internal
Michael J. Bender
Chief Executive Officer
Executive
1 yr
21 reports
Leadership change Michael J. Bender became Chief Executive Officer (from Interim CEO) · DEF 14A, Apr 2026
Kohl’s Corporation ·KSS
Interim CEO elevated amid retail turnaround, no COO layer
Retailing · Fortune #261 · Functional structure · 60K employees · Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin
View as of:
5
CEO span
↓ tighter than peers (avg 9)
2.6
Avg span
moderate
3
Max depth
3 levels
3.8 yr
Avg tenure
stable vs FY2024
40%
Internal hires
↓ below industry avg
Consolidated financials FY2025 · period end 2026-01-31 · 10-K
Revenue
$15.5B
Operating income
$624M
Net income
$272M
Total assets
$13.4B
Shares out
112M
Sourced from Kohl’s Corporation DEF 14A · filed 2026-04-10 ↗ View on SEC
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Kohl’s Corporation organizational chart
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Interim CEO Michael Bender’s elevation left Kohl’s with a wide CEO span and no COO. This page maps Kohl’s functional leadership structure, executive team, recent changes, and peer comparisons for context.
What to model
Use the chart to test org decisions, not just view reporting lines
Start with the public baseline, then use the scenario views and source-backed changes to ask what happens when leadership, span, or team ownership shifts.
Latest signal Fred Hand departed as Senior EVP, Director of Stores
Announced retirement effective April 3, 2026.
Source · See change logScenario views in the chart
- Add Chief Operating Officer Introduce a COO to consolidate stores and supply chain under one executive, reducing CEO span.
- Director of Stores Retirement Remove the retiring Director of Stores role pending appointment of a successor.
Atlas work this supports
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The people
Who's running this
6 executives identified as Named Executive Officers in the most recent SEC proxy. Bar length scales with tenure.
Nick Jones
Chief Merchandising Officer
Merchandising
3 yr
4 reports
Fred Hand
Senior EVP, Director of Stores
Stores
3 yr
4 reports
internal
Jill Timm
Chief Financial Officer
Finance
6 yr
3 reports
Christie Raymond
Chief Marketing Officer
Marketing
4 yr
3 reports
Jennifer Kent
Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary
Legal
3 yr
2 reports
The pay
Executive compensation
From the most recent DEF 14A Summary Compensation Table. 5 named executive officers disclosed. Bar length scales with total compensation.
Michael J. Bender $9.0M
- Base salary
- $1.11M
- Stock awards
- $3.78M
- Non-equity incentive
- $3.64M
- Other
- $516K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Jill Timm $5.6M
- Base salary
- $950K
- Stock awards
- $2.30M
- Non-equity incentive
- $2.29M
- Other
- $106K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Fred Hand $5.2M
- Base salary
- $900K
- Stock awards
- $2.00M
- Non-equity incentive
- $2.17M
- Other
- $83K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Nick Jones $5.7M
- Base salary
- $900K
- Stock awards
- $2.30M
- Non-equity incentive
- $2.34M
- Other
- $121K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Christie Raymond $3.8M
- Base salary
- $725K
- Stock awards
- $1.50M
- Non-equity incentive
- $1.48M
- Other
- $77K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
The businesses
How Kohl’s Corporation divides the work
5 divisions report into the group CEO. Tile size scales with estimated headcount.
Stores
45K employees
Senior EVP, Director of Stores (Fred Hand)
Operates Kohl’s national store fleet and in-store labor model.
Merchandising
4K employees
Chief Merchandising Officer (Nick Jones)
Owns product assortment, sourcing, private brands, and pricing.
Marketing
2K employees
Chief Marketing Officer (Christie Raymond)
Leads brand, loyalty, promotions, and customer engagement.
Finance
1K employees
Chief Financial Officer (Jill Timm)
Manages financial planning, reporting, treasury, and controls.
Legal & Governance
300 employees
Chief Legal Officer (Jennifer Kent)
Oversees legal, compliance, and corporate governance.
The thesis
Why this org is unusual
Interim CEO Michael J.
Bender was elevated to permanent CEO without adding a COO layer, an uncommon choice for a national retailer undergoing turnaround. The org remains functionally organized, with merchandising, stores, finance, marketing, and legal reporting directly to the CEO. This creates a relatively wide CEO span while preserving clear functional accountability.
The absence of a COO places operational execution directly under the CEO via the Director of Stores and Chief Merchandising Officer. Given the company’s scale (~60,000 employees), this structure emphasizes hands-on executive oversight during transformation rather than delegation to an operational integrator.
- No COO role
- CEO directly oversees Stores and Merchandising
The comparison
How Kohl’s Corporation stacks up
Compared with peers like Target and Walmart, Kohl’s has a leaner top structure and no dedicated COO role. Target and Walmart both use layered operating models with COOs or divisional presidents to absorb execution complexity. Kohl’s narrower C-suite reflects its smaller scale but increases reliance on the CEO for …
C-suite size
Reporting depth
Avg C-suite tenure
Has COO / Has CAIO
Kohl’s Corporation — no COO — no CAIO
Macy’s — no COO — no CAIO
Current signals
What changed recently
Kohl’s elevated Michael Bender from interim to permanent CEO and announced the retirement of its head of Stores.
- departed
- newMichael J. Bender Chief Executive Officer
Appointed permanent CEO on November 23, 2025 after interim service.
Source
Leadership Timeline
Year-over-year executive structure based on SEC proxy and annual filings.
FY2025
DEF 14A filed 2026-04-10
- CEO
- Michael J. Bender
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 3.8 yr
Transition year with interim CEO elevated permanently.
Named executive officers (5)
- Michael J. Bender - Chief Executive Officer since 2025
- Jill Timm - Chief Financial Officer since 2019
- Fred Hand - Senior EVP, Director of Stores since 2023
- Nick Jones - Chief Merchandising Officer since 2023
- Christie Raymond - Chief Marketing Officer since 2022
FY2024
DEF 14A filed 2025-04-05
- CEO
- Ashley Buchanan
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 3.5 yr
CEO tenure instability amid turnaround pressure.
Named executive officers (5)
- Ashley Buchanan - Chief Executive Officer since 2024
- Jill Timm - Chief Financial Officer since 2019
- Nick Jones - Chief Merchandising Officer since 2023
- Christie Raymond - Chief Marketing Officer since 2022
- Fred Hand - Senior EVP, Director of Stores since 2023
FY2023
DEF 14A filed 2024-04-05
- CEO
- Ashley Buchanan
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 3.2 yr
Functional structure maintained despite performance challenges.
Named executive officers (5)
- Ashley Buchanan - Chief Executive Officer since 2024
- Jill Timm - Chief Financial Officer since 2019
- Nick Jones - Chief Merchandising Officer since 2023
- Christie Raymond - Chief Marketing Officer since 2022
- Fred Hand - Senior EVP, Director of Stores since 2023
Year-over-year changes
Leadership stabilized with appointment of a permanent CEO following turnover.
- CEO span: 5 → 5
- C-suite size: 5 → 5
- Avg tenure: 3.5 → 3.8 yr
- new Michael J. Bender - Chief Executive Officer (was Interim CEO) (DEF 14A, Apr 2026)
- departed Ashley Buchanan - Chief Executive Officer (DEF 14A, Apr 2026)
The board
Board of directors
8 directors. 7 of 8 independent (88%). Source: most recent DEF 14A.
Michael J. Bender
Inside
CEO, Kohl’s Corporation
John E. Schlifske
Chair Independent
Former CEO, Northwestern Mutual
Wendy Arlin
Independent
Former CFO, Bath & Body Works
Yael Cosset
Independent
Senior VP & CIO, Kroger
H. Charles Floyd
Independent
Private Investor
Robbin Mitchell
Independent
Former EVP, Walgreens
Jonas Prising
Lead Indep. Independent
CEO, ManpowerGroup
Adolfo Villagomez
Independent
Retail Executive
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the CEO of Kohl’s?
Michael J. Bender has served as CEO since November 23, 2025, after a period as interim CEO.
What type of organizational structure does Kohl’s use?
Kohl’s operates a functional structure with major functions reporting directly to the CEO.
How many direct reports does Kohl’s CEO have?
The CEO has five direct reports across finance, merchandising, marketing, stores, and legal.
How has Kohl’s leadership changed recently?
The board appointed Michael Bender as permanent CEO in late 2025 and announced the 2026 retirement of the head of Stores.
Does Kohl’s have a COO?
No. Kohl’s does not currently have a Chief Operating Officer; store operations report directly to the CEO.
Sources
- 8-K Filing, Jan 2026
- 8-K Filing, Nov 2025
- SEC EDGAR: Kohl’s Corporation DEF 14A Proxy Statement
- SEC EDGAR: Kohl’s Corporation 10-K Annual Report
Reference
Cite this page
If you reference this page in research, analysis, or news writing, use one of the formats below. Citation includes the SEC filing source where applicable.
APA 7th
Creately. (2026). Kohl’s Corporation organizational structure. Creately. Retrieved , from https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/kohls/MLA 9th
"Kohl’s Corporation Organizational Structure." Creately, April 1, 2026, https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/kohls/. Accessed .Chicago 17
Creately. "Kohl’s Corporation Organizational Structure." Last modified April 1, 2026. https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/kohls/.Original SEC source View on SEC ↗
Kohl’s Corporation. DEF 14A. Filed 2026-04-10. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/885639/000110465926041769/kss-20260520xdef14a.htmPermanent URL: https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/kohls/ · last updated 2026-04-01