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Get your resumes in!

Warren Buffett is hiring his replacement:

With Mr. Munger's help, Mr. Buffett will whittle down the current contenders to about 20 "real possibilities," he says, adding that he'll start reading the letters in earnest after Berkshire's annual shareholders' meeting next weekend. From those 20, he will ask for personal investment records going back at least 10 years. Then, after determining whether "the general attitude toward purchase and sale of securities is compatible" with Berkshire, he will fill the job with either one or two people. He plans to hand them up to $10 billion to manage until it is time for them to take over the entire portfolio.

Mr. Buffett explains that the purpose of the trial run is "to see if their decision-making apparatus works out, hopefully while I'm still alive."

What it isn't, however, is a mentorship program, something many applicants have misinterpreted. He says he isn't looking for someone to teach, but "for someone who already knows how to do it."

The misunderstanding is reflected in dozens of letters from students, professional investors and a surprising number of engineers and lawyers hoping to be apprenticed to the master. "I assure you," wrote one 20-year-old college student, "although I may be short on experience, I am very long on potential." A lawyer in Oregon recommended his four-year-old son, characterizing the toddler as a "great negotiator" on issues such as "bedtime, chores, allowance, baths, etc."

Posted by edelfenbein at April 30, 2007 8:13 AM