{"id":26783,"date":"2026-03-06T10:11:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T10:11:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/microvibenews.com\/?p=26783"},"modified":"2026-03-06T10:11:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T10:11:20","slug":"new-target-ceo-michael-fiddelke-is-putting-candor-at-the-center-of-his-turnaround-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/microvibenews.com\/?p=26783","title":{"rendered":"New Target CEO Michael Fiddelke is putting candor at the center of his turnaround plan"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Good morning<\/strong>. Earlier this week, I traveled to Target headquarters in Minneapolis to interview newly minted CEO Michael Fiddelke. Target had just reported a straight fourth quarter of comparable sales decline, continuing a slump that has seen it lose market share to many rivals. That same day, Fiddelke laid out for an audience of Wall Street analysts an ambitious plan he said would bring the most change Target has seen in a decade. But Fiddelke, a 23-year company lifer who took the reins five weeks ago, said that plan can\u2019t work unless Target returns to a culture of talking honestly about failures.<\/p>\n

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\u201cCandor is one of the things culturally that\u2019s really important for us right now, because you can\u2019t solve problems you\u2019re not talking about,\u201d Fiddelke told me. While that might sound squishy, it does echo the approach taken by Macy\u2019s CEO Tony Spring, who told me the same thing in October and has watched the retailer\u2019s long-awaited turnaround take hold.<\/p>\n

Fiddelke, 49, is not kidding about the pace of change at Target: the cheap-chic retailer, which was thrown off its game by a COVID business boom and culture wars over DEI and LGBTQ rights, is overhauling categories it previously \u201cowned\u201d such as home goods, and clothing. It will add more space to its grocery sections, revamp its beauty business, and will ramp up store remodelings and renovations.<\/p>\n

A culture that didn\u2019t favor candor in recent years led to boring and off-trend offerings and stores that have lost a lot of their zhuzh, yielding weak sales for three years. (Target expects net sales to be up slightly this year, and shares rose 7% on Tuesday.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fiddelke, who grew up on a farm in Iowa, says he learned early in his career at Target how crucial brutal honesty is to professional and corporate success. He spent his first five years on the retailer\u2019s finance team before doing a tour of duty in stores that he thought would be a breeze. \u201cI thought I had this place figured out. I was full of strong opinions about what Target should and shouldn\u2019t do,\u201d he recalls. It didn\u2019t take long for things to go south. \u201cI didn\u2019t know the first thing about what it really takes to run a store on the front lines.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

After he confessed to his boss that he was out of his depth, she told him that the admission paved the way for professional growth. \u201cIf you\u2019re vulnerable and curious, then candid, now we can do the work to learn,\u201d he recalls her saying. And that\u2019s a lesson he knows he needs to tap as he works to make Target \u201cTarzhay\u201d again.<\/p>\n

Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.com<\/em><\/p>\n

Top leadership news<\/h3>\n

New Berkshire Hathaway CEO goes all in<\/b><\/p>\n

Warren Buffett’s successor and Berkshire Hathaway CEO Greg Abel told <\/span>CNBC<\/span><\/i> on Thursday that he is putting his entire after-tax salary of $15 million into Berkshire Hathaway stock. \u201cAbsolute alignment with our shareholders, our partners, our owners is critical,\u201d <\/span>he said<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

OpenAI releases new ChatGPT model<\/b><\/p>\n

OpenAI on Thursday <\/span>launched<\/span> GPT-5.4, its latest ChatGPT model, which the company says is its best yet for enterprise use. The model combines advanced reasoning, coding, and the ability to autonomously operate computers and software.<\/span><\/p>\n

Trump fires DHS secretary\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Meet Markwayne Mullin<\/span>, the Oklahoma senator who has replaced Kristi Noem as secretary of Homeland Security. Mullin, who owns a plumbing company and cattle ranch, spent 10 years as a representative before joining the Senate.<\/span><\/p>\n

The markets<\/h3>\n

S&P 500<\/b> futures are down 0.21% this morning. The last session closed down 0.56%. The <\/span>STOXX Europe 600<\/b> was up 0.05% in early trading. <\/span>The U.K.\u2019s FTSE 100<\/b> was up 0.09% in early trading.<\/span> Japan\u2019s Nikkei 225 <\/b>was up 0.62%.<\/span> China\u2019s CSI 300 <\/b>was up 0.27%. <\/span>Hong Kong\u2019s Hang Seng<\/b> was up 1.72%. <\/span>South Korea\u2019s KOSPI <\/b>was up 0.02%.<\/span> India\u2019s NIFTY 50 <\/b>was down 1.28%.<\/span> Bitcoin<\/b> was down to $70K.<\/span><\/p>\n

Around the watercooler<\/h3>\n

LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault is now 77. Thanks to a shareholder change to company bylaws, he can continue as boss until he\u2019s 85 <\/span>by Sasha Rogelberg<\/span><\/p>\n

Fed survey reveals Trump\u2019s tariff gut punch to the backbone of the U.S. economy: small business<\/span> by Tristan Bove<\/span><\/p>\n

Vanguard exec says Trump Accounts are a good idea, but don\u2019t bank on them for college<\/span> by Jacqueline Munis<\/span><\/p>\n

Google\u2019s AI chatbot convinced a man they were in love. It then allegedly told him to stage a \u2018mass casualty attack\u2019 in newly released lawsuit<\/span> by Jake Angelo<\/span><\/p>\n

Anthropic\u2019s investors could be the key to ending its Pentagon standoff\u2014but some investors have opposite views<\/span> by Jessica Mathews<\/span><\/p>\n

CEO Daily is compiled and edited by Joey Abrams, Claire Zillman and Lee Clifford.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

#Target #CEO #Michael #Fiddelke #putting #candor #center #turnaround #plan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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