BALTIMORE, July 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- T. Rowe Price Group
(NASDAQ-GS: TROW) today announced that Bill Stromberg, chair of the Board of
Directors, chief executive officer (CEO), and chair of the firm's
Management Committee, will retire from his roles at the company on
December 31, 2021, after 35 years at
the firm. He will continue to serve on the Board as non-executive
chair.
CEO Succession Plan
Effective January 1, 2022, Rob
Sharps, T. Rowe Price's
current president, head of Investments, group chief investment
officer (CIO), and a member of the firm's Management Committee,
will succeed Mr. Stromberg. Mr. Sharps will become president and
CEO and take over as chair of the Management Committee. He will
also join the Board of Directors at that time.
Alan D. Wilson, T. Rowe Price's lead independent director, said:
"Bill has been a remarkable leader and highly effective CEO. He has
deftly navigated the firm through a period of significant change
and disruption in the industry. Under his leadership, significant
investments in our investment, distribution, product, operations,
technology, and corporate function teams have helped the company
deliver strong results for clients and take advantage of strong
markets to grow assets under management, revenues, earnings, and
dividends. Bill has fostered a culture that continues to
differentiate us in the marketplace and is central to our long-term
success. He is a selfless leader who has championed diversity,
equity, and inclusion and led the company with compassion
throughout his tenure, including over the course of the
pandemic.
"Rob's appointment as CEO is the culmination of a thoughtful and
planned transition and is a testament to the confidence we have in
him as a steward of our culture and the right leader to guide T.
Rowe Price through its next chapter
of growth. He is broadly respected and admired by his peers as a
clear strategic thinker who quickly gets to the heart of issues,
thinks through solutions, and brings out the best in his teams. As
we execute our strategic priorities amid a rapidly evolving
business environment, Rob's proven leadership abilities; investment
track record; and commitment to our clients, our people, and our
core values make him uniquely qualified to lead the firm. We are
excited about Rob's new role and his ability to position us as a
premier global active asset manager that delivers value to clients
and attractive returns to stockholders over the long term."
Mr. Stromberg added, "Over the course of my 20-year partnership
with Rob, he has consistently demonstrated his abilities as a
talented investor, a principled decision-maker, and an accessible
and impactful leader of people and processes. With Rob at the helm,
supported by the rest of our exceptional Management Committee and
our dedicated associates around the world, T. Rowe Price could not be in better hands, and we
are excited about our path forward."
Mr. Sharps is a 24-year veteran of the firm and an astute
investor whose role and influence have broadened significantly in
recent years as he has taken a more active role in corporate
strategy, product development, key client relationships, and other
enterprise initiatives. As head of Investments and group CIO, Mr.
Sharps has also become increasingly immersed in all facets of
Investments, partnering with other leaders to develop and expand
teams, capabilities, and new strategies. Previously, he was co-head
of Global Equity, the longtime portfolio manager of the US
Large-Cap Growth Equity Strategy, and portfolio manager of the
former US Growth & Income Equity Strategy (now, US Large-Cap
Core Equity Strategy). Mr. Sharps joined T. Rowe Price in 1997 as an equity analyst.
Mr. Sharps stated: "I am honored to be the next CEO of T.
Rowe Price and am grateful for the
confidence that both Bill and the Board have placed in me. I also
want to thank Bill for his leadership and continued counsel as
non-executive chair. Bill's commitment to the values and principles
of the firm, and his contributions to our clients, associates, and
stockholders, have been truly extraordinary and his impact will be
long-lasting. T. Rowe Price is well
positioned to execute on significant opportunities ahead, and I am
excited to lead our business forward and continue helping our
clients achieve their financial goals."
Additional Key Leadership Transitions
Additionally, T.
Rowe Price today announced the
following leadership transitions:
Céline Dufétel, chief operating officer (COO), chief
financial officer (CFO), and treasurer, will be stepping down from
her roles, effective July 31, 2021,
to assume a leadership position with a fintech company. She will
serve in an advisory role with T. Rowe
Price until August 31, 2021,
to ensure a seamless transition. Jen
Dardis, currently head of Finance, will become CFO and
treasurer and join the Management Committee, effective August 1, 2021. Ms. Dufétel's COO
responsibilities will transition on an interim basis to
Robert Higginbotham, a member
of the firm's Management Committee and head of Global Distribution
who also has oversight responsibility for Global Product.
Eric Veiel, currently
co-head of Global Equity, head of U.S. Equity, and chair of the
U.S. Equity Steering Committee (ESC), will become head of Global
Equity, effective January 1, 2022. At
that time, Josh Nelson,
currently associate head of U.S. Equity, will become head of U.S.
Equity and chair of the U.S. ESC and will join the Management
Committee.
Mr. Stromberg stated: "On behalf of everyone at T. Rowe Price, I want to thank Céline for her many
contributions, particularly her roles guiding our financial
activities, executing our strategic initiatives, and improving our
operational capabilities.
"As leader of the firm's finance and strategy functions, Jen is
a natural successor to Céline as CFO. She has made tremendous
contributions to our organization in her 15-year tenure, including
partnering with the Management Committee to refresh the firm's
strategy. Jen has also successfully led strategic reviews of our
key businesses and strengthened our financial planning and analysis
capabilities—positioning these teams as critical partners to the
business, more effectively connecting firm strategy and business
plans with our budgets and increasing financial discipline. With a
deep understanding of all aspects of the company, she is well
prepared to provide strong financial stewardship and take this next
step to CFO.
"A proven and trusted leader, Eric has an unwavering commitment
to investment excellence and has sustained our performance-driven
culture while evolving our business to leverage the benefits of
scale. He is an innovative thinker whose leadership has been
essential to many significant strategic initiatives within our
Investments divisions. He is also well respected for his focus on
diversity, equity, and inclusion, and for the increasingly global
perspective he brings both to Investments and to decisions
regarding the strategic direction of the firm.
"Josh has been increasingly influential across U.S. Equity and
is well prepared for his new role. He has had a significant impact
on our clients and on our investment teams and processes and brings
a combination of investment credibility, a calm demeanor, and a
natural ability to build trusting relationships that has enabled
him to effectively partner with directors of research, portfolio
managers, and our analyst teams."
Conference Call Information
Management of T. Rowe Price,
including Mr. Stromberg, Mr. Sharps, Ms. Dardis, and Mr.
Higginbotham, will host a live audio webcast today at 10:30 a.m. eastern time to discuss the management
transitions. Access to the webcast will be available via the firm's
Investor Relations website at troweprice.gcs-web.com/events. A
replay will be available shortly after the conclusion of the
meeting and archived online for a period of one year.
EXECUTIVE BIOS
Bill
Stromberg is the chief executive officer of T.
Rowe Price and chair of the firm's
Board of Directors and Management Committee. He also served as
president until February 2021, and
previously he was head of Equity, head of U.S. Equity, director of
Equity Research, and a portfolio manager of the US Structured
Research Equity and US Dividend Growth Strategies. Mr. Stromberg
joined T. Rowe Price in 1987 as an
equity investment analyst after serving as a summer intern the
previous year. Prior to this, he was employed by Westinghouse
Defense as a systems engineer. Mr. Stromberg earned a B.A. in
engineering from Johns Hopkins
University and an M.B.A. from Dartmouth
College, Tuck School of Business. He also has earned the
Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.
Rob Sharps is
president, head of Investments, and group chief investment officer.
He is chair of the Investment Management Steering Committee and
serves on the firm's Management, International Equity Steering,
U.S. Equity Steering, Fixed Income Steering, Asset Allocation, and
Product Strategy Committees. Mr. Sharps was the longtime lead
portfolio manager of the institutional US Large-Cap Growth Equity
Strategy. He joined the firm in 1997 as an analyst specializing in
financial services stocks, including banks, asset managers, and
securities brokers. Mr. Sharps began his career in 1993 as a senior
management consultant at KPMG Peat Marwick, where he focused on
corporate transactions, before leaving to pursue his M.B.A. He
earned a B.S., summa cum laude, in accounting from Towson University and an M.B.A. in finance from The
Wharton School, University of
Pennsylvania. He also has earned the Chartered Financial
Analyst® designation.
Jen Dardis is the
head of Finance, overseeing Corporate Strategy, Financial Planning
& Analysis, the Controller's Group, Global Tax, Procurement,
and Investor Relations. She joined T. Rowe
Price in 2006 in a corporate strategy role and became head
of Corporate Strategy in 2016. Previously, Ms. Dardis held
positions at Constellation Energy in investor relations, Energy
Merchant in finance and business development, and SG Cowen in
mergers and acquisitions. She earned a B.A. in economics from the
College of William & Mary and an
M.B.A. from the University of Virginia,
Darden School of Business.
Eric Veiel is co-head
of Global Equity, head of U.S. Equity, chair of the U.S. Equity
Steering Committee, and a member of the Management Committee. He
also serves on the firm's Investment Management Steering,
Multi-Asset Steering, Product Strategy, and ESG Committees. Mr.
Veiel was previously co-director of Equity Research for
North America, co-portfolio
manager of the US Structured Research Equity Strategy, portfolio
manager of the Financial Services Equity Strategy, and financial
services sector team leader. He has 22 years of investment
experience, 16 of which have been with T. Rowe Price. Mr. Veiel joined the firm in 2005 as
an equity analyst after serving as a senior equity analyst at
Wachovia Securities. He earned a B.B.A., magna cum laude, in
finance from James Madison University
and an M.B.A., with concentrations in finance and accounting, from
Washington University, John M. Olin School of Business. He also has
earned the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.
Josh Nelson is
associate head of U.S. Equity and a member of the U.S. Equity
Steering and Research Governance Oversight Committees. He
previously served as a director of research for North America, co-portfolio manager of the US
Structured Research Equity Strategy, associate portfolio manager
for the Global Focused Growth Equity Strategy, and an equity
research analyst. Mr. Nelson has 19 years of investment experience,
14 of which have been with T. Rowe
Price. He joined the firm in 2007 after serving as a summer
intern the previous year. Prior to this, Mr. Nelson was an
investment banker at Citigroup Global Markets. He earned a B.S.,
with honors, in industrial and systems engineering from the
University of Florida and an M.B.A.,
with honors, in finance from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Robert
Higginbotham is head of Global Distribution and a
member of the Management Committee who also has oversight
responsibility for Global Product. He is chair of T. Rowe Price
International and a number of other T. Rowe
Price entities globally. Prior to joining T. Rowe Price in 2012 as head of Global
Institutional Services, Mr. Higginbotham was CEO for the
Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Latin
America businesses of Fidelity International, where he had
broad responsibility for the asset management business, including
distribution and the global operations and technology platforms.
Previously he served in a variety of UK, European, and global
leadership roles at Schroders. He earned a B.A., with honors, in
geography from the University of Sheffield and a master's degree in business
from Imperial College London.
Other Matters
Certain statements in this news release may represent
"forward-looking information," including those relating to the
timing of management transitions and director elections. For a
discussion concerning risks and other factors that could affect
future results, see the firm's 2020 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
About T. Rowe Price
Founded in 1937, Baltimore-based
T. Rowe Price (troweprice.com) is a
global investment management organization with $1.62 trillion in assets under management as of
June 30, 2021. The organization
provides a broad array of mutual funds, subadvisory services, and
separate account management for individual and institutional
investors, retirement plans, and financial intermediaries. The
company also offers a variety of sophisticated investment planning
and guidance tools. T. Rowe Price's
disciplined, risk-aware investment approach focuses on
diversification, style consistency, and fundamental research.
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SOURCE T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.