Abigail Johnson, 50, has been promoted to president at Fidelity Investments,
Bloomberg reported.
Johnson, the daughter of 82-year-old Fidelity chairman Edward C. “Ned” Johnson III, will run all of the financial-services firm’s core business units.
“While she will report to her father, who remains Fidelity’s chief executive officer, the appointment makes her arguably the most powerful woman in the $12.2 trillion fund industry,” the Bloomberg report says. According to observers, the promotion establishes Johnson as her father’s clear successor. The Bloomberg article noted:
The younger Johnson has outlasted several senior executives who were seen as candidates to lead the family-controlled firm run by her father for 35 years.
The
Boston Business Journal
noted:
“The announcement also comes on the heels of criticism and concerns raised by analysts over the company’s private ownership structure and lack of a clear succession plan.”
Johnson began working at Fidelity, which was founded by her grandfather, in 1988 as a mutual fund manager. In 2001, she was named head of Fidelity’s mutual fund unit; in 2005, she was put in charge of the firm’s retirement business. She added oversight of corporate retirement services and fund sales to individuals in 2007. In 2010, her father split control of the firm: Abigail Johnson was named head of all client-focused businesses, and Ronald O-Hanley was named head of asset management. O’Hanley will continue to oversee asset management and will report to Abigail Johnson, the Bloomberg report said. (Sources: Bloomberg, Aug. 29, 2012;
Boston Business Journal,
Aug. 28, 2012.)
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