Howard G. Buffett has never built a career in finance. He taught himself to farm on rented land, served as a county sheriff in Illinois, and has photographed conflict zones and wildlife across roughly 130 countries. He never finished college. On Friday 18 September, the 71-year-old became chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, the roughly $1.1T (£820B) conglomerate his father spent six decades building.
Warren Buffett, 96, stepped down as chairman that day and became chairman emeritus, staying on the board as a director, Berkshire said. Greg Abel, who succeeded him as chief executive on 1 January, continues to run the company. The board elected Howard, a director since 1993, under a succession plan it had signalled for years.
