David Glass

David Dayne Glass (September 2, 1935 – January 9, 2020) was an American businessman. He was president and chief executive officer of Walmart Stores, Inc. He was also an owner and chief executive officer of the Kansas City Royals. Early life The son of Marvin Glass and Myrtle Van Winkle, Glass was born on a farm in Oregon County, Missouri, and grew up in Mountain View, Missouri. He served in the United States Army from 1954 through 1956, then attended Southwest Missouri State College (now Missouri State University) in Springfield. Career with Walmart David Glass joined the company in 1976. In his position as executive vice president of finance for Wal-Mart Stores, he administered the overall financial and accounting responsibilities of the company prior to his appointment as vice chairman and chief financial officer. He served in that role until 1984 when he was named president and Walmart’s chief operating officer. Along with Rob Walton, in 1985, Glass managed development of Retail Link program, Walmart's proprietary trend-forecasting software. In 1988, he was named Walmart's chief executive officer, stepping down from the position in January 2000. Glass was active in the company's growth from 123 stores in 1976 to its more than 4,000 nationally and internationally in 2005. Glass was named Retailer of the Year by members of the retail industry in 1986 and 1991 and was inducted into the Retail Hall of Fame in August 2000. Glass was also a member of the board of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. from 1976 until his death in 2020.