The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has announced the appointment of three new board members as part of an effort to strengthen the organization's governance and increase the independence of its board.

The first board members from outside the Gates family since Berkshire Hathaway chair and CEO Warren Buffett resigned from the board in June 2021 are Strive Masiyiwa, Minouche Shafik, and Tom Tierney. Masiyiwa, a telecom billionaire and philanthropist from Zimbabwe, is a signatory to the Giving Pledge, which Buffett co-founded with the Gateses. Shafik, who is director of the London School of Economics, has worked with the foundation in her previous positions at the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Bank of England, and the UK government’s development agency. And Tierney is co-chair of the Bridgespan Group, which has advised the Gates Foundation.

Changes to the foundation’s structure had been under discussion since last spring, after Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates announced that they were ending their marriage but would continue to serve as co-chairs and trustees; the foundation announced the decision to expand the number of trustees in July 2021. Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman also will join the board, which can include up to nine members, and the foundation is considering appointing additional members to enhance representation across gender, geography, and expertise.

“I have had the privilege of working with each of [the trustees] in different capacities over the years and know they will bring integrity and insight to our shared mission of creating a world where every person has the chance to live a healthy, productive life,” Suzman wrote in his first annual letter. “Bill, Melinda, and I will be actively looking to our new board members to help us be even more rigorous and focused so we can meet our mission and avoid the pitfalls” Buffett called the “ABC” risks of decay that all very large organizations face: arrogance, bureaucracy, and complacency.

In the letter, Suzman also looked back over the foundation’s accomplishments as well as efforts to define its evolving role. “While diversifying and strengthening our partnerships is one important step to increasing our impact, we also need to sharpen our view as to where and how we can add the most value,” he wrote. “What is the distinctive role of philanthropic capital compared to private or public capital in addressing challenges like health and education?”

“The scale of our giving must be matched by a deep sense of responsibility in how we distribute it, making sure those resources are stewarded and deployed as effectively as possible,” wrote Suzman. “That means staying focused on what matters—not the money out the door but the impact, which we measure in lives saved and opportunities provided for the poorest and most marginalized to achieve their full potential.”

(Photo credit: Marc Smith via Flickr)