Best Buy Hires Joly New CEO

Electronics retail giant Best Buy

has named former Carlson chief executive Hubert Joly its new CEO and president. Carlson is a hospitality and restaurant company that owns businesses including Radisson and TGI Friday's. Chief financial officer Trudy Rautio will take Joly's place. It has been a tumultuous few months for Best Buy, and the board will hope that Joly is capable of steadying the ship. In mid-May, Best Buy announced that chairman Richard Schulze was resigning after an investigation discovered that he knew about disgraced CEO Brian Dunn's inappropriate "close personal relationship" with a female employee, but did nothing about it. "In December, when the conduct of our then-CEO was brought to my attention, I confronted him with the allegations (which he denied), told him his conduct was totally unacceptable and contrary to Best Buy's policies and everything I, and the company, stand for. I understand and accept the findings of the Audit Committee," Schulze said in a statement. However, Schulze later revealed plans to take the company private. "I continue to believe in Best Buy and its future--and care deeply about its customers, employees and shareholders," Schulze said in a statement as he left. "There is an urgent need for Best Buy to reinvigorate growth by reconnecting with today's customers and building pathways to the next generation of consumers." At the end of June, it became apparent that Schulze was assembling an A-team of executives as he looked to move towards a buyout. Schulze had apparently also sounded out former Chief Executive Officer Brad Anderson about joining him. Those moves ground to a halt on Monday though, with Schulze rejecting a Best Buy proposal to allow the formation of an investment group and required due diligence in furtherance of his proposal to acquire Best Buy.

quoted Schulze as saying that, "I am disappointed and surprised by the Best Buy Board's abrupt termination of our discussions. For the record, we engaged in good-faith negotiations with Best Buy's Board and its advisors over the weekend and expected to conclude this matter before the company's earnings announcement early this week." Joly will step in from early September, replacing interim CEO Mike Mikan. Joly has a track record of turning companies around, and the board will hope that he can carry that success forward. On Monday morning, Best Buy traded at about $20.30, down roughly 0.7 percent.