Supervalu Inc. has appointed Kathy Persian as SVP and chief information officer. Persian, 45, joined the company in February 2010 in the role of group VP of retail and merchandising systems, and later moved to group VP of corporate planning, analysis and business process. Persian was named to the CIO post following the decision by Wayne Shurts to accept a position with another company. Shurts joined Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Supervalu in April 2010.
Prior to Supervalu, Persian spent more than 20 years at Accenture and Best Buy working in business areas of IT, general retail, retail operations, merchandising, supply chain and finance. At Accenture, Persian began as a staff consultant and worked her way up to a partner in their retail practice. She most recently worked for Best Buy as the SVP of international business process and operations.
“Kathy has held roles within Supervalu that have allowed her to become familiar with both the business and information technology sides of the company,” said Wayne Sales, Supervalu’s president, CEO and chairman. “This experience will serve her well in providing the technological and business support the company needs as we continue to focus on profitable growth while reducing expenses. She is a proven leader and a great addition to our leadership team.”
Persian will report directly to Sales on the Supervalu executive team. In her new role as CIO, Persian will lead all of the company’s information technology activities.
Sales added, “It’s been a true pleasure to work with Wayne. We thank him for his leadership these past two and a half years and wish him well in the future.”
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