Best Buy names first female CEO

Electronics giant Best Buy has promoted Corie Barry to CEO as Hubert Joly is assuming the role of executive chairman effective June 11. Barry, 43, will be the first woman to lead Best Buy as CEO and one of the youngest chief executives at a top U.S. company.

Barry has spent more than 20 years at Best Buy and since 2012 has worked alongside Joly to win back lost share in a highly competitive retail business and online retailers like Amazon.

Joly plans to help with external and government relations, and has said he will be glad to assist Barry with anything she asks him to do. Best Buy is in a stable financial position, which Joly said makes this the right time for a management transition.

Barry was promoted to executive vice president of transformation and finance in November and has been intimately involved in crafting Best Buy’s next steps, according to the company. Mike Mohan will add president to his chief operating officer title following the company’s annual meeting on June 11, according to a news release.

“We are confident that Corie and Mike are perfectly suited … to drive Best Buy into the next phase of its transformation,” Joly said.