Albertsons Hires Fonterra's Andrew Murray as CFO at $900K Base

Albertsons will pay its next CFO a $900,000 base salary plus a $1 million signing bonus to lead the grocer's finance function starting Jan. 17, 2027. Andrew Murray, currently group CFO of New Zealand dairy exporter Fonterra Co-Operative Group, takes over from interim CFO Cody Perdue, the supermarket chain announced Tuesday.

Perdue has held the interim role since late September. He stays on as senior vice president of treasury, investor relations and risk management — so the company keeps the man who ran the numbers through the transition.

What does Murray bring to the job?

Murray runs a wide portfolio at Fonterra: finance, strategy, M&A, information technology, financial trading and procurement. He joined the farmer-owned dairy co-op in early 2023 and became group CFO in August 2024. Fonterra announced his resignation on Oct. 16 and said he'll stay through the end of 2026.

His resume also includes Simplot Australia — a division of the agriculture company headquartered in Boise, Idaho, where Albertsons is also based — plus a stint at snack maker Mondelez International. That's food-industry depth, though none of it is U.S. grocery retail.

CEO Susan Morris framed the hire in a statement: "Andrew is a highly respected senior leader with strong expertise in driving profitable growth and large-scale business transformation which will be invaluable during this critical turnaround time at Albertsons." She added: "I look forward to working with Andrew and our leadership team as we simplify the organization, improve decision-making, reinvest savings in customer value and boost long-term shareholder returns."

In plain terms: Albertsons wants a transformation operator, not just a controller. Murray's cash bonus target matches his base salary, so his total annual cash potential roughly doubles if he hits goals.

Why now?

Murray arrives amid a sales slump. Albertsons has posted negative same-store sales growth for the past two quarters, and it recently consolidated 11 former divisions into four regions under a simplified operating structure.

He replaces former President and CFO Sharon McCollam, who the company said in July plans to retire this year. McCollam stays on as an advisor until Feb. 27, 2027 — a ten-week overlap that should ease the handoff.

The hire is the latest in a string of outside leadership moves. In September, Albertsons named former technology executive Meg Whitman to the newly created role of executive chair, and it sharply expanded its board with multiple directors from outside the supermarket industry.

What's the bet here?

Albertsons is deliberately shopping beyond the grocery aisle for talent, betting that outsiders can see what insiders can't. Murray's mandate — profitable growth and large-scale transformation, in Morris's words — is a tall order for a chain still consolidating divisions and fighting negative comps. His compensation package signals how much the company is willing to pay for that outcome; whether the turnaround follows is the question his tenure will answer.