HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Alasdair James has been named president and chief member officer at Kmart.Parent company Sears Holdings Corp. said Monday that James joins the discount retailer from Tesco PLC, where he most recently was commercial director for global business.

James will be responsible for driving the Kmart format strategy, managing profit and loss, and aligning merchandise, marketing, pricing and selling with the needs and wants of Shop Your Way members.

At Tesco, James spent two years managing the retailer’s China operations as executive vice president and commercial director before moving to the global division. In addition to his experience with Tesco, which he joined in 2007, he has held roles with GlaxoSmithKline and PepsiCo.

“Alasdair will work closely with me and our business unit leaders to understand the preferences of Shop Your Way members who shop at Kmart,” Sears Holdings chairman and chief executive officer Edward Lampert said in a statement. “He will be responsible for the Kmart strategy, its performance and its continued transformation as an integrated retail format.”

Overall, Kmart has approximately 1,150 discount stores nationwide, including about 840 in-store pharmacies.