Dive Brief:

• Walgreens has promoted Steve Turner to new VP and chief information officer effective April 1, the drugstore retailer said in an email to Retail Dive.

• Turner now serves as Walgreens vice president, service delivery and infrastructure, and has also held leadership roles there in e-commerce, data analytics, digital, mobile and infrastructure operations.

• Turner replaces Walgreens Chief Digital Officer and Chief Information Officer Abhi Dhar, who is leaving this month to focus on a new startup venture he describes on his own LinkedIn profile as “a marketing platform for retail locations to interact with qualified local consumers through easy and elegant experiences.” Turner will work with Dhar during the transition, Walgreens said.

Dive Insight:

Under Dhar's leadership, Walgreens has developed a number of tech solutions, including proprietary mapping analytics technology, mobile printing for photo customers and mobile loyalty capabilities. He's taking leave of the company at a time of disruption, considering that Walgreens is scrambling to salvage its planned merger with rival Rite Aid.

Even if the merger falls through, however, Walgreens has an opportunity to boost its retail efforts. The drugstore retailer has a strong effort in beauty, one of the best performing segments in retail these days, and has recently launched a separate loyalty program for those customers. And it could capitalize on the weaknesses that rival CVS is demonstrating on its retail side as it continues to focus on its health and medical operations. 

Walgreens has also been assertive in mobile, integrating its loyalty programs and payment capabilities into its application — efforts that were on Turner’s plate. 

Turner brings to the CTO position a deep level of experience in various other aspects of technology as well, including engineering roles as a contractor for the Department of Defense and as cryptologic technician for the U.S. Navy. He has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Chapman University and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Before joining Walgreens in 2009, Turner held various operations and technology leadership roles at travel fare aggregator Orbitz, direct marketing firm Saveology and financial software company Intuit, the company said.

"Steve’s experience and his deep knowledge of our systems position him well to move into this new role," a Walgreens spokesperson told Retail Dive.