reports "the decision to repay property tax relief in the U.K.," which cut earnings per share by $0.07. No relief loan to McMillon personally appears in the documents cited here.

McMillon has not been charged with any crime, and the documents cited here record no enforcement action against him personally. Walmart's legal record in that period includes ordinary employment cases. One example: in fiscal year 2025 the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia reported collecting $415,112, jointly with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in a lawsuit alleging employment discrimination by Wal-Mart Stores East LP.

Where they are now (2025–2026)

On November 14, 2025 Walmart's board elected Furner, then 51, to succeed McMillon as president and CEO effective February 1, 2026. McMillon agreed to stay on the board until the next annual shareholders' meeting. Chairman Greg Penner credited him with "advancing our digital and eCommerce capabilities, and modernizing our supply chain." On January 16, 2026 Furner announced a new executive team that took effect the day he became CEO. Walmart now lists McMillon as its former president and CEO.

Sources

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