Ronald James Kruszewski is an American business executive. Kruszewski is the

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

, and former

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Stifel Stifel Financial Corp. is an American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company created under the Stifel name in July 1983 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange on November 24, 1986. Its predecessor company wa ...

. Earlier in his career, he was a

Certified Public Accountant Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United Stat ...

and audit supervisor for

KPMG KPMG is a multinational professional services network, based in London, United Kingdom. As one of the Big Four accounting firms, along with Ernst & Young (EY), Deloitte, and PwC. KPMG is a network of firms in 145 countries with 275,288 emplo ...

, and later a

chief financial officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...

for Robert W. Baird & Co. Kruszewski was appointed to serve on the

Federal Advisory Council The Federal advisory council or (FAC) is a body composed of representatives chosen by each of the twelve Federal Reserve Banks that "consults with and advises the Board Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid materi ...

by the board of the

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is one of 12 Federal Reserve System, regional Reserve Banks that, along with the Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., make up the United States' central bank. Missouri is the only state to have two main ...

in 2013. He has served on the boards of the

Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association A security is a tradable financial asset. The term commonly refers to any form of financial instrument, but its legal definition varies by jurisdiction. In some countries and languages people commonly use the term "security" to refer to any for ...

Saint Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Missi ...

, and the St. Louis Regional Chamber, among other organizations. He won the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2007 and was recognized by the

Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans is a nonprofit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia, that was founded in 1947 to promote and ensure the American Dream for future generations, honor the achievements of outstanding Am ...

in 2019.

Early life and education

Kruszewski was born in Crumstown, Indiana, in 1958. He was the second of four children raised in a

blue-collar A blue-collar worker is a person who performs manual labor or skilled trades. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involve manufacturing, retail, warehousing, mining, carpentry, electrical work, custodia ...

family. Of Jewish origin, his father was a

barber A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a barbershop or the barber's. Barbershops have been noted places of social interaction and public discourse ...

, and later a

firefighter A firefighter (or fire fighter or fireman) is a first responder trained in specific emergency response such as firefighting, primarily to control and extinguish fires and respond to emergencies such as hazardous material incidents, medical in ...

and owner of a

lawn mowing A lawn mower (also known as a grass cutter or simply mower, also often spelled lawnmower) is a device utilizing one or more revolving blades (or a reel) to cut a grass surface to an even height. The height of the cut grass may be fixed by the ...

business, and his mother was a devout Catholic who raised the family at home. During high school, Kruszewski worked as a

busser In North America, a busser, sometimes known as a busboy or busgirl, is a person in the restaurant and catering industry clearing tables, taking dirty dishes to the dishwasher, setting tables, refilling and otherwise assisting the waiting sta ...

at his aunt's restaurant, assisted with his father's lawn mowing business, and sold women's shoes. He was the first in his family to attend college, which he funded by mowing lawns and working as a

bouncer A bouncer (also known as a door supervisor) is a type of security guard, employed at licensed or sanctioned venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, strip clubs and casinos. A bouncer's duties are to provide security, to check legal ag ...

. He received an accounting and finance degree with honors from

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...

in 1980.

Career

After graduating from university, Kruszewski became a

and joined

as an audit supervisor. Wanting to enter the

investment banking Investment banking is an advisory-based financial service for institutional investors, corporations, governments, and similar clients. Traditionally associated with corporate finance, such a bank might assist in raising financial capital by und ...

industry, he relocated to Chicago and started working for Illinois Company Investment as a senior vice president and

. He then became chief financial officer of strategic planning for Robert W. Baird & Co. He was mentored by the firm's

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

, Fred Kasten, who later helped him earn the CEO position at Stifel Financial Corporation. Kruszewski is the current

and chief executive officer of Stifel. His tenure began in 1997 when he succeeded

George Herbert Walker III George Herbert Walker III (March 16, 1931 – January 18, 2020) was an American businessman, diplomat and philanthropist. Walker served as the United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2003 to 2006. He was a first cousin of President George H. W. ...

; among his first actions was implementing the company's wealth accumulation plan as an

employee benefit Employment is a relationship between two party (law), parties Regulation, regulating the provision of paid Labour (human activity), labour services. Usually based on a employment contract, contract, one party, the employer, which might be a cor ...

. Since then, the company has grown significantly by completing a series of acquisitions during the 2000s and 2010s. Kruszewski has voiced his opposition to the

United States Department of Labor The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governing occupational safety and health, wage and hour standards, unemp ...

's proposed fiduciary rules intended to keep investment brokers from providing conflicted advice because of their potential impact to the company's fee structure. Kruszewski is the longest serving chief executive of the major banks.

Board service and recognition

Kruszewski was executive chairman of Angelica Corporation and the Downtown St. Louis Partnership. He was appointed to serve on the

by the board of the

in late 2013. He was re-appointed in late 2014 and early 2019. Kruszewski is the chairman of the American Securities Association and Downtown Now!, and serves as a board member of Concordance Academy, the

, and the St. Louis Regional Chamber. He is currently on the board of trustees for

and the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Team Foundation. He is a member of St. Louis' Regional Business Council and the local chapter of the World Presidents' Organization. Kruszewski received an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the financial services category in 2007. In 2008, '' St. Louis Magazine'' credited him for helping the city,

The Cordish Companies The Cordish Companies (previously The Cordish Company) is a U.S.-based real estate development and entertainment operating company with its headquarters on the 6th floor of the Pratt Street Power Plant in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded ...

, and

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

president Bill DeWitt III come to an agreement to fund St. Louis Ballpark Village. Kruszewski appeared on the cover of ''St. Louis Commerce Magazine'' alongside three other executives in 2011. In 2019, he was one of 13 recipients of the Horatio Alger Award, an honor presented by the

to recognize the achievements of outstanding Americans who have succeeded in spite of adversity.

Personal life

In 2012, Kruszewski won the Dancing with the St. Louis Stars competition, a benefit for the

Independence Center Independence Center is a shopping mall located in Independence, Missouri. Anchor stores are Dick's Sporting Goods and Dillard's with two vacant anchors last occupied by Macy's and Sears. History The mall opened in 1974. Its three departmen ...

sponsored by Stifel. He served as a judge for the 2013 competition.

References

External links

Ronald James Kruszewski, 60
at ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

''
Ronald J. Kruszewski
at ''

The Wall Street Transcript ''The Wall Street Transcript'' is a paid subscription publication and Web site that publishes bi-weekly industry reports that feature equity analyst, money manager and CEO interviews. Reports typically cover two to three industries and express ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Kruszewski, Ronald American chief executives Kelley School of Business alumni Indiana University Bloomington alumni 21st-century American businesspeople American accountants American chief financial officers KPMG people Businesspeople from Indiana 1958 births Living people