Thinking Outside the Box is Not Always Best – Sears

Eddie Lambert, the once famed investor, who has been struggling for the last number of years trying to turn his controllinginvestment in Sears into something positive, just announced, after a three year search, the appointment of another new CEO.  Lambert’s selection of Lou D’Ambrosio, a former IBM executive and CEO of Avaya, is another suspect out-of-the-box selection that has many people scratching their heads.  D’Ambrosio an effective high-powered executive with substantial CEO and management experience primarily in the telecom and tech fields has no experience in retail.  A lack of retail experience would seem to be imperative for an organization like Sears.  While D’Ambrosio has been working with Lambert and Sears as a consultant he is now going to be in charge.  What can Lambert be thinking?

According to an article by Jeannine Poggi for TheStreet.com,

In a letter to investors, Lampert said D’Ambrosio is the right man for the job due to his “information and technology background, leadership style and experience in leading and transforming a Fortune 500 company.”