Albertsons operates grocery stores and pharmacies under more than 22 banners across the United States, including Safeway, Vons, and Star Market. The company is trying to improve its performance at a time when grocery shoppers are watching prices and retailers are investing in new technology. To help guide that effort, the company added a high-profile leader to its top management team: Meg Whitman, the former CEO of eBay and Hewlett-Packard.

Whitman joined Albertsons as executive chair in September 2026, working alongside CEO Susan Morris. Her appointment brings experience leading major technology companies to a grocery business facing decisions about costs, customer service, and the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

Why Albertsons Is Making Changes

Albertsons’ sales have declined slightly, although its digital sales have grown. Growth in digital sales suggests that customers are using Albertsons’ online services, while weaker comparable-store sales point to challenges in the existing business.

Morris announced a comprehensive business review intended to accelerate improvements and address costs the company can no longer afford. Whitman identified several priorities: reducing costs, using much of the savings to lower prices, improving the store experience, and attracting more customers in Albertsons’ core markets. These goals require managers to make trade-offs. Cutting expenses, for example, could help fund lower prices, but management must also maintain the staffing and service needed to run stores effectively.

A New Role at the Top

As CEO, Morris leads Albertsons’ management team. Whitman’s role as executive chair adds another senior leader who can advise Morris and the team on operations, strategy, and technology. An executive chair typically has a more active role than a board chair whose responsibilities focus primarily on leading the board of directors. The arrangement can give a CEO access to experienced guidance, particularly when a company is pursuing significant changes.

It can also create uncertainty if employees, investors, or other stakeholders are unsure who makes decisions. Clear responsibilities and communication are especially important when an executive chair is closely involved in the business. Albertsons has described Whitman as an operations and strategic advisor to Morris and her senior team.

Whitman’s appointment is also unusual because she joined from outside the company and does not have direct grocery industry experience. Grocery management involves complex decisions about inventory, distribution, real estate, labor, and perishable products. Her perspective from other industries may help Albertsons identify new approaches, but she must also learn from managers who understand the details of grocery operations.

What Whitman Brings to Albertsons

Whitman’s career includes leading companies through growth and major organizational change. At eBay, she oversaw the online marketplace as it expanded from a small startup into a large business. She later led Hewlett-Packard during a period that included separating its personal computer and printer business from its enterprise technology operations.

Those experiences could be useful as Albertsons evaluates its structure and decides where to invest. They also demonstrate that management skills can apply across industries. Setting priorities, organizing resources, communicating a direction, and evaluating performance are important whether a company sells technology services or groceries.

At the same time, managers cannot assume that a solution that worked in one industry will work in another. Albertsons’ leaders must evaluate ideas in the context of grocery operations and customer expectations.

Whitman has described an approach to change that begins with identifying what an organization does well. At Albertsons, she pointed to strengths including its local brands and e-commerce platform. Recognizing those strengths can give employees a foundation to build on while management addresses problems.

AI is one area where Whitman’s technology experience intersects with Albertsons’ plans. Morris said the company is pursuing several major AI initiatives intended to improve store standards, customer value, and efficiency. For example, AI tools could help managers evaluate product assortment, pricing, and promotions more quickly and allocate labor in stores.

Managing the Turnaround

Albertsons’ turnaround brings together Morris’ grocery industry experience and Whitman’s background in technology and organizational change. Their work will focus on reducing costs, improving the customer experience, and using technology to support operations. The results of those efforts remain to be seen. For Albertsons, success may depend on how changes in management and technology translate into the prices, product availability, and service customers experience in its stores.

In the Classroom

This article can be used to discuss management functions, leadership, decision making, and the skills managers need to achieve organizational objectives (Chapter 6: The Nature of Management).

Discussion Questions

  1. What responsibilities has Albertsons assigned to Meg Whitman, and how does her role relate to CEO Susan Morris’ role?

  2. What potential benefits and challenges could result from appointing an executive chair from outside the grocery industry?

  3. How could Albertsons use AI to support management decisions, and why would managers still need to exercise judgment?

This article was developed with the support of Kelsey Reddick for and under the direction of O.C. Ferrell, Linda Ferrell, and Geoff Hirt.