Schwab Out As WEF Chair

Your order of Mashed Cricket Surprise may be a little delayed. Oh, it will get here. There is just a small problem in the kitchen at the moment since the head chef just quit.

In a move that will likely amount to virtually nothing, Klaus Schwab has announced he is stepping down as chairman of the World Economic Forum, a group he founded and has helmed for over fifty years. Schwab did not give a precise timeline, but he will officially vacate his position sometime in January 2027. Schwab's announcement comes on the heels of an investigation into accusations of discrimination against black people and women.

The Wall Street Journal reported:

In recent weeks, the Forum has been shaking up its leadership after the board received the findings of an investigation into the organization’s workplace culture. The investigation was prompted by a Wall Street Journal article last year that revealed allegations by employees of discrimination against women and Black people at the Forum, which is based in Geneva.

Schwab and the WEF originally denied any allegations of wrongdoing, but CEO Børge Brende refused to substantiate the findings but said that the organization would address the issues that had been raised. In a memo, Brende said, “Over these past months, we have taken time—time to pause, to listen, and to reflect. This period of reflection has been grounded in a desire not just to do things differently, but to do them better.” Other departures are said to include Schwab's son, Olivier, who had been the organization's managing director, Malte Goberson, who oversaw digital services, and chief legal officer Nicola Port. 

According to Reuters, Schwab said he would delegate his executive duties last year to a team led by Brende. Schwab said it was essential for the WEF to recover its sense of mission following "the turmoil of the last months," while not specifically identifying the turmoil to which he was referring. Of note, the paper cited a Financial Times story in which the WEF claimed that an investigation by an external legal firm found no evidence of any legal violations or anything to substantiate the allegations against Schwab.

Schwab will remain in his position until a replacement is named.

I subscribed to the WEF newsletter, thinking that it might be helpful in keeping tabs on the organization. My hopes were not particularly high, and predictably, anything of substance was located on the other side of a paywall or "membership." Chances are that there was not much of interest on the other side, either. 

At best, "membership" likely only offers a feeling of being an "insider" to those who believe they will somehow be included at the Afterparty in Aspen. After all, the WEF and its yearly gathering at Davos is an elitist organization. Davos takes place at an exclusive ski resort, complete with its own security team and, as reported every year, a retinue of high-end escorts to cater to the needs and proclivities of the high, mighty, and privileged. 

Was there race and sex-based discrimination at the WEF? Obviously, I never saw anything about it in the newsletter, but Brende's comments sound suspiciously like an extremely shaky nolo contendere plea at best. In the end, nothing will change at the WEF, and it will continue to live above and around the laws its members want to leverage on the rest of the world. 

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