NEW YORK — Marvin Ellison the newly taped CEO of J.C. Penney’s is the first black to receive the top job in the company’s 112-year history.  Ellison will begin his new job on

November 1.

He will receive a $4.1 million signing bonus. In addition, Ellison will also be paid a $1.3 million base salary, compared to the former CEO Mike Ullman’s base salary of $810,606. In the transition, Ullman will become the executive chairman of the board for a year. Ullman, came out of retirement last year to take the helm again. His job was to stabilize the business following the ouster of Ron Johnson, a former Apple executive who tried unsuccessfully to reinvent the beleaguered chain by getting rid of sales and some basic merchandise. That led to billions in profit and sales losses.

Ellison is currently the executive vice president of Home Depot stores. His success at Home Depot led to his being considered for the job at J.C. Penney’s.

As CEO, Ellison will have a big challenge ahead of him: The troubled chain is showing signs of improvement after racking up billions in losses, but its department stores still lack the customer traffic needed to ensure profitability.