CARLISLE, Pa. — James McCann has been named chief operating officer of Ahold USA, effective February 1. He succeeds Carl Schlicker, who is retiring.

James McCann has been named chief operating officer of Ahold USA, effective February 1. He succeeds Carl Schlicker, who is retiring.

McCann, a 43-year-old native of Great Britain, joined Ahold NV last year as chief commercial and development officer. Before that he worked for international retailers including J. Sainsbury PLC, Tesco PLC and Carrefour SA. He began his career at Shell Oil, and he also worked for Mars.

"We have a strong leader for Ahold USA from within our own organization," said Ahold NV chief executive officer Dick Boer. "Since his start with Ahold, James has focused on strengthening our e-commerce proposition and customer loyalty programs as part of the company’s robust growth strategy."