On Friday, Microsoft announced that co-founder Bill Gates, after 45 years on Microsoft board, has left its board of directors, for devoting his more time to philanthropy. Until 2000, he served as CEO of Microsoft, and the same year his foundation was also started. He was the chairman of the company until February 2014.
After spending more than forty years on Microsoft board, Bill Gates finally exits the company which he himself co-founded in the year 1975 and turned into the world’s largest software maker.
Earlier this, Gates used to serve as chairman of the board of directors of Microsoft until early in the year 2014 and has now finally stepped away completely.
Bill Gates on Friday wrote in a blog post, “Microsoft will always be an important part of my life’s work” and he is always going to continue to be involved “with Satya and the technical leadership to help shape the vision as well as to achieve the ambitious goals of the company,”
He added, “I feel more positive than ever about the development the company is making as well as how it can continue to benefit the world.”
However, as per Microsoft’s statement, Gates hasn’t been active in everyday roles since the year 2008. That was the time when he switched to devoting most of the time to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Gates has been working on improving many social causes and now he just wants to spend more time working on worldwide health, education as well as tackling climate change, as per the statement.
Microsoft chief executive, as well as the company veteran Satya Nadella, stated in a release, “It’s been an incredible honor and privilege to have worked with as well as to learn from Bill over the years,”
He added, Bill started the company with a belief in the “democratizing force of software” as well as with a passion for solving the most pressing challenges of society, and “Microsoft and the world are better for it.”
Nadella further said that Microsoft is going to continue to benefit from Gates’ “technical passion and advice” in his on-going role as a technical advisor.
“I am grateful for Bill’s friendship” as well as looking forward to carrying on “to work together with him,” Nadella said.
Bill Gates and Paul Allen co-founded Microsoft in the year 1975. However, Gates left his CEO position in the year 2000, giving the company wheels to Steve Ballmer, for the same reason od devoting more time to his charitable foundation. He then gave up the role of chairman at the same time, then Nadella comes to be Microsoft’s third CEO later in 2014.
Allen also ended his active role with Microsoft back in 1983 and gave up his seat on the board in 2000. In 2018, he, unfortunately, died of cancer-related complications.
Gates, with $96.5 billion net worth, as per Forbes magazine, is the second richest man in the world after Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos.
Bill Gates is now going to focus on his philanthropy work as well as on tackling bigger social issues such as global health and climate change.
