Stephen Robert (born June 13, 1940)Who's Who in the Securities Industry. Economist Publishing Company, 1987. p. 75. is an American financial business executive, academic administrator, and philanthropist. He was Chairman and CEO of Oppenheimer & Co. from 1983 to 1997, and Chancellor of Brown University from 1998 to 2007. As a philanthropist, he heads the Source of Hope Foundation, which provides basic services to communities in great need around the world. As a journalist, he has published articles on Israeli–Palestinian relations and on the U.S. economy in major national and international publications.
Early life and education Robert was born in 1940 in Haverhill, Massachusetts. He has stated, "I grew up in a typically Jewish family in New England [...] My father was president of the local synagogue; my mother was president of the local Hadassah.""Critical Conversations on Palestine and Israel 3/5/2015" (video, 27:23–47:45). Brown University. March 5, 2015.
He attended Phillips Exeter Academy, where he graduated in 1958.Moriarty, Genny Beckman. "Stephen Robert". The Exeter Bulletin. Winter 2019. He received a BA in political science from Brown University in 1962. He did post-graduate studies at the London School of Economics (1962–1963) and Columbia Business School (1963–1965).Cuff, Daniel F. "President Becomes Oppenheimer Chief". New York Times. February 16, 1983.
In 2004, Brown University bestowed upon him an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.
Business career Robert began his career in 1965 on Wall Street, as a securities analyst at the investment firm of Faulkner, Dawkins & Sullivan."Business and Finance". Brown Alumni Magazine. November/December 2000.The Brown University News Bureau. "Corporation elects Joukowsky and Robert as chancellor, vice chancellor". News From Brown. February 15, 1997.
In 1968, he began working at the investment bank Oppenheimer & Co. as a portfolio manager, later becoming chief investment officer. He became head of research in 1976. In 1979, he was appointed President, and was positioned for the role of Chairman and CEO, since the company's longterm head, Jack Nash, wished to eventually retire.Sonnenfeld, Jeffrey. The Hero's Farewell: What Happens When CEOs Retire. Oxford University Press, 1991. pp. 202–203. In 1982, during Robert's presidency, Oppenheimer was acquired by Mercantile House Holdings in London, and Robert joined the Mercantile House board of directors.Vartan, Vartanig G. "Big Oppenheimer Deal: Its Sale". New York Times. June 2, 1982.Cuff, Daniel F. "Oppenheimer Names a President for Funds". New York Times. August 18, 1982."Oppenheimer: Our History". Oppenheimer & Co. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
He became Oppenheimer's Chairman and CEO in 1983. In 1986, Robert and Nathan Gantcher, Oppenheimer's president, led a management group that purchased an 82% interest in the company from its parent Mercantile House Holdings.Hicks, Jonathan P.; Schmitt, Eric. "Oppenheimer Officers Share Parallel Paths". New York Times. December 24, 1985. The buyout returned Oppenheimer to private ownership, and Robert became the company's principal owner.Shidler, Lisa. "Joan Khoury gets hired as CMO to revive brand of the other Oppenheimer". RIABiz. January 5, 2016. In 1997, he and Gantcher sold Oppenheimer to the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC),Truell, Peter. "CIBC takes a big step toward a global securities business". New York Times. July 23, 1997.Bloomberg News. "CIBC Wood Gundy to Buy Oppenheimer". Los Angeles Times. July 23, 1997. and Robert resigned from the firm."Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation Elects Stephen Robert to the Board of Trustees". Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. June 18, 2014.
From 2005 to 2009, he was Chairman and CEO of Renaissance Institutional Management, an investment firm that advises high net-worth and institutional investment clients, which is a subsidiary of Renaissance Technologies. He retired in 2009 to focus on philanthropic work.Kouwe, Zachery. "Barclays Executive Moves to Renaissance". New York Times. March 3, 2009."UPDATE 2-MOVES-Renaissance, Fidelity, CastleOak, Oppenheimer". Reuters. March 3, 2009."Matthew H. Scanlan Joins Renaissance Institutional Management as President and CEO". Business Wire. March 3, 2009.
Robert is Chairman and CEO of his own investment firm, Robert Capital Management, based in Manhattan."Robert Capital Management LLC". Bloomberg. Retrieved May 4, 2017.The Brown University News Bureau. "The Stephen Robert Initiative for the Study of Values". News From Brown. May 27, 1999."Honorary Degrees". Brown Alumni Magazine. July/August 2004.
Brown University
Robert was Chancellor of Brown University from 1998 to 2007, having previously been on the university's board of trustees from 1984 to 1994 and on its board of fellows since 1994. He had also been on numerous committees at the university, including the committee on investment, which he chaired from 1986 to 1997.Brown University Office of the Curator. "Portrait Collection: ROBERT, STEPHEN (1940 - )". Library.Brown.edu. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
As Chancellor, he co-launched the Stephen Robert Initiative for the Study of Values, a multi-pronged and ongoing campus initiative to study moral and ethical values and integrate the study of human values into the college curriculum.Phillips, Janet M. Brown University: A Short History. Brown University, 2000. p. 112. He also guided the university through the sudden resignation of its president, E. Gordon Gee, and chaired the 2000 presidential selection committee that named Ruth J. Simmons as Gee's successor."A Week in February". Brown Alumni Magazine. March/April 2000. In 2004 he donated $500,000 to create and endow the Chancellor Stephen Robert Fellowship, a fellowship for graduate students in any discipline."The Chancellor Stephen Robert Fellowship: Chancellor’s Gift Will Support Graduate School Fellowships, Recruitment". Brown University. December 6, 2004.
In 2007, the Brown faculty bestowed on him its highest honor, the Susan Colver Rosenberger Medal, for "specially notable or beneficial achievement". The chair of the faculty executive committee stated, "The Brown faculty is proud to honor the leadership of Stephen Robert. His stewardship has led this university through the many extraordinary accomplishments in pursuit of the Plan for Academic Enrichment, including its emphasis on recruiting the best minds, and recruiting the best scholars.""Chancellor Stephen Robert ’62 Receives Faculty’s Highest Honor". Brown University. May 27, 2007.
In 2007, he also provided the lead gift, along with three anonymous donors, for a $20-million renovation of Faunce House, a historic building on campus, in order to create a space for the entire Brown community to gather."Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center Dedication". News from Brown. Brown University. September 30, 2010."Faunce House To Be Renovated as Stephen Robert Campus Center". Brown University. February 24, 2007.Bernhard, Stephanie. "Changes to Faunce could come as soon as summer". The Brown Daily Herald. March 2, 2007."Schwartz/Silver Architects to Design Robert Campus Center". News from Brown. Brown University. February 7, 2008. In the fall of 2010, the newly renovated building was renamed the Stephen Robert Campus Center, in honor of his leadership and achievements."Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center – History of Faunce House". Brown University. Retrieved May 4, 2017.Perreault, Denise. "Finally, a campus center at Brown". Providence Business News. March 19, 2011."Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center". Brown University. Retrieved May 4, 2017. Robert's intention for the extensive renovation was to foster greater interaction among Brown's students, faculty, and staff, and to achieve academic enrichment by building a shared sense of community."Rooms with a View". Brown Alumni Magazine. November/December 2010.
Robert is also chairman of the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown."BOARD OF OVERSEERS". Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University. Retrieved May 4, 2017. In 2015, he was one of a consortium of three donors who jointly donated $50million to the institute to fund construction of a new building, expansion of the institute's faculty, and expansion and creation of initiatives aimed at addressing some of the world's most difficult policy challenges."Brown University Receives $50 Million Joint Gift". Philanthropy News Digest. November 4, 2015.Arditi, Lynn. "Brown’s Watson Institute to expand with $50 million gift". Providence Journal. November 2, 2015. In May 2019, Brown University named the new building the Stephen Robert Hall in his honor.
Politics, philanthropy, and journalism Robert is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations,"Membership Roster". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved May 4, 2017. a member of the Foreign Policy Program Leadership Committee at the Brookings Institution, and a member of the Investment Committee of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation. He is a Trustee and Treasurer of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation,"Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation: Staff, Trustees, and Officers". Guggenheim.org. Retrieved May 4, 2017. and a trustee of and substantial donor to New York-Presbyterian Hospital."Board of Trustees". New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Retrieved May 4, 2017."Reinventing Emergency Care: NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center Breaks Ground on New Adult Emergency Department". New York-Presbyterian Hospital. October 7, 2013. He has formerly been on the boards of directors of Xerox, The Manhattan Institute, the New York Philharmonic, and WNET/THIRTEEN. He was formerly a member of the advisory board of Blackstone Alternative Asset Management, and formerly on the President's Advisory Council at Teachers College, Columbia University.
Robert and his wife Pilar Crespi Robert are the founders of the Source of Hope Foundation, which provides assistance to communities lacking resources such as health care, education, water, food, and micro-financing opportunities."Private Lunch with Stephen Robert, Chairman & Co-CEO of Source of Hope Foundation in NYC". CharityBuzz. 2014."Stephen Robert". Huffington Post. Retrieved May 4, 2017."Stephen Robert". The Nation. Retrieved May 4, 2017. In partnership with non-governmental organizations, the foundation has conducted humanitarian relief, including relief for those affected by natural disasters, in areas such as sub-Saharan Africa, Israel, Palestine, Haiti, Colombia, and New York City."Couple's Vow to Assist the Poor". Wall Street Journal. July 11, 2011. The Roberts are co-Chairs of the foundation; they are actively involved in its projects, and travel frequently to follow up. The Roberts are also heavily involved in, and have made large donations to, the Henry Street Settlement, a nonprofit social service agency which serves persons in need in Manhattan's Lower East Side. Robert was previously a director of Millennium Promise, a foundation dedicated to meeting the basic needs of the world's poorest people.Millennium Villages / Millennium Promise". MillenniumVillages.org. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
As a journalist, Robert has written articles for a variety of national and international publications. In the wake of the recession, he has published analysis and advice regarding the U.S. economy in ForbesRobert, Stephen. "There Are No Quick Fixes For The U.S. Economy". Forbes. October 6, 2010.Robert, Stephen. "The Fed's Japanese Mistake Kicks Working People In The Teeth". Forbes. November 22, 2010. and The Daily Beast.Robert, Stephen. "Don't Repeat Japan's Mistake". The Daily Beast. March 17, 2009.