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Longtime State Farm CEO Stepping Down

State Farm

State Farm Insurance Cos. says Chief Operating Officer Michael Tipsord will become the private company's next CEO in September and its first new leader since the mid-1980s.  

In a statement Thursday, the Bloomington-based company said Tipsord will take over for CEO Ed Rust Jr. Rust has been CEO since 1985. The 64-year-old Rust will remain chairman of the company's board. 

According to The Pantagraph in Bloomington, Rust said Tipsord has a deep understanding of the insurance marketplace developed over a 27-year career with State Farm. Rust credited Tipsord for working with him as a partner leading the company.  

Tipsord called the time he's spent working with Rust ``a privilege.''  

State Farm is one of the country's largest insurance companies and Bloomington's biggest employer with about 15,000 employees. 

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