Dive Brief:
- Walmart on Wednesday announced it is promoting Chief Audit Executive Dwayne Milum, 50, to serve as the retailer’s controller and senior vice president, effective Feb. 1, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
- Milum, who joined the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retail giant just over two decades ago, will serve as its principal accounting officer. He will replace David Chojnowski, who will take the role of senior vice president, treasurer and tax as of the close of business on Jan. 31.
- Under the terms of Milum’s promotion, he will receive an annual base salary of $600,000 and will continue to be eligible for an annual cash incentive under the company’s management incentive plan, as well as for an annual equity award. In fiscal 2027, he will receive the performance-based restricted stock units carrying a target value of $1.125 million and restricted stock valued at $375,000, vesting over a three-year period.
Dive Insight:
Controllers, who typically oversee their company’s daily accounting operations, have felt the impact of the talent shortage in recent years.
Controller and assistant controller positions were ranked the most difficult roles to fill by 34% of finance and accounting executives surveyed, though that’s down from last year when when 54% of respondents said the roles were the toughest to fill, according to a report from the Controllers Council.
“The elevated demand for Controllers may reflect expanded responsibilities around reporting accuracy, automation oversight, and compliance amid tightening regulatory expectations,” the report states.
Milum has worked in various roles, including serving as chief auditor since 2022 and before that as vice president and controller for Walmart International, since joining the company in 2004. Since 2022, the retailer’s finance team has been led by John Rainey, who joined from PayPal Holdings where he served as the payments company’s finance chief.
Like many other retailers, Walmart has faced rising costs related to tariffs. CEO Doug McMillon told analysts in August that, with regard to its U.S. pricing decisions, it was “keeping our prices as low as we can for as long as we can,” CFO Dive’s sister publication Retail Dive reported.
