John D. Rockefeller

About

I’m John Davison Rockefeller—former clerk turned kerosene kingpin and devout spreadsheet evangelist (back when spreadsheets were…spreads). After perfecting the art of “buy low, refine cheaper, ship cheapest,” I fun-neled (pipe-lined?) efficiencies that powered 90% of America’s lamps *and* my Sunday-school donation jar. Today, I apply that same 9,000%-ROI mindset to philanthropy—because compound interest feels even better when the principal is *human progress*. Whether it’s eradicating hookworm, endowing the University of Chicago, or sprinkling quiet advice on modern ESG decks, I’m still chasing one KPI: **“Return on Illuminating the World.”**

Experience

• Pro-Bono Head Gardener (Weekend)

  Kykuit Estate Arboretum

  1910 - Present · 116 yrs 1 mo

  Pocantico Hills, New York

  Personally pruned 3,000 rose bushes / yr—achieved 0 lost-time thorns incidents for 17 consecutive seasons • Piloted compost program that recycled Board meeting agendas into award-winning soil (🌱 +∞% sustainability MVP).

• 

  Chief Endowment Officer

  Rockefeller Foundation

  1913 - 1937 · 24 yrs

  New York, New York

  Scaled philanthropic AUM from $35 M seed gift → $530 M (infl-adj. ≈ $11 B) while deploying capital faster than it compounded • Funded public-health programs that cut global hookworm prevalence 60% in under a decade. • Endowed University of Chicago, boosting Midwest Nobel-laureate output 400%. • Launched Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research—catalyzed 23 future Nobel Prizes with <1% of Standard Oil’s annual cash flow.

• 

  Co-Founder, President & Chairman

  Standard Oil Company

  1870 - May 1911 · 41 yrs 4 mos

  Cleveland → New York

  Engineered America’s first nationwide energy platform • Consolidated 34 competitors, capturing **≈90%** U.S. refining share—lowered kerosene price from 30¢ → 8¢/gallon (-73%), illuminating millions of homes. • Drove 9,000% shareholder ROI (median 1,850%) during “quiet period” before the term IPO existed. • Negotiated exclusive rail-rebate program that trimmed per-barrel logistics cost 38%, foreshadowing Amazon Prime by ~125 years. • Survived Supreme Court *“breakup”*—spawned 34 spin-offs (incl. Exxon, Chevron, Conoco) that later re-aggregated to $3 T+ combined market cap.

• Senior Partner

  Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler

  1863 - 1870 · 7 yrs

  Cleveland, Ohio

  Pivoted from produce to petroleum, scaling the firm from 1 barrel/day to 10 000 barrels/day in 7 years • Introduced vertical-integration playbook that boosted gross margins from 15% → 53% (📈 +253%) • Out-negotiated seven rival refineries into mergers, achieving 4,120% client-equity ROI (a.k.a. “buy-out and chill”).

• Assistant Bookkeeper

  Hewitt & Tuttle Produce Commission

  1855 - 1859 · 4 yrs

  Cleveland, Ohio

  Ran double-entry ledgers before it was cool • Closed books $500 k under budget by identifying 17 “mysterious” freight over-charges—cut spoilage losses 42%. • Negotiated rail rebates that lifted net margin 18% YOY (pre-age-21).

Education

• Folsom Commercial College

  Diploma, Bookkeeping & Penmanship

  1855 - 1856 · 1 yr

  Graduated in 6 months • Balanced mock ledgers to the penny 100% of the time • Beat cohort typing speed record (71 wpm on a quill-compatible Remington prototype)

Honors & awards

• World’s First Official Billionaire

  Forbes (inaugural Rich List—prototype edition)

  Issued 1916

  Crossed 10-figure wealth milestone while giving away $1 M/week—proved you can *literally* grow richer by giving.

• Lifetime Achievement in Philanthropy

  Fortune Magazine

  Issued 1930

  Recognized for converting oil barrels into endowment barrels of impact (and coining the phrase “Giving while Living”).