Best Buy Co Inc founder and Chairman Richard Schulze is stepping down after he failed to tell the board that former Chief Executive Officer Brian Dunn had violated company policy by having "an extremely close personal relationship" with a female employee, the electronics retailer said on Monday.

Best Buy said an investigation by the board had found that the relationship "negatively impacted the work environment," but involved no misuse of company resources.

Dunn, who left the company on April 10 during a probe of the allegations, will receive a severance payment of $2.85 million, the company said.

Schulze will be succeeded by Hatim Tyabji, chairman of mobile network software company Bytemobile and chairman of Best Buy's audit committee. The change takes effect at the end of the company's annual meeting on June 21.

Schulze will become chairman emeritus, an honorary position, and serve out his term as director through June 2013, the company said.

"In December, when the conduct of our then-CEO was brought to my attention, I confronted him with the allegations (which he denied), told him his conduct was totally unacceptable and contrary to Best Buy`s policies and everything I, and the Company, stand for," Schulze said in a statement released by the company. "I understand and accept the findings of the Audit Committee."

沪江英语快讯：美国电子零售商百思买的创始人兼董事会主席理查德·舒泽（Richard Schulze）宣布辞职。因为他对董事会知情不报，隐瞒了前CEO布莱恩·邓恩（Brian Dunn）与一位女员工之间存在极为亲密的个人关系的事实。桃色丑闻的当事人邓恩已于4月10日辞职，而这次百思买的创始人兼董事长舒泽是因监管不力而辞职。舒泽离职后，将由百思买审计委员会主席兼移动网络软件公司Bytemobile董事会主席海提姆·提阿布其（Hatim Tyabji）填补其空位，而舒泽将保留名誉退休主席身份，并作为公司董事完成他的任期直到2013年6月。