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Eric Lefkofsky | |
---|---|
Born | September 2, 1969 54) | (age
Alma mater | University of Michigan (JD) (BA) |
Occupation(s) | Founder and CEO, Tempus |
Known for | Co-founder, Groupon [1] |
Spouse | Elizabeth Kramer |
Children | 3 |
Website | lefkofsky |
Eric Paul Lefkofsky (born September 2, 1969) [2] is an American billionaire businessman. He is the founder of Tempus, [3] and the co-founder of Groupon, [4] Echo Global Logistics (ECHO), InnerWorkings (INWK), and Mediaocean. [5] He is an early investor in Uptake, [ citation needed ]and the managing director of Chicago-based venture capital firm Lightbank.[ citation needed ] As of October 2021, his net worth was estimated at US$4.1 billion. [6]
Lefkofsky grew up in a Jewish family [7] in Southfield, Michigan. His father, Bill, was a structural engineer, and his mother, Sandy, was a school teacher. He attended Tamarack Camps as a child and later worked there as a member of staff. [8] After graduating from Southfield-Lathrup High School in 1987, [9] he attended the University of Michigan and graduated with honors in 1991. [10] He enrolled at the University of Michigan Law School and received his Juris Doctor in 1993. [11] [8] [10]
After graduating from law school in 1993, Lefkovsky and a college friend, Brad Keywell, borrowed money from relatives to buy Brandon Apparel, a clothing company in Madison, Wisconsin. [ citation needed ]. In 1999, they created an Internet company, Starbelly, that specialized in promotional products[ citation needed ]. In January 2000, Lefkofsky and Keywell sold the firm to Halo Industries. Lefkofsky joined Halo as chief operating officer. A little more than a year later, the company went bankrupt, and the firm faced multiple lawsuits from shareholders, all of which were resolved by 2004.[ citation needed ]
In fall 2001, Lefkofsky co-founded InnerWorkings, a firm providing print procurement services for mid-sized companies. In August 2006, the company went public with an initial public offering. [12] Lefkofsky was on its board of directors until October 2012.
In February 2005, Lefkofsky co-founded a freight logistics company, Echo Global Logistics. It attracted financing from New Enterprise Associates, and went public on the NASDAQ under the symbol 'ECHO' in June 2006. [13]
In June 2006, Lefkofsky co-founded MediaBank, a company providing technology for advertising buyers. In June 2007, the firm acquired Datatech, [14] a media planning and procurement platform. In July 2007, New Enterprise Associates invested in MediaBank. [15] In 2012, a merger between MediaBank and Donovan Data Systems created Mediaocean in a deal estimated at $1.5 billion. [16]
In January 2007, Lefkofsky provided $1 million in funding for ThePoint.com, a collective action website started by ex-InnerWorkings employee Andrew Mason. New Enterprise Associates led an early stage investment round. [17] In late 2008, the site changed its name to Groupon.com. In October 2009, Groupon raised $30 million from Accel Partners and New Enterprise Associates. [18] In April 2010, Digital Sky Technology and Battery Ventures invested $135 million in Groupon at a valuation of $1.35 billion.
In December 2010, Google offered a reported $6 billion for Groupon. The offer was turned down, possibly due to anti-trust and regulatory scrutiny the deal might face. [19] In October 2011, Groupon [20] raised $950 million in private funding and then paid $810 million to employees and investors. Lefkofsky and his family were paid $398 million. [21] In August 2013, Lefkofsky became CEO of Groupon; [22] in November 2016, he stepped down as CEO, resuming his role as Chairman. [23]
In July 2014, Lefkofsky was an early investor in Uptake, LLC, an analytics company[ citation needed ]. In 2016, Lefkofsky founded Tempus, [24] a technology company that enables physicians to deliver personalized cancer care, and is its CEO.
In 2006, Lefkofsky and his wife, Liz, formed a private charitable trust, The Lefkofsky Family Foundation. Its purpose is to advance high-impact initiatives that enhance the quality of human life in the communities they serve. The foundation has helped fund more than 50 organizations to date. [25]
In 2013, Lefkofsky and his wife joined The Giving Pledge. [26] [27]
Lefkofsky is on the board of directors at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago, the board of directors of The Art Institute of Chicago, the board of directors of The Museum of Science and Industry, and a Trustee of Steppenwolf Theatre Company [28] He is a board member of World Business Chicago, and is co-chairman of its Technology Council. [29]
In May 2008, Lefkofsky joined the committee to bring the 2016 Summer Olympics to Chicago, Chicago 2016.
Lefkofsky taught applied technology at DePaul University's Kellstadt Graduate School of Business. At the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, he taught a course in disruptive business models. He is now[ when? ] an adjunct professor at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, teaching a course on entrepreneurship and building technology-based businesses. [30]
In November 2007, Easton Studio Press published Lefkofsky's Accelerated Disruption, a book about how technology affects business.
In 1997, Lefkofsky married Elizabeth (née Kramer). They have three children. [31] [32] [33]
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Southfield-Lathrup High School was a senior high school in Lathrup Village, Michigan, United States. It was the second oldest of three high schools in the Southfield Public Schools district, the oldest being Southfield High School, and the youngest being University High School Academy.
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I think of myself first as an American and then as a Jew. That said, I am absolutely connected to Judaism. Being Jewish is simply woven into my fabric, and it's hard to separate it
Other notable Southfield-Lathrup graduates include Quicken Loans and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, Groupon co-founder Eric Lefkofsky and Sheldon Yellen, CEO of Birmingham-based Belfor Holdings Inc.
Additionally, there are questions about how the company has used investor money. Traditionally, investor money is used to grow a business before it goes public. But according to Groupon's SEC filings, $810 million of the $946 million it raised went to early investors and insiders. That includes $398 million to Groupon's largest investor, shareholder and executive chairman, Eric Lefkofsky.