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Buffett Offers Hint at Next Berkshire Hathaway Leader

Jan 10, 2018
Web.com Group Inc. has announced its selection by Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices as a preferred supplier of marketing and advertising services for its network of nearly 44,000 agents

Warren Buffett has named two Vice Chairmen for the Board of Directors at Berkshire Hathaway, which could provide a clue for the next person to run his corporation.
 
The 87-year-old Buffett named Gregory Abel as Vice Chairman of the company’s noninsurance businesses; he is also Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co. Also being tapped was Ajit Jain, who was named Vice Chairman of the Insurance Operations. Jain is the Executive Vice President of National Indemnity Co.
 
Buffett told CNBC that these appointments were "part of a movement to succession over time," adding that the appointments should not be seen as a sign of his stepping down from the company’s leadership. Abel is 55 and Jain is 66, and Buffett stressed their relative youth—at least, in comparison to his age—as positive attributes for leadership.
 
“Our directors believe that our future CEOs should come from internal candidates whom the Berkshire board has grown to know well,” he said. “Our directors also believe that an incoming CEO should be relatively young, so that he or she can have a long run in the job. Berkshire will operate best if its CEOs average well over 10 years at the helm.”

 
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Jan 10, 2018
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