Bill Gates may become a full-time philanthropist sooner than expected, if a few people at Microsoft have their way.
According to media reports, the software tycoon, and largest shareholder at Microsoft with a 4.5 percent stake, is reportedly being asked to step down from a small contingent of board members at the software company, according to numerous sources.
Three of the 20 members that make up the board have anonymously requested Gate's departure, reports The Daily News. They own a collective five percent stake.
Gates, according to the Daily News, sells approximately 80 million shares per year since focusing most of his time on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a $40 billion dollar operation. If he continues to follow his plan, he won't have any financial connection to the company by 2018.
Still, The Daily News reports that investors and at least three of the board members believe his current 4.5 percent stake gives him too much influence for someone whose greatest interests seem to lie elsewhere. Since Steve Ballmer's exit as CEO, Microsoft employees worry Gates will have too much say in choosing his predecessor.
It was Gates' decision to hire Ballmer in 2000 and allow him to take over daily operations in 2008. Since then, Ballmer's strategies have mostly failed, allowing Apple and Google to corner a greater portion of the market. According to the Daily News, shares in Microsoft have remained lukewarm over the last decade.
"This is long overdue," Todd Lowenstein, a prominent shareholder told the Daily News. "Replacing the old guard with some fresh eyes can provide the oxygen needed to properly evaluate their corporate strategy."
Not all so eagerly await the departure of Gates, who remains one of the most-respected minds in the industry. In fact, Kim Caughaty Forrest, senior analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group, believes more Gates, not less could be exactly what the company needs.
"I've thought that the company has been missing a technology visionary," she said. "Bill (Gates) would fit the bill."
Despite the anonymous board members, The Daily News reported Microsoft has given no inclination whether it will seriously consider replacing Gates.
