When Mindy West moved to south Arkansas with her husband after graduating from the University of Arkansas' Sam M. Walton College of Business in 1992, she identified Murphy Oil as the company where she wanted to build her career. When an accounting degree emerged as the best path into the organization, she earned one, joined Murphy Oil in 1996 and never left. Over the next three decades, that decision would carry her through nearly every major area of the business and ultimately to the company's top leadership role.
West has worked across accounting, human resources, strategic planning, investor relations, and finance. Combined with special projects involving executive leadership, those roles gave her an uncommon understanding of the business from end to end. Together, those experiences positioned her to help lead Murphy USA's transformation from a retail fuel subsidiary of Murphy Oil into an independent public company focused on fuel and convenience retailing.
“I always believed that if I focused on the goal I wanted to achieve, I could get there,” West said. “The path may not look exactly the way you expect, but if you're willing to put in the time and energy, opportunities have a way of opening up.”
Following Murphy USA's 2013 separation from Murphy Oil, West served as executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer before advancing to chief operating officer in 2024. On Jan. 1, 2026, she became president and chief executive officer of Murphy USA, the first woman and first native Arkansan to lead the company.
While an accounting degree helped open the door, West credits her Walton College finance education with providing a foundation she has relied on throughout her career. “I've always leveraged my finance side in my everyday career the most,” she said.