J.C. Penney names retail finance vet to replace CFO Hannah

Ed Record, a former finance executive with Stages stores, Kohl’s, Belk and Federated, has been appointed to replace Ken Hannah as CFO at J.C. Penney.

Hannah joined J.C. Penney less than two years ago under the leadership of former CEO Ron Johnson, a former Apple executive who pursued a costly transformation strategy that alienated customers and led to sharp sales declines. Johnson was ousted last April and former J.C. Penney CEO Myron Ullman was brought back to restore growth and undo much of Johnson’s handiwork.

The departure of Hannah, effective March 24, is the latest example of Ullman’s strategy to “recover from Ron,” and means J.C. Penney soon will be under the financial leadership of a finance executive who, unlike Hannah, spent his career in the department store space.

Record, 45, spent the past six years at Stage Stores where he served as COO and CFO. Prior to that, he was SVP of finance at Kohl’s and a controller and SVP of finance at Belk. Earlier in his career he held a variety of finance positions at the former Federated stores.

"Ed (Record) is a highly accomplished executive with a broad understanding of retail finance and operations,” Ullman said. “His extensive department store experience and track record of success make him an ideal candidate as we continue to advance our turnaround.”

Ullman wished Hannah success in his future endeavors and characterized his contributions at J.C. Penney as meaningful.

Hannah came to J.C. Penney in May 2012 with a far more diverse finance background that Record. Prior to J.C. Penney, Hannah had spent six years at MEMC Electronic Materials where he was president of solar energy and CFO. His retail experience came at The Home Depot where he served as an SVP of finance, but prior to that he held finance roles at Boeing, General Electric and McDonnell Douglas.