Mary Winston Becomes the Next Lone Black Woman to Lead a Fortune 500 Company

By Aliya Semper Ewing via https://theglowup.theroot.com

Mary Winston has earned every right to be celebrated as Bed, Bath & Beyond’s new interim CEO; but we’ve also got to talk about a few things in the process.

When Ursula Burns, the first black woman to run a Fortune 500 company, stepped down as CEO of Xerox in 2017, the number of black women went back to zero. So let’s hope Mary Winston, isn’t the next unicorn to have a seat at an elite executive table.

Winston has a long history of executive success. She started out as a CPA and auditor at Arthur Anderson & Co, and has gone on to hold executive positions at Giant Eagle Inc., Scholastic Corporation, and Pfizer. Most recently Winston led as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Family Dollar Stores.

According to a report from USA Today, Bed Bath & Beyond is facing some obstacles as Amazon’s choke-hold on global sales has caused a decline for most retailer’s bottom line. BB&B even had a round of layoffs earlier this year.

Winston said via press release, “Together with the Board, including the members of the Business Transformation and Strategy Review Committee, the leadership team and our more than 60,000 associates, I look forward to building an even stronger future for Bed Bath & Beyond…As we continue to review our business initiatives, we will be focused on driving …

Read More: Mary Winston Becomes the Next Lone Black Woman to Lead a Fortune 500 Company