Schulze Back at Best Buy: What Does It Mean?

In the short time since Richfield-based Best Buy's Monday announcement about the return of founder Richard Schulze as 'Chairman Emeritus', online observers has been abuzz with analysis and speculation. Here is a sampling. 

The Star Tribune told the tale of an unlikely boardroom bromance budding:

What began as a tense standoff between Best Buy and its founder gradually evolved into an unlikely alliance between two men with enormous sway over the future of Best Buy: [Hubert] Joly as CEO and Schulze playing the role of both outside agitator and the company’s de facto spiritual leader.

In a separate story, the Star Tribune questioned how well the founder fits his new job description:

Show up smiling at company functions. Give advice when the CEO asks for it. Mentor young executives. Those are the typical duties of a chairman emeritus.

But Richard Schulze likely won’t be a normal chairman emeritus at Best Buy. ... Best Buy’s challenge is to find a way for its forceful founder, who owns a huge share of the company, to make constructive contributions without creating problems for the people who are actually in charge.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press echoed the point:

Having a company founder and longtime chairman hovering just off-stage isn't always the most comfortable arrangement, noted Dave Brennan, a retail specialist at the University of St. Thomas.

"It's one of those countervailing forces, where you have some positives and potentially negative things," Brennan said. "But generally it bodes well for the company having him involved."

Forbes saw in the return of Schulze and two former colleagues a potential return to form for the company: 

These aren’t just some guys who used to draw a paycheck, although Schulze certainly acted like it during the Dunn days. These are the guys who built the original Best Buy from scratch. They faced dark days together and came out ahead. ... Best Buy has a long road ahead, but it’s on the right track.

In contrast, it all spells doom and gloom for The Street:

Things are not as they seem. Best Buy continues to crumble internally. ... So, yeah, ICYMI, Richard Schulze, after a deal to take the company private fell through, returns as chairman emeritus of the board. Sadly, that's probably not the same type of figurehead role universities give professors when they're so old they pass dust. Expect Schulze to play puppet master to Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly.

In three separate posts, the Motley Fool

By no means does it make Best Buy a sure winner, but the move isn't going to seriously hurt, either. I'm looking for Schulze to make the biggest impact on the company's brand image, which hasn't caught back up to its recent changes and focuses.

But maybe it's not a real fix (Motley Fool):

Although today's announcement arguably alleviates fear over a short-term decline in Best Buy's stock, the problems ahead for the company remain in place.

And ultimately the outlook is pessimistic (Motley Fool):

It's still hard to fathom this ending well for Best Buy, and the stock has moved too high, too soon.

What do you think of changes at Best Buy? Leave a comment below.