- Billionaire CEOs like Tim Cook and Satya Nadella are part of a growing list of ultra-rich leaders who didn’t create a company or a product—but earned their wealth through their leadership. These “hired-hand billionaires” rose by some 60% in the last year, according to Forbes.
Many of the world’s richest people—including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg—are known for the companies they founded and lead. For these billionaires, good business ideas, fueled by market buzz, were rewarded with a 10-figure payday.
However, paving a path toward a high net worth may have more to do with who you know—and the high-paying role they offer. Today, there are a record 48 billionaires who amassed their wealth largely by just being very well-paid employees: a group that Forbes coined as “hired-hand billionaires.” This number is up from just 29 last year, representing a 60% increase—thanks in part to rising stock prices and record-setting executive pay packages.
Among the list of non-founder billionaires are names now synonymous with the successful companies they lead, including Apple’s Tim Cook, JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon, and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella. Even though they weren’t start-up innovators, they show that playing your cards right in business can lead to huge career and salary wins.
Growing CEO packages are increasing the number of billionaires
Despite some executives’ fears about being replaced by AI, companies are not pulling back the compensation packages for their top leaders. The median CEO compensation was $25.6 million in 2024—a 9.5% increase from the previous year’s $23.7 million average, according to executive intelligence company Equilar.
Non-founders like Cook and Nadella receive substantial pay packages, with their annual compensation reaching over $70 million, and Cook himself recently receiving an 18% raise. Even lesser known CEOs—like Coherent’s James Robert Anderson and Starbucks’s Brian Niccol—both receive record-breaking executive compensation packages of about $100 million.
The growing challenges of being chief executive—alongside rising share prices—are only likely to boost executive pay packages, expanding the number of non-founder billionaires.
Want to become a billionaire? Start building those connections
The path to a high-paying job in the C-suite cannot be achieved overnight—for the vast majority of billionaires, it took years of hard work before they became close to being part of the 1%. However, the rise of non-founder billionaires could be good news for those aspiring for wealth, but aren’t as sold on start-up culture.
With the CEO role not necessarily being a job you can simply apply for on LinkedIn, it’s more important than ever to build meaningful connections in the business world. If your sights are set on an eight-figure compensation package, picking the right people might be one of the best secrets in business, according to billionaire Warren Buffett.
“Figure out what your strengths are and then pick the right people and don’t be afraid of making mistakes,” he told CBS News.
Buffett, who is known for his relationship with the late Charlie Munger, is now set to pass the baton to Greg Abel, who’s likely to soon find a spot on the list of non-founder billionaires.