Amanda Dennis
Bentonville,AR
Summary
Results-driven leader with 10+ years of experience building and leading high performing teams across a broad range of sectors. Expertise in a variety of disciplines including strategy development, Learning & Development (L&D), Talent Management, program design & development, and communicating to C-level audience. Focused interest on developing high potential leaders and furthering diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Keen on developing solutions that have a cultural impact, creates shared value, and drives business outcomes. Highly collaborative team player with demonstrated interpersonal skills to build relationships, influence outcomes, and deliver customer focused solutions to support company strategy.
Overview
15
15
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Head of Business Ops/Head of Culture, L&D
Sam's Club
Bentonville, AR
04.2022 - 12.2023
- Joined Sam's Club digital ads startup as Head of Business Operations and Chief of Staff to GM/VP where I helped transition the business strategy, build a Business Operations team, and designed systems & processes to enable scaling of the business. After business began to scale, I was given an opportunity to create a Head of Culture & Development role that allowed me to utilize my expertise in Learning & Development.
- Designed and executed a comprehensive strategy to deliver onboarding, training, and leadership development programs to deliver strategic business objectives.
- Leveraged adult learning methodologies and technology to create high-impact programs for a distributed associate base of over 400 with tailored learning paths for sales and operations.
- Established frameworks and measurement methodologies to track associate learning and development with dashboards to track progress and performance management.
- Created and fostered an inclusive and supportive learning environment to help our distributed workforce remain connected to each other and the home office culture as we welcomed over 100 associates new to the company.
Director of Associate Learning & Leadership
Walmart
01.2018 - 04.2022
- Conceptualized and led the design, execution, and continuous improvement of innovative and practical leadership development programs for associates from Director to C-Suite across the Walmart Enterprise in order to strengthen our talent pipeline.
- Created a high performing team that managed talent development of over 400 selected, high potential associates across the Enterprise through customized, immersive learning experiences.
- Introduced Vertical Development framework to the Enterprise to help associates understand transformational leadership.
- Designed and executed a virtual Leading Through a Crisis series at the onset of COVID pandemic that was utilized enterprise-wide.
- Designed a self-paced DEI learning path for officers in response to murder of George Floyd and served as program champion for Walmart's first cohort of 11 associates in McKinsey's Black Leadership Academy
- Managed cross-functional workstream for CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer to introduce Regeneration to Officers across the Enterprise to develop mindsets needed to make Walmart a Regenerative company.
Sr. Manager, Global Business Services
Walmart
01.2016 - 01.2018
- Provided strategic and operational support to Shared Service centers in North America to ensure productivity savings were properly scoped, managed, and realized.
- Managed portfolio of projects and programs for four operational centers in North America resulting in ~$13M in productivity savings.
- Led the transition of our team from Shared Services to Global Business Services in a highly matrixed environment.
- Collaborated with and acted as liaison between global design team and operational team, translating needs for tech resources and aligning on strategic priorities.
- Consulted and advised on governance, program management, and business case development to influence and drive leadership decisions.
- Managed relationship with Walmart Tech EVPs of Finance, HR, and ERP to provide overall transparency of tech portfolio.
- Developed new tech intake process and prioritization framework for GBS and facilitated FY19 AOP process, rolling out zero-based budgeting across three tech domains.
Asset Development/Office of the CEO
Murphy USA
01.2013 - 01.2016
- Held several roles during this time, managing projects and programs across Corporate Strategy, Investor Relations, HR, Corporate Communications, Tech, and Merchandise.
- Led asset development process changes and designed proprietary reporting module to ensure fiscal responsibility in new store builds, effectively allowing Murphy USA to negotiate final bulk purchase of land from Walmart.
- Selected by EVP of Strategy to serve on the corporate team to assist in the divestiture of Murphy Oil Corp's retail segment - Murphy USA,which led to a future permanent role within the Office of the CEO.
- Served as thought partner within the Office of the CEO to structure complex and ambiguous business issues while building consensus among cross-functional teams.
- Collaborated with executive leadership team to help develop MUSA corporate strategy, financial targets, and formalize the annual planning cycle.
Sr. Manager, Business Dev, Private Label Brands
Murphy USA
01.2011 - 01.2013
- Partnered with CSD Category Director to build a small team responsible for developing a private label strategy to drive top line growth.
- Developed and strengthened relationships with key vendors and supply chain partners to bring to market Quick Strike energy beverage and energy shots.
- Created and chaired internal product testing team for private label offerings. drink, shots, and Murphy sports beverage including working with advertising agency to develop campaigns and hire spokesperson.
- Created and chaired internal product testing team for private label offerings
- Managed analytics, P&L, and vendor management for private label brands.
Sr. Merchant Analyst
Murphy USA
01.2009 - 01.2013
- Developed and managed analytical activities for Merchandise business unit supporting over 1200 retail gas locations.
- Coordinated large-scale merchandising strategies for four category leads.
- Managed analytical activities to include market analysis, trend analysis, and customer segmentation to drive category specific decisions.
- Developed and maintained detailed sales and margin reports across all categories and managed P&L for Merchandise team.
- Managed digital programs for entire network across multiple platforms.
- Worked with NACS, Nielsen Group, and IRI to conduct on-going industry analysis.
- Created and managed a vendor expo at the annual National Leadership Conference that generated sponsorships of more than $1M and provided face-to-face interaction between vendors and front-line associates.
Education
BA - Business Management
University of Arkansas Little Rock
Skills
- Leadership & Talent Development
- Large-scale Transformations
- Building High Performing Teams
- Strategy Development
- Program & Project Management
- Collaboration & Influence
- Effective Storytelling
Certification
- Project Management Professional, PMI
- Korn Ferry ALP Certification, Korn Ferry
- Hogan Advanced Interpretation, Hogan Systems, Inc
- Global Leadership Profile Assessment, GLA
- Groundwater Training, Racial Equity Institute
Activities
- Walmart Supply Chain Women Empowerment Conference speaker (2020 & 2021)
- Walmart CLIMB high potential program (2019-2021)
- LEAP HR Conference speaker & panelist (2019)
- Walmart Intl Women's Day featured speaker (2019)
- Murphy USA National Leadership Conference - Expo Director (2009 - 2016)
- Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout - Symetra Golf Tournament Co-Director (2015)
- Linkage Women in Leadership Institute (2012 - 2013)
- Murphy USA Women in Leadership (2011 - 2016)
- Selected to represent Walmart at Diversity Inc Top 50 Award Ceremony (2019)
Timeline
Head of Business Ops/Head of Culture, L&D
Sam's Club
04.2022 - 12.2023
Director of Associate Learning & Leadership
Walmart
01.2018 - 04.2022
Sr. Manager, Global Business Services
Walmart
01.2016 - 01.2018
Asset Development/Office of the CEO
Murphy USA
01.2013 - 01.2016
Sr. Manager, Business Dev, Private Label Brands
Murphy USA
01.2011 - 01.2013
Sr. Merchant Analyst
Murphy USA
01.2009 - 01.2013
BA - Business Management
University of Arkansas Little Rock