Target Corp. announced yesterday that CEO Bob Ulrich is retiring from the company and that his longtime lieutenant Gregg Steinhafel would be taking over at the helm of the retailer.
Mr. Urich leaves the company 41 years after joining Target's predecessor, Dayton Hudson, as a merchandising trainee. While he will step down as CEO on May 1, he will remain as Target's chairman until Jan. 31, 2009.
Mr. Steinhafel, Target's president, joined Dayton Hudson in 1979 and moved up the ladder. He was appointed to the retailer's board last year. He takes over at the retailer after a decidedly less than Target-like performance in the past quarter.
The expectation is that Target under Mr. Steinhafel will be much the same as it was under Mr. Ulrich.
Joseph Feldman of the Telsey Advisory Group told the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, "The new guy is really the old guy. He's been Bob's partner for the past 30 years, essentially, and he's been an integral part of the strategy."
Mr. Steinhafel echoed much the same in company press release. "I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn from one of the best leaders in the retail industry and I look forward to building on the company's success by continuing to create substantial value for our guests, our team members, our shareholders and our communities," he said.
With Mr. Ulrich leaving the questions inevitably lead to his legacy and the future of the company he helped to build.
Burt P. Flickinger III, managing director of Strategic Resource Group, offered his view in an interview with The Associated Press. "Target seemed to have lost its way in the last few years of Ulrich's tenure. In the history books he'll go down as a very good but not great CEO. Steinhafel, I think, will go down as a great CEO."
Discussion Questions: What do you see as Bob Ulrich's legacy at Target? What do you expect of Target under Gregg Steinhafel's leadership? What do you see as the most pressing challenges he will face as he takes over as CEO?