Bill Gates has announced that he will be stepping down from all executive roles at Microsoft. The world’s second richest man said his decision to step down is for him to be able to focus on philanthropy, global health, development, education and tackling climate change.
Gates, 65 who co-founded Microsoft Microsoft in 1975 with Paul Allen, who died in 2018, has now grown the company over the last 30 years to one of the world’s richest companies. He held the position of CEO for 45 years.
Gates also announced he had left the board of Warren Buffett’s company, Berkshire Hathaway. Bill Gates was CEO of Microsoft until 2000 when Steve Ballmer took over the role and has held a not too active role since 2008.
“I have made the decision to step down from both of the public boards on which I serve – Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway – to dedicate more time to philanthropic priorities including global health and development, education, and my increasing engagement in tackling climate change,” He said on LinkedIn on Friday.
“The leadership at the Berkshire companies and Microsoft has never been stronger, so the time is right to take this step.” Announcing the move, Mr Gates said the company would “always be an important part of my life’s work” and he would continue to be engaged with its leadership.
“With respect to Microsoft, stepping down from the board in no way means stepping away from the company,” Gates said. “Microsoft will always be an important part of my life’s work and I will continue to be engaged with Satya and the technical leadership to help shape the vision and achieve the company’s ambitious goals. I feel more optimistic than ever about the progress the company is making and how it can continue to benefit the world.”
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