Wal-Mart Names New Tech Exec
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has promoted Rollin Ford to chief information officer and executive vice president.
Ford, former executive vice president of logistics and supply chain, succeeds Linda Dillman, who was promoted to executive vice president of risk management and benefits administration.
Ford said he would continue the Bentonville, Ark.–based retailer’s commitment to radio-frequency identification technology, which uses wireless scanners and microchips to track warehouse inventory. Dillman helped to establish Wal-Mart as the first major retailer in the United States to use RFID.
“Like Linda, I view RFID as a strategy that offers tremendous competitive advantage,” Ford said in a prepared statement. “I have been a member of the Wal-Mart RFID executive steering committee for the past three years so I know firsthand that we have a great team working on RFID. There will be no slowing down.”
Ford said the company intends to transition to Generation 2 RFID tags that support UHF (ultra-high frequency) tags and readers. —Robert McAllister
