An Interview with Deborah Vaughn, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for Walmart International

Deborah Vaughn’s love of learning began at a young age. And while she’ll tell you traditional learning was not her forte, she’s wasted no time treating the world around her as her teacher. Now, after living in nine countries—and getting licensed in four—Deborah applies her global education to leading Walmart International’s legal team.

Where did you grow up, and what did you want to be?

I was born in England and grew up in Malaysia. Honestly, I can’t tell you I had a burning desire to be something in particular. I was not one of those fortunate, dedicated, committed students who knew that they were going to grow up and be Atticus Finch one day. What I did know was that I loved learning, especially outside the classroom. The career in law just kind of happened along the way.

How then did you become interested in the law?

I was a journalist in Auckland, New Zealand, and as part of that job, I got to do court reporting, where I sat in court and reported on some of the cases. So, sitting in a South Pacific courtroom one day witnessing from the sidelines complicated but compelling legal argument from counsel, I became smitten with the law.

As a journalist, I was gathering the information, distilling the facts, and then reporting them. But with the law, it was going further. It was not just gathering the information, distilling the facts, and reporting them. It was also identifying the issues, applying the law, and taking a position. So, it just seemed like a natural progression to go from journalism to the law.

Before you became a lawyer, you were a teacher in addition to being a journalist. How has teaching helped you as a lawyer? 

My initial start as a teacher put me in good stead for my career as an in-house attorney. Even now, a good part of my role is education of stakeholders. When you provide legal advice or services, that includes educating stakeholders on emerging issues and potentially impactful policy and legislation.

Ironically, while I may have started out as a teacher, I have always had a learner mindset. My dad was an academic. His mantra was that the goal was not to be educated but rather to be educatable. The objective, he would say, was not the destination but rather the journey—of lifelong learning. So that learner mindset was ingrained early in me.

What brought you to the U.S. to earn your LLM?

My formal education started out in Singapore, then New Zealand and later England. I guess in some ways after Asia Pacific and Europe, the U.S. was the next frontier. Of course, the excellent LLM programs in the U.S. were a draw. I was an intellectual property lawyer at the time, and the holy grail was an LLM in the U.S.—and, since I was in the neighborhood, the New York Bar as well.

You are barred in four countries, and you have lived and worked in nine countries around the world. What has been the benefit of being barred and working in all these locations?

If I look at the countries where I’ve been licensed and worked—Malaysia, Singapore, UK, and the U.S.—what they all have in common (pun intended) is the common law tradition. In taking different bar exams and being licensed in these different jurisdictions, I’ve experienced how the common law itself has been translated with different procedures and processes. But I have also been fortunate to have lived and worked in countries with civil law traditions—Italy, China, and Indonesia. I have seen that regardless of the legal regime—common or civil law—the law is closely connected to culture. It has given me an appreciation beyond the diversity of the law, for diversity of people and of thought.

How has your international perspective of the law influenced your leadership style?

It has heightened my appreciation that laws do not exist in a vacuum—those laws are interpreted and implemented within different cultures, norms, and societies. In my everyday interactions with multicultural and disparate people and teams, this translates to tuning in and listening to understand the different goals and concerns. Many a time, asking the all-important “why” unlocks purpose and galvanizes the collective intent to design solutions. Inclusion generally reaps the dividends of simple, practical solutions and buy-in.

At the end of the day, it’s about building trusted relationships and partnerships across geographies, peoples, and cultures.

Who has mentored you and guided you along the way?

I can’t say that I have been formally mentored. But I can say that I have learned and continue to learn from my supervisors and colleagues and from direct reports—past and present. I have tapped both the legal and business teams, as an effective General Counsel truly needs to understand the business. Yes, it’s a wide canvas, but I have been fortunate enough in my career journey to have met and worked with some accomplished people with varied backgrounds and perspectives. And while I may have physically moved away from some of them, I do try to keep in touch—even if it’s the odd annual email, Zoom, or visit to Michigan or Malaysia.

Of the choices you’ve made in your career, which ones have been the most critical to bringing you to your role as General Counsel at Walmart International?

I can’t point to a specific event that got me here. But I can point to specific qualities that got me here—a growth mindset and a global mindset. I enjoy learning not just about the law but about different peoples and cultures. These interests have fueled career moves from teaching to journalism to law and physical moves from Asia to Europe to North America. There have been risk and reward from the same thing—being out of one’s comfort zone. But I have always enjoyed working with and bringing together diverse and dispersed teams. I am fortunate to have this opportunity with this iconic company with its meaningful purpose to make lives better.

Did you have a traditional legal career path, or have you taken roles that have stretched you out of your comfort zone?

It’s definitely not been traditional. And I have certainly taken on stretch roles—whether as International Counsel, Regional General Counsel, or Board Member of international JVs. But as I have moved from one role to another, it has been on the shoulders of great leaders who took a chance on me and of great teams that supported me. I certainly have inherited an excellent international legal team here at Walmart International.

What were some of the biggest challenges in front of you when you stepped into the International GC role?

It was navigating the scale of change. I moved in November 2020 from Singapore to Bentonville, Arkansas; changed industries from CPG to retail; and changed roles from Asia to International General Counsel—with husband in tow and the pandemic continuing its steely grip. Perhaps the most challenging aspect was onboarding via Zoom. And it was not because people did not want to share their time or insights—quite the opposite. People were generous. But I would have much rather experienced the immediacy of the personal interactions, which would have allowed me to tap into the culture faster. Yet in some ways, Zoom was also an effective medium in that I got to meet many more people since meetings were all virtual. And now, as we are getting back to the office or to the markets, it’s like meeting old friends and colleagues—except that you never really ever met them before in person, whether in Bentonville or Bangalore.

What is the best part of your job?

The best part of my job is the variety that it offers. Walmart is in 24 countries, with Walmart International being in 23 of those countries. Our Walmart International business, which had revenue of around $100B last year, ranges from brick-and-mortar grocery stores to e-commerce platforms and payment apps and includes private and public companies. This wide and diverse backdrop offers a medley and assortment of issues and matters that arise when operating across VUCA—volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous—markets. It can be like a jigsaw puzzle—the types of issues, when and where they arise, and how people come together across borders to find solutions. This is all the more amazing given that the pandemic is not in the rearview mirror in a number of markets. It reminds me of that line from Forrest Gump that life is a box of chocolates, and you never know what you are going to get.

What accomplishment are you most proud of in your career?

Growing and developing diverse world-class legal teams and leaders. At a functional level, I have always tried to raise the profile of the legal department to have not just a presence but also a voice at the leadership table—especially in emerging markets where the legal function can be nascent. I am also passionate about diversity for all the benefits that inclusion brings, from stronger creativity and problem-solving to better decision-making. At an individual level, I am passionate about developing talent. There is a quiet fulfillment in unlocking potential and enabling growth and achievement.

What is the best career decision you’ve ever made?

Embarking on the law—to take that leap to leave the pressroom for the courtroom. It meant going back to university and navigating bar exams on three continents—but it has been a fulfilling choice, especially becoming an in-house counsel. At the heart of it, I have a passion for people and problem-solving—together.

What would someone be surprised to find out about you?

That I carry military ID. Nestled in my wallet among the usual paraphernalia of driver’s license and credit and insurance cards is my “Dependent” military ID. I will say that I did not expect to be the spouse of a retired U.S. Marine pilot—but I am happily so.

What do you when you are not working?

When I get the time, I enjoy cooking. I grew up in multicultural Southeast Asia, between China and India. I grew up with a fusion of foods. Three meals a day meant Indian, Chinese, Western, all in one day—with afternoon tea (integral in all above cultures) thrown in. So, some of my weekends are spent exploring different spices, sauces, and seasonings at our local Walmart and various ethnic food stores in Northwest Arkansas. I can’t say that I am a chef, but I certainly do enjoy experimenting with different flavors, from Italian to Indonesian.

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