Ageless Titans: How Business Leaders Are Redefining Retirement

I wasn’t expecting Rupert Murdoch, the billionaire mogul behind Fox News and News Corp, to retire so soon. Even when the 92-year-old had a fall in 2018 while on vacation, requiring emergency back surgery, he told anyone who cared to listen that he was going nowhere. This was reinforced in 2022 when he suffered complications after contracting Covid-19. Even as he retired, he wouldn’t accept that his health had anything to do with it. “Our companies are in robust health, as am I,” he wrote in a memo to thousands of his employees on the eve of his departure.

In today’s business world, it seems we may be entering the era of 100-year-old active leaders. Some have argued that if the leader of the free world, arguably a more demanding job, can be an 80-year-old, then what’s stopping business leaders from growing old with their companies? Never mind that 3 out of 4 Americans are already concerned about Joe Biden’s health, which has obviously come with his age. Still, in 2024, barring any unforeseen events, the already oldest sitting American president in history will be facing off against another person who is just three years younger.

So, business leaders appear to be taking cues from these developments. Already, Warren Buffett, the 93-year-old founder and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, has reassured investors that the day his named successor steps in is many years off. His right-hand man and vice chairman, Charlie Munger, is still reporting for duty at the age of 99.

It’s a trend that we will likely see more of in the coming years, especially in developed countries. In recent decades, the share of the population aged 65 years or older has nearly doubled on average across OECD countries. The proportion of the population aged 65 years or over increased from less than 9% in 1960 to more than 17% in 2017. The average U.S. lifespan has risen from 68 in 1950 to 76 today, and the average retirement age has crept up to 61 from 57 in 1991.

These changes are reflected across industries. Corporate raider Carl Icahn, aged 87, is still running his Icahn Enterprises from Florida. Michael Bloomberg, at 81, the founder of his eponymous financial information and media giant, recently told employees, “I’m not going anywhere.” Blackstone CEO and co-founder Stephen Schwarzman is 76; Larry Ellison, 78, remains the CTO of Oracle; and Disney’s “boomerang” leader Bob Iger, is 72. It was only in June that George Soros, at 92, gave up control of his Open Society Foundations.

You may be asking if this is a desirable pattern, considering the inevitable cognitive decline we all experience as we age. However, many researchers and aging experts argue that fretting over anyone’s age is both alarmist and ageist. Some argue that decades of data have shown that at an individual level, age is not correlated with job performance. A BBC Science Focus article points out that by the time people reach their later years, they’re generally more content, which provides them with emotional stability. As they ponder what they’ll be leaving for future generations beyond material goods, older leaders may become transformational.

But, more importantly, an argument can be made about the experience and wisdom they bring.

Still, is it out of place to theorize that the increasing need for older leaders to stay on is self-serving? Driven CEOs sometimes find that they have neglected other parts of their lives over their decades of establishing dominance in business. Many CEOs keep themselves extremely busy because, when they’re not busy, they get depressed. Work may be the only place where they find a sense of belonging. So, why let go?

Indeed, Murdoch’s hesitancy to relinquish his power was evident in his farewell memo to staff: “I will be watching our broadcasts with a critical eye, reading our newspapers, websites, and books with much interest, and reaching out to you with thoughts, ideas, and advice,” he wrote. “When I visit your countries and companies, you can expect to see me in the office late on a Friday afternoon.”

The company is as much a part of him as he has been a part of the company.