Who is Greg Abel, the man preparing to take over for Warren Buffett?
Abel, a small child when Buffett took the helm at Berkshire Hathaway, runs the conglomerate’s noninsurance businesses.
The Greg Abel era at Berkshire Hathaway is coming.
Warren Buffett announced Saturday that he’s finally ready to depart his chief executive post at year-end. As planned for several years, the legendary 94-year-old investor plans to turn over the reins over to Greg Abel, a vice chairman who leads the company’s noninsurance operations.
Abel’s known for keeping a low profile. But, starting next year, he’ll be filling some enormous shoes.
Who is he?
Abel, 62, was a small child when Buffett first took the helm at Berkshire in 1965. Born and raised in the Canadian prairies, Abel rose through the ranks of Berkshire’s energy operations and has handled several large acquisitions for the conglomerate.
He was president of Iowa-based MidAmerican Energy when Berkshire invested in the company in 1999.
Any surprises?
Only the timing, with Buffett revealing the timeline during the close of Berkshire’s annual meeting on Saturday. (Abel didn’t even know it was coming.) But Berkshire first revealed in 2021 that Abel would be the next CEO.
The plan is still a recommendation, for now. Buffett said he plans to discuss the succession plan at a board meeting Sunday and said he expects they’ll act on his recommendation at a subsequent meeting.
Why Abel?
Abel already has a huge leadership role at Berkshire. In a letter to shareholders in early 2024, Buffett said Abel “in all respects is ready to be CEO of Berkshire tomorrow." In a February letter, Buffett signaled the changeover was coming soon.
“At 94, it won’t be long before Greg Abel replaces me as CEO and will be writing the annual letters," Buffett said. “Greg shares the Berkshire creed that a ‘report’ is what a Berkshire CEO annually owes to owners. And he also understands that if you start fooling your shareholders, you will soon believe your own baloney and be fooling yourself as well."
“Greg will be more successful than I have been, and if I said otherwise, my nose would grow," Buffett has also said.
How will Abel differ from Buffett?
He has been on stage with Buffett at annual meetings, but hasn’t shared his boss’s penchant for occasional cameos (including an episode of The Office and the 2015 film “Entourage.") But he is expected to take a more hands-on management role with Berkshire’s roster of companies.
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