Kamil Zihnioglu/Reuters
Melinda French Gates will address staffers at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on Wednesday for the first time since the multi-billionaire couple announced their divorce, as the $65 billion philanthropic organization faces mounting internal questions about its future and its mission.
The divorce and headlines about Bill Gates' alleged improprieties have led to a clear sense of unease within the ranks, according to three current employees, who spoke to Insider on the condition of anonymity. In recent weeks many staffers, worried about the long-term fate of their programs, have begun to polish their resumes, two of the sources said.
The couple's divorce and its potential impact on their eponymous foundation is just one of several of bombshells that have sent shock waves throughout the foundation, along with the abrupt resignation of Warren Buffet from the board in June and details of Bill Gates' friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
"So many people working at the foundation sacrificed a lot to get here," one of the employees said. "Now they are asking, 'Why did I leave my job and come all the way to Seattle?'"
The Foundation has distributed more than $60 billion in grants since it was established in 2000, including nearly $6 billion in 2020, and is considered a global leader in efforts to combat infectious diseases and poverty. But recent events have prompted questions about whether the Foundation's mission to change the world can withstand the reputational damage brought on by the human fallibility of its namesake patrons.
For some of those employees, frustrations with the Foundation started before the divorce, following months of reports that the Gates Foundation encouraged vaccine researchers at Oxford University to sign an exclusive deal with AstraZeneca, forgoing its plans to donate its intellectual property to open-source efforts.
The vaccine allegations were "dispiriting," said a second employee, who said they started wondering if the foundation's main goal was not to save lives but to do "reputation laundering for Bill."
"It's hard to separate that from where we're actually doing good," the person said.
A Gates Foundation spokesperson said the foundation did not direct Oxford to AstraZeneca, but was simply one of many groups advocating for Oxford to partner with a private, multinational company in order to deliver the vaccine more effectively. The spokesperson said the foundation did not have any role in negotiations related to the agreement. The spokesperson also took issue with the staffer's characterization of reputation laundering.
"Bill and Melinda started the foundation more than two decades ago after reading an article in the New York Times about the devastating number of children who die from diseases, such as diarrhea and pneumonia, that are easily treatable in high income countries, and they have been engaged in global public health ever since," the spokesperson said. "They both remain deeply committed to the work of the foundation and have made strong statements expressing their optimism about the foundation's work and future."
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
In response to internal worries about the future, the spokesperson said that "the past months have understandably raised questions for employees, which is why we are committed to sharing transparently our plans for governance changes that will ensure the foundation is best equipped to tackle the complexity of global challenges that lie ahead over the long-term." (You can read the full statement at bottom of article).
The Foundation will broadcast the Q&A between French Gates and CEO Mark Suzman, which one employee said typically would have also been attended by Gates, to its still-remote workforce over Microsoft Teams on Wednesday, according to an email obtained by Insider. She's set to answer questions about the $15 billion donation she and husband Bill Gates made to the Foundation after announcing their divorce, and give a "preview" to changes in the governance structure of the organization.
Warren Buffett's departure raises new questionsEven some of the most steadfast employees saw their confidence tested in the wake of news coverage following the divorce. People at the Foundation "took it really seriously" when stories resurfaced about Gates's friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, romantic affairs and office bullying, a third employee told Insider.
"There's so much we don't know," that person said. "You never want to work for someone who is a predator, someone who harasses women, someone who is a bully. It will force you to do a quick pulse check."
For now, attention has moved on to the more practical questions of what governance will look like at the Foundation following the departure of its third trustee, Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett, who resigned from the board in June.
For the last 15 years, funding priorities have been decided by Gates and French Gates, with some operational input from Buffett, whose anti-bloat philosophy has kept the organization lean even as its endowment grew. Buffet explained the reasoning behind his departure in an open letter.
Buffett's departure was a big blow for some employees who viewed him as a "neutralizer" between Gates and French Gates and their occasionally unrealistic expectations about what the organization could accomplish.
It's an open question whether new, yet-to-be-announced board members will have enough power to rein in Gates's "manic energy," the second person said. But there's also some optimism that a new governance structure could bring balance to the organization, the third person said.
Nati Harnik/AP Images
Gates and French Gates put intense pressure on employees to find solutions for a myriad of global issues, the first person said. Gates, for example, wants the foundation to find cures for Polio and Malaria before he dies, and frequently chides directors for lacking progress on these fronts. Gates, one employee said, is known to send 3 a.m. emails and employees are expected to respond.
A Gates Foundation spokesperson said the organization has offices across multiple time zones and both Gates and French Gates regularly send emails to leadership, and recipients can choose when to reply.
"The pressure started to intensify after the divorce [announcement] and is even worse after Buffett left," that person said.
Though Buffett expressed his support for CEO Suzman, the abruptness of his departure left employees wondering if there was more to story than Buffett simply ending his "physical participation," as he described in his resignation letter.
"The rumor is he was not happy with Bill and Melinda, and he just said, 'If you two are not together, what am I doing here?" that person said. A representative for Buffett has yet to respond to a request for comment.
Uncertainty stemming from the divorce has coincided with the period in the Foundations' annual planning process that usually sees a lot of staff movement. The employees Insider spoke to, who represent just a small percentage of the 1,700-person organization, said there is a widening sense that people are starting to keep their eyes open for new opportunities.
So far, the most high-profile departure is legal director Ruth Atherton, who worked on the Foundation's vaccine efforts. Atherton left the foundation on July 16 for a chief legal officer role at another non-profit, according to an email sent to staffers.
In an emailed statement, Atherton told Insider that her departure "had nothing to do with any changes at the foundation or its leadership nor any dissatisfaction with any part of the foundation."
"The foundation has been extraordinary supportive and I feel privileged and proud to have worked to contribute to the foundation's mission for the past 9 years. My confidence in the foundation's ability to achieve impact for people most in need globally remains extremely high," she said.
Staffers are regularly surveyed on how they feel about the organization, and Suzman frequently sends out emails "trying to keep everybody calm," an employee said.
The Foundation announced in July that Gates and French Gates will stay on as co-chairs for the next two years, but said that French Gates will step down after that if the couple can't work together. Though Suzman has assured employees that French Gates intends to stay, the employees described growing concern inside of the organization that the divorce could ultimately fracture the Foundation's priorities.
Though the division is informal, employees said Gates appears to focus more on global health, which does research and development to find new products and new technologies. He's also concerned with climate change and finding cures for diseases to promote his legacy, the people said.
YouTube/TED
French Gates is seen as focusing more on global development, which works on getting products and technologies to people and improving global economies, employees said. She also focuses on the gender equity programs and US programs focused on education, they said.
A Gates Foundation spokesperson said both Gates and French Gates are co-chairs are engaged on all foundation work and strategies, including its recent pledge to spend $2.1 billion on gender-equality work over five years.
"Both Bill and Melinda have their own priorities and that's just creating some stress, some confusion, and some chaos," one of the employees said.
Here's the full statement a Gates Foundation spokesperson sent regarding internal questions about the future of the organization:
"Our work at the foundation is focused on creating a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy and productive life. Each action we take is towards that end, including in our efforts to reduce infectious diseases, eliminate poverty, and improve U.S. public education. The past months have understandably raised questions for employees, which is why we are committed to sharing transparently our plans for governance changes that will ensure the foundation is best equipped to tackle the complexity of global challenges that lie ahead over the long-term."
Are you a current or former employee at The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation? Contact reporter Becky Peterson at bpeterson@insider.com or DM her on Twitter at @beckpeterson. Encrypted messaging available upon request. Contact reporter Ashley Stewart via encrypted messaging app Signal (+1-425-344-8242) or email (astewart@businessinsider.com).
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