Target Lets Go Pair of Executives Who Had Supported DEI Programs

Target Corp., facing financial headwinds and pushback over its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, has dismissed two executives who have backed DEI efforts, including a chief legal and compliance officer it hired nine months ago.

Amy Tu is leaving Target after coming aboard last summer to replace retiring legal and compliance chief Don Liu, who during his nearly nine years at the company sought to use DEI and other metrics—such as efficiency and risk tolerance—to pare down its outside counsel panel. Tu has spoken about how discrimination early in her career shaped her future advocacy for DEI programs.

Also leaving Target is A. Christina Hennington, who has spent more than two decades at the Minneapolis-based retailer, where she was named chief strategy and growth officer last year. Hennington was a founding member of Target’s racial equity action and change committee and had a key role leading a $2 billion program to support Black-owned businesses.

Both departures were classified by Target as “involuntary termination without cause.” The company cut its annual sales forecast this week amid uncertainty caused by tariffs and a boycott over its DEI retreat earlier this year.

Target declined to discuss reasons for both departures but disclosed them in a May 21 statement that said it was establishing a new “enterprise acceleration office” to improve its efficiency and operations. Target said human resources head Melissa Kremer will oversee its legal and compliance function as the company “conducts a comprehensive external search” for Tu’s successor.

Target said in a separate securities filing Wednesday describing the departures of both executives that Hennington will move into a strategic advisory role ahead of her exit Sept. 7. Tu’s brief transition period ends June 1.

“Tu will be eligible for severance under Target’s Income Continuation Plan on account of her involuntary termination without cause,” according to the filing. “Tu will also receive vesting of a portion of her long-term incentives in accordance with the terms of such awards.”

Tu, who also was Target’s corporate secretary, didn’t respond to a comment request. An introduction to Tu on Target’s website noted her prior roles working at Boeing Co., Gap Inc., and Walmart Inc. She and Liu, her predecessor, have both been active with the Minority Corporate Counsel Association.

Liu, who recently was named the new top lawyer at gaming giant Flutter Entertainment PLC, declined to discuss Tu. In a LinkedIn post at the time of her hire, Liu praised Tu’s expertise and said her “open and inclusive leadership” would be a “wonderful complement” to Target’s 500-employee legal affairs team.

Tu’s Target Tenure

Target’s most recent proxy statement shows that Tu received more than $10.5 million in total compensation to make the move to the company last year from Tyson Foods Inc., where she had spent nearly seven years in a variety of legal, administrative, and business roles.

Her pay package at Target included nearly $7.2 million in stock awards, a roughly $2.6 million sign-on bonus, and about $565,400 in additional cash from four months of base salary—that for a full year was set at $825,000—and non-equity incentive plan compensation. Tu currently owns $3.8 million in Target stock, according to Bloomberg data. Target also covered her relocation costs.

The company said in its proxy that it bought Tu’s home in Arkansas at a “fixed price” and sold it this past February, incurring transaction and carrying costs of $146,632 in the process. “We provided this relocation benefit as an inducement for Ms. Tu to join Target and relocate to Minneapolis,” it said.

For a termination without cause, Tu could be eligible for a severance payout of more than $8 million, according to termination and change-in-control provisions detailed in Target’s proxy filing.

Target said the exact terms of the transition agreements for Tu and Hennington will be disclosed in a future financial disclosure. The company agreed earlier this year to settle a lawsuit filed by a White male former employee who claimed he was disadvantaged by the company’s DEI and environmental, social, and governance policies. Target has been hit with other lawsuits this year over its rolled back DEI initiatives.

Hennington earned nearly $4.6 million in total compensation from Target last year and could receive almost $7.7 million in payments going forward related to her involuntary departure. She didn’t respond to a comment request.

DEI Fallout

The NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund said in a statement and letter Thursday to Target CEO Brian Cornell that the company should reconsider its recent decision to step back from embracing DEI programs designed to “hire, promote, and retain Black employees, women, and other employees of color.”

Target’s complicated history with law enforcement in its hometown of Minneapolis came under scrutiny in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder in 2020, which ignited a national debate in the US over race relations and police misconduct. Jim Rowader, a longtime Target lawyer and executive, was tapped to serve as city attorney for Minneapolis in the aftermath of Floyd’s death.

Tu leaves Target more than a year after the company did away with its general counsel position, a role held by Matthew Zabel, who became its chief corporate affairs officer. Zabel, a former federal prosecutor, had previously reported to Liu. Zabel initially joined Target in 2010 after serving as chief of staff to Sen. John Thune (R-South Dakota), who is now Senate majorty leader.