Ann Dozier’s Journey to Becoming CIO at Ahold Delhaize USA
During a company Q&A earlier this year, Chief Information Officer Ann Dozier shared, “If you’re at the table, you were invited for a reason. Your voice matters.”
What Does Ahold Delhaize USA Do?
Ahold Delhaize USA, a division of global food retailer Ahold Delhaize, is part of the U.S. family of brands, which also includes five leading omnichannel grocery brands: Food Lion, The GIANT Company, Giant Food, Hannaford and Stop & Shop. The company operates two proprietary technology platforms: an omnichannel platform that powers customer experiences, and EDGE, its new retail media platform.
Dozier has had a seat at many different tables throughout her career. Prior to stepping into her current role at Ahold Delhaize USA about 15 months ago, she served as senior vice president and chief information and technology officer for Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits. Before that, Dozier held various leadership roles at organizations like The Coca-Cola Company, Dean Foods and Colgate-Palmolive.
As CIO, Dozier oversees all aspects of technology for the company’s U.S. businesses. She also partners to deliver the company’s Growing Together strategy, which aims to build on its core strengths by investing in its people and leveraging technologies to unlock growth to win with existing and future customers.
“It’s an honor to be a part of Ahold Delhaize USA and its amazing teams of business and technology leaders,” Dozier said in a press release as she came onboard. “I look forward to continuing the journey of technology transformation to further enable strategic growth, value and great experiences for customers of the U.S. brands, while serving associates through unique capabilities to enable the U.S. businesses to be employers of choice in their markets.”
Who Is Ann Dozier?
Ann Dozier earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Georgia and is a graduate of Harvard Business School’s Executive Management Program. Apart from her work as CIO at Ahold Delhaize USA, she leads by example, offering insights to support the next generation of tech talent and leaders by working with organizations like IT Women, Women in Technology and NextUp. Dozier also served as an independent director for Golden Entertainment, Inc., a diversified entertainment platform that owns and operates hotels, casinos and taverns in Nevada, and is a member of several community boards and national councils. She has been honored with numerous awards, including “CIO of the Year” by Consumer Goods Technology, and was recently named one of Women We Admire’s “2025 Top Women CIOs.”
Ann Dozier’s Leadership Philosophy and Career Lessons
Dozier has always loved solving problems and building solutions that make a difference in people’s lives.
As an early-career technologist in the late 1980s, she saw technology as an avenue to combine these two passions. Dozier began her tech career at Electronic Data Systems as a systems engineer, setting her on a path that would lead her to guide teams through large-scale change, learn from failures and successes, and witness technology shape entire businesses.
“Each of my roles reinforced for me that technology isn’t just about data and systems; it’s about people and outcomes,” Dozier said in a recent Q&A examining her outlook on the future of technology.
Throughout her career, Dozier has received mentorship from various leaders who challenged her, trusted her to take on significant responsibilities and remained empathetic while still maintaining high expectations.
“Those experiences shaped how I lead today,” Dozier said. “I strive to create an environment where people feel supported and empowered to grow, while staying focused on delivering results.”
Dozier appreciates how much the company’s associates support each other, and she strives to lead by example by offering insights whenever she can.
“If what I’ve experienced and learned throughout my career can help others, I’m always open to sharing so that others can either avoid something that didn’t work for me or harness what I’ve experienced for their own success,” Dozier said.
How Technology Enables Collaboration and Growth at Ahold Delhaize USA
When the company’s tech teams accomplish work that impacts their colleagues across the family of brands in the United States, it often happens behind the scenes – and that’s by design.
These teams aim to ensure every aspect of associates’ day-to-day work moves seamlessly, whether that involves improving system reliability during peak times, simplifying workflows for associates or enhancing how data flows behind the scenes.
“When technology works as it should and enables people to do their best work, that’s success,” Dozier said.
To further drive technological transformation, Ahold Delhaize USA recently brought on a chief data and AI officer and established a global focus area to identify and scale solutions across the organization. The company’s tech teams are also deploying AI to create short- and long-term value for associates, brands and their customers.
Dozier foresees AI continuing to transform how associates accomplish their work. She believes the technology’s ability to automate routine tasks and accelerate learning and development can be helpful for many technologists, including those earlier on in their career journey.
“For young engineers, AI can be a powerful tool, helping you experiment, build faster and focus on higher-impact challenges,” Dozier said. “At the same time, it makes human skills like critical thinking, creativity and ethical judgment even more important.”
How Ahold Delhaize USA Is Impacting Communities
Ahold Delhaize USA’s “Growing Together” strategy centers around the company’s efforts to modernize its network, expand capacity and deepen its commitment to local communities. Recently, the company broke ground on a new state-of-the-art distribution center in Burlington, N.C., which is slated to bring over 500 new jobs to the region.
Inside Ahold Delhaize USA’s Culture of Trust and Collaboration
According to Dozier, company culture is grounded in purpose and partnership, informed by its #OneTech mission, which inspires associates to create differentiated value and pave the way for a successful future for the business.
“Our team is encouraged to think boldly, but always with a clear tie to how our work supports customers at the center,” Dozier said.
To drive impact, teams rely heavily on collaboration and working together across tech functions, which builds a sense of shared ownership.
There are many elements that underpin the company’s culture, but Dozier believes that the biggest among them is trust.
“Speed and innovation are essential, but they can never come at the expense of security or reliability,” Dozier said.
That’s why the company’s tech teams rely on strong principles, deep expertise and clear priorities when making important decisions. And while they often move fast, sometimes, this means slowing down, ensuring efficiency never comes at the expense of quality.
“It’s about balance and staying grounded in what’s best for our stakeholders, whether that’s our associates, our great local brands or their customers,” Dozier said.
Ahold Delhaize USA invests in the success of its associates, valuing their perspectives and creating space for them to grow as they drive the organization’s mission forward. From mentorship to professional development opportunities, the company offers associates everything they need to feel supported in their roles, she said.
“When people feel they belong, they contribute more fully, and that in turn helps fuel innovation and progress,” Dozier said.
As Dozier continues to lead Ahold Delhaize USA’s technological evolution, she’s eager to continue fostering its people-first culture, ensuring everyone has room to share their voice and make a difference.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Ahold Delhaize USA do?
Ahold Delhaize USA is a division of the global food retailer Ahold Delhaize and is part of the U.S. family of brands. This family includes five leading omnichannel grocery brands: Food Lion, The GIANT Company, Giant Food, Hannaford and Stop & Shop. To support these brands, the company operates two proprietary technology platforms: an omnichannel platform that powers customer experiences and EDGE, its new retail media platform. Additionally, the company is actively modernizing its network, expanding its capacity, and deepening its commitment to local communities, such as building a new distribution center in Burlington, North Carolina.
How is Ahold Delhaize USA using AI?
Ahold Delhaize USA is aggressively driving a technological transformation by deploying AI to create both short- and long-term value for its associates, its brands, and its customers. For instance, the company recently brought on a chief data and AI officer and established a global focus area dedicated entirely to identifying and scaling AI solutions across the whole organization. Also, AI is being used to automate routine, day-to-day tasks for associates, which allows teams to operate more seamlessly behind the scenes.
