Former Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly to retire as board chairman

Former Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly, the leader credited with spearheading the electronic chain's surprising and storied turnaround, will retire in June from his role as executive board chairman.

In doing so, he will complete the leadership transition that started last year when he handed over the reins of the Richfield-based company to current CEO Corie Barry.

J. Patrick Doyle — former CEO of Domino's Pizza and the lead independent director on Best Buy's board — will succeed Joly as chairman after the shareholders meeting on June 11, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Joly, 60, will continue on as a paid consultant to Best Buy for at least a year, working on programs such as the retailer's teen tech centers, which host after-school programs for underserved youths in urban areas around the U.S.

In an e-mail sent to Best Buy employees on Wednesday afternoon, Joly said he's working on a book about the "heart of business" and that he plans to teach as well as to coach and mentor management teams.

He added that he is "extremely confident" in the future of Best Buy and its leadership team led by Barry.

"As much fun as it was to lead this company, it is even better to watch the next leaders improve on what I helped build," Joly said in the e-mail.

"I knew this would be the case and that is why I was so confident in handing over the baton," he said. "I would not have done it had there not been a collection of incredibly capable, passionate and human people — led by Corie — to give it to. This company is simply too dear to my heart to have done anything less."

When Joly became CEO of Best Buy in 2012, some investors questioned whether he would be able to reverse the company's decline. Many thought competition from Amazon would put it out of business.

But he managed to prove them wrong. He stabilized the business by slashing more than $1 billion in costs, matching the online prices of Amazon and other competitors, and inviting some of the retailer's biggest brands such as Samsung and Sony to set up mini-shops inside of Best Buy. He also leaned into the expertise of the chain's blue-shirted employees, emphasizing how they are able to provide personal advice and customer service that is not as easy to get online.

In his e-mail, Joly said he can't help but feel a little emotional about this milestone.

"These years have been meaningful, impactful and very joyful," he said.

But he promised that he will continue to be one of the company's biggest cheerleaders — and one of its biggest customers.

Kavita Kumar • 612-673-4113