Banking and Finance
Chairman and CEO
Baird |Â Milwaukee
Steve Booth leads Baird, a Milwaukee-based international financial services company that posted record revenues of $3.4 billion last year. With roughly 4,700 employees, it is the second-largest investment management firm in the area. Booth also serves on the boards of The Water Council, United Performing Arts Fund, United Way of Greater Milwaukee &Â Waukesha County, and Carmen Schools of Science and Technology.
Education: Bachelor’s, Southern Methodist University; MBA, Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University
What was your first job, and what did you learn from it?
"My first professional job was working at the biggest commercial bank in Texas in the 1980s. For five years, I had a front row seat in the boom and bust of oil and gas followed by commercial real estate. I learned that the highs are too high and the lows are too low - and both the highs and lows tend to go on for longer than expected. Throughout the balance of my career, I believe my Texas experiences were really helpful to how I considered subsequent market cycles."
What piece of advice has had the ore significant impact on your career?
"(Former Baird chairman and CEO, the late) Paul Purcell, one of my mentors, had a great deal of wisdom and a huge impact on my career. One piece of advice he gave has been really instrumental: Strategy is not only what you do, but just as importantly, what you intentionally don’t do. I’d say some of Baird’s best decisions have been the things we decided not to do – which at times were controversial and contrary to conventional wisdom since many of our competitors were doing them."
What are some of your favorite destinations/places to visit?
"I really enjoy going to the U.K. and Ireland with friends and family to play golf. I just got back from a trip to Ireland with seven good friends and it was a reminder of how great these trips and shared experiences are. Similarly, probably my favorite family trip was taking my oldest son (along with friends) over to Scotland several years ago to play golf after he graduated from high school. We got to play the Old Course at St. Andrews and I have a great memory as he was about to tee off on #17 (perhaps the most famous golf hole in the world - known as 'the Road Hole'). He looked at all of us just before starting his backswing and said 'I’ve been waiting my entire life to hit this shot…' I’ll never forget that moment (and his drive which was awesome!)."Â
What’s your hobby/passion?
"Golf. I truly love the game and I love playing it on beautiful and a seemingly unlimited number of unique golf courses."
What would people be surprised to learn about you (fun fact)?
"I was drummer in a rock band when I was a kid growing up in the Chicago area - a couple of the other guys were pretty good and we actually played a fair amount of gigs. I think we changed our name three or four times over the few years we were together, which is a pain for the drummer because then you had to buy a new cover for the front of your bass drum and paint the name on it. Fortunately, my family moved to Florida when I was 14 and my budding musical career ended somewhat abruptly. I still have a drum set in my basement, but it has collected a lot of dust."
What was your first car? How long did you drive it for?
"Just before I started college, my dad and I bought a very well used 1978 Cutlass Supreme from Hertz. We spent a lot of time together fixing it up – including repainting most of the trim and installing a sound system. I drove it all the way through college and it was awesome. I think we all love our first cars."
What advice would you give to a young professional?
"It seems pretty basic but I advise young people to focus on being really, really good at their job. In terms of how, I say by consistently exceeding (the highest) expectations - in effect, surprising and delighting their clients and managers on a regular basis. How they actually do that is up to them - having a curiosity about what you are doing (and why) will typically help, but effort and passion are really the greatest differentiators at the end of the day."
What has been your/your company’s most significant success over the last 12 months?
"A significant success is that Hefren-Tillotson, a privately held, full-service wealth management firm with a nearly 75-year legacy in Pittsburgh, agreed to join Baird as a wholly owned subsidiary. Hefren-Tillotson has very high market share and brand awareness in Pittsburgh, comparable to Baird’s in Milwaukee in fact. They could have easily remained independent or partnered with anyone in our industry - and they selected us. They did so because we embody similar client-first cultures, are both dedicated to being truly great places to work - with Baird being committed to remaining privately held and employee owned so we never lose focus on those things that matter most."Â
What is the biggest risk you have ever taken?
"In 1994, I (together with a small group of others) left the Chicago office of Kidder, Peabody & Co., an established investment banking firm, to join Baird, which had a small investment banking operation. People believed I/we were taking a huge risk to leave Kidder and shortly thereafter, I took another significant risk by moving my family to Milwaukee. But I personally viewed it as relatively low risk because our group from Kidder had some really extraordinary people, including Paul Purcell (who went on to be Baird’s CEO). We had a great deal of trust and confidence in each other as well as Baird’s then CEO Fred Kasten. It honestly could not have worked out better."
