John Jacobi talks career, UW, family, and more

John Jacobi’s (UW 1962) business start came at the Puget Sound Mutual Saving Bank where, after 10 years, he left as the head of the residential real estate mortgage department. Having known he wanted to have his own business, he purchased Windermere Real Estate in 1972. Philanthropy and family are staples of the business culture and in 1987 sponsorship of the annual Windermere Cup crew races began. Two years later, the Windermere Foundation was created to fight homelessness. Both of those efforts continue today with a company now led by the second generation of family that grew from one office with eight agents in 1972 to 300 offices and over 7,000 agents. Today, Mr. Jacobi is retired from Windermere, but continues work in the development business with ownership over several pieces of property.

Mr. Jacobi was the recipient of the Foster School’s Distinguished Leadership Award, the school’s highest non-degree honor. He received the award at the Foster School’s 24th Annual Business Leadership Celebration on October 22, 2015. Distinguished Leadership Awardees are champions in their communities and companies. They embody strong leadership values while building a company that defines the Northwest community.