Target US hires new CIO

US retailer Target has appointed a new chief information officer after the man brought in to shore up the company's IT security following its large-scale 2013 data breach announced his retirement.

Mike McNamara

Mike McNamara joins Target from more than 15 years at UK supermarket chain Tesco, most recently as its CIO.

During his time at Tesco, McNamara helped introduce in-store technologies such as scan-as-you-shop, as well as an innovation lab within the business. 

He replaces Bob DeRhodes at Target, who was hired as its CIO last year after former CIO Beth Jacobs resigned following the high-profile breach, which led to the theft of about 40 million credit and debit card records and 70 million other records of customer details.

DeRhodes was tasked with firming up the retailer's information security systems and processes in the wake of the breach, which involved the hiring of a chief information security officer, in Brad Maiorino.

Target said DeRhodes would stay on in an advisory role for a period of time to allow McNamara to transition into the role.

As CIO, McNamara will lead the company's technology team and operations, including information security, and help shape its digital enterprise strategy.

"Technology is critical for Target's future success. So finding the right leader for this role was one of my absolute top priorities," Target US CEO Brian Cornell said in a statement.

"Mike has been a driving force for technology innovation throughout his career. He's got a stellar track record, and I'm excited to see how he'll help our team continue to push new innovations that enhance the shopping experience for Target guests, both online and in stores.