Home Depot said Ted Decker, its chair, president and CEO, will take a temporary medical leave of absence and is expected to return “within the next few months.” The company provided no medical details or firm timetable.
Who is running the company during the leave
The board has designated two long-tenured executives to manage daily operations while Decker is away: Ann‑Marie Campbell, senior executive vice president, and Richard McPhail, executive vice president and chief financial officer. The appointments followed Decker’s recommendation.
Campbell will oversee day-to-day store and fulfillment operations; McPhail will manage financial oversight and the Pro business. Independent director Greg Brenneman will serve as board chair during the CEO’s absence. “The Home Depot has the best management team in retail,” Brenneman said, adding the board is confident in Campbell’s and McPhail’s ability to lead the company during this period.
Why marketers, e-commerce teams and partners should care
Both interim leaders hold roles that touch Home Depot’s largest revenue streams. Campbell’s remit covers omnichannel execution and customer experience in stores and fulfillment, while McPhail supervises financial planning and the Pro business — Home Depot’s business-to-business segment where the company has concentrated recent product and service innovation.
Recent initiatives that the interim team will need to sustain include expanded delivery for overseas military families, new rewards for Pro Xtra customers, consolidation of AI tools for Pro users into a unified workspace, and the integration of the Mingledorff’s acquisition via subsidiary SRS. At the same time, the company is managing cost pressures tied to tariffs and oil prices.
For marketing, product and operations teams, leadership continuity matters because changes at the top can slow approvals, delay rollouts and complicate cross-functional programs like promotions, loyalty updates and digital features. Selecting two seasoned internal executives signals an intent to preserve execution rather than interrupt it.
Signals to monitor
Stakeholders should watch a few concrete indicators over the coming weeks: any public updates on Decker’s status, changes to guidance or financial outlook, short-term operational KPIs (same-store sales, fulfillment times, Pro program enrollments) and investor commentary about the board’s interim structure.
Because the company framed the leave as temporary and named internal successors plus an interim board chair, the immediate governance risk appears managed. Execution risk remains, however — particularly around AI consolidation for Pro customers and acquisition integration — and will be clearer once Home Depot reports quarterly results or issues further updates.
Home Depot remains a major retail and e-commerce operator: it ranks No. 4 in the Top 1000 Database and No. 224 in Digital Commerce 360’s AI Rankings. Those positions underline the operational scale the interim leadership will manage while Decker is on leave.
What to expect next
Expect routine corporate communications — filings, investor calls and press statements — to be the primary source of new information about timing and any material impacts. For partners and competitors alike, the immediate takeaway is that Home Depot favors continuity: internal leaders and an interim board chair rather than an external search.
