IT director to lead UK’s biggest retailer

Tesco has announced that IT director Philip Clark will take over as chief executive next year when Sir Terry Leahy retires.

Clark, who is also responsible for the group’s growing operations in Asia and Europe, has worked for Tesco throughout his career, starting as a shelf stacker before joining the management training scheme and becoming a member of the board in 1998.

The move is seen as a positive endorsement of the growing statue of IT and its acceptance as a key business function.  IT directors rarely make the jump to become CEO, making such a blue-chip announcement even more encouraging for IT professionals looking to progress their careers.