Steve Booth is Chairman & Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of directors of Baird Financial Group and affiliated entities including Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated. Steve joined Baird’s Investment Banking group in 1994, went on to lead its Industrial and Global M&A teams and, in 2004, became head of Investment Banking, a position he held until January 2014. He was named Chief Operating Officer of Baird in early 2013, became President & COO in 2014, President & CEO in 2016, and Chairman & CEO in 2021.
Prior to joining Baird, Steve was at Kidder, Peabody & Co. in its Chicago Corporate Finance Office. Steve received his MBA degree from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance and a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Southern Methodist University. He serves on the Board of Directors of The Water Council, the United Performing Arts Fund, United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Carmen School of Science and Technology, American Securities Association and RiverFront Investment Group, LLC. Steve also serves on the Executive Board of Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences at SMU, the Executive Board of the Cox School of Business at SMU, and the Board of Regents of the Milwaukee School of Engineering. In 2022, Steve was named Wisconsin Business Leader of the Year by the Harvard Business School Club of Wisconsin and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
FIRM PROFILE
Baird is an international financial services firm providing Private Wealth Management, Trust, Asset Management, Investment Banking, Capital Markets and Private Equity services.
Founded in 1919 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Baird’s financial advice and expertise has helped guide clients through changing market cycles and unexpected events across generations. Being privately held has enabled us to grow and manage our firm responsibly, from a position of enduring financial strength and with a long-term focus on the best interests of our clients, our associates and the communities we share. We have expanded into new markets and lines of business only where and when we know we can serve those clients well. Today Baird serves the investment and financial planning needs of individuals, families, small businesses, foundations, schools and other public entities throughout the United States as well as corporations and institutional investors around the world. And, because we are employee-owned, our clients can trust that we all share a personal stake in the successes we strive to help them achieve.
At Baird we believe the global financial capabilities and expertise you want shouldn’t come at the expense of the personal service and commitment you deserve. That’s just one of the things that makes Baird different from other firms in our industry. And it’s because every decision we’ve made for more than 100 years – from the way we’ve structured our firm to the businesses we choose to be in – has been driven by our founding cultural principle: Clients Come First.
Being privately held and employee owned lets us focus on your financial needs – not the short-term expectations of outside shareholders. This enables us to think and plan for the long-term, consistently reinvesting in our capabilities, expertise and technology to best serve you. It’s part of what makes us a workplace of choice for top talent from across our industry. It reinforces the foundation of our uniquely collaborative, clients-first culture because we all understand our collective reputation and resources are on the line every day. And it ensures we all share a meaningful, personal stake in the successes we strive to create for you.
