By Blake Haas
BLOOMINGTON – For the first time in nearly a decade, State Farm in Bloomington selected the Fortune 500’s next Chief Executive Officer.
State Farm Mutual Board of Directors selected Illinois State University graduate Jon Farney as the next C-E-O to replace retiring CEO Michael Tipsord.
Farney joined State Farm in 1993 after earning his bachelor’s degree from Illinois State University and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
During his tenure, Farney has served in various roles, including assistant vice president, financial operations vice president, and Chief Financial Officer.
“It’s a privilege to follow Michael as CEO of this great company and lead an incredible team of more than 19,000 independent contractor agents and 65,000 employees who are committed every day to serving our customers,” Farney said in a news release. “We’ll push ourselves to continually improve so we’re positioned to help even more people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected, and realize their dreams.”
Tipsord retires from State Farm after helping grow the company from 83 million policies to more than 94 million policies.
“With great minds, good hearts, and wonderful people, there is truly no place like State Farm,” Tipsord told employees Thursday morning. “I know the best days for this amazing organization are yet to come.”
Farney will formally begin his role on June 1.
Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].