Exxon investors reject proposal to split top jobs

By Michael Erman

DALLAS (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) shareholders on Wednesday rejected a proposal by dissident investors, including Rockefeller family members, that urged Exxon to hire an independent chairman to lead its board.

Over 60 percent of the shares voted at Exxon's annual meeting opposed the proposal recommending Exxon split its chairman and chief executive jobs, both of which are held by Rex Tillerson. Dissident shareholders have been critical of Exxon's lack of investment in alternative energy.

About 39.5 percent of the shares voted were in favor of the proposal, down from 40 percent last year.

Members of the Rockefeller family backed the call for change at the top of Exxon, closely tied to the family's vast fortune since John D. Rockefeller founded the Standard Oil Co, Exxon's precursor, in 1870, although no Rockefeller has served on the board of Exxon or of a predecessor company since 1911.

With oil hovering at around $130 a barrel and gas prices soaring, oil companies have become targets for criticism from lawmakers and consumer groups. They have also been targeted by environmentalists and shareholder activists who worry that the companies' promotion of fossil fuels will worsen global warming.

During the meeting, Tillerson made an effort to promote Exxon's environmental record, speaking at length about the company's efforts to lower its "environmental footprint."

Still, he made clear that Exxon's focus would stay true to its highly profitable past.

"Continuing to do everything we can to supply oil and natural gas is the core of our business. That's what we have been doing for 125 years and in my view we do it better than anyone else," Tillerson said at a press conference after the meeting.

"We're not going to abandon that when we know that is a requirement society has in the future," he said.

Exxon rival Chevron Corp (CVX.N) faced similar questions at its annual meeting on Wednesday in San Ramon, California, where shareholders and activists peppered the company with questions about its environmental and human rights record.

BOOM TO BUST?

Exxon recorded two of the largest-ever corporate profits in history in 2006 and 2007. Still, some shareholders have argued that the company's lack of investments in alternative energy could leave the world's largest publicly traded company behind its competitors.

Dissidents have also criticized the company for having a monolithic corporate culture, which prevents it from moving in new and innovative directions.

"Today's vote makes it clear that Exxon Mobil must respect the views of the shareholders and take account of the changing world outside the doors of its executive suite," Rockefeller family representatives Peter O'Neill and Neva Rockefeller Goodwin said in a statement.

"We are pleased to have played a role in sending a wake-up call to Exxon Mobil's management and its board of directors," they said.