Raymond Jones Harbert was born in December 1958. He is an American business leader, investor, and someone who helps others through donations. He is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Harbert Management Corporation (HMC), a worldwide private investment company that manages about $8 billion. He has served on the board of trustees at Auburn University. In 2013, he donated $40 million to the university, which led to the college of business being named the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business.
Early life
Raymond Jones Harbert was born in December 1958 and grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. His father, John M. Harbert, started Harbert Corporation, a large construction company that operates in many countries, in 1949. His mother, Marguerite Harbert, was a billionaire who gave money to help others. He has a brother named John M. Harbert IV and a sister named Marguerite H. Gray.
Harbert attended Auburn University and earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Management in 1982.
Career
In 1982, Harbert was named vice president of business development at Harbert International, a company owned by his father’s business, Harbert Corporation. Later, he became president of Harbert Properties Corporation, a real estate company owned by Harbert Corporation. From 1988 to 1990, Harbert worked as vice president of Harbert Corporation, managing all investment activities. In 1990, he became chief executive officer, taking over all top leadership roles from his father.
In 1993, Harbert used $3 million from his inheritance to start Harbert Management Corporation (HMC), a company that manages investments worldwide and is based in Birmingham. Over the next 20 years, HMC grew by opening offices in the United States and Europe. The company helps many types of clients, including public organizations, wealthy individuals, and families, by investing in real estate, energy, private businesses, debt, new companies, and public markets.
In 2000, Harbert started Harbinger Capital Partners, a type of investment fund managed by Philip Falcone. After 10 years, Falcone became the main owner of Harbinger, though Harbert continued to invest in the company personally.
In 2006, Harbert was sued by his sister, Marguerite, who claimed he did not meet his responsibilities to other shareholders of Harbert Corporation, including his brother and herself. Gray’s claims differ from Harbert’s claims.
Philanthropy
Harbert is a member of the board of trustees at Auburn University, the school he attended. In 2013, he promised to give the university $40 million to its College of Business. He gave $25 million and agreed to give an additional $15 million if the university raised $15 million more from other donors. Because of this generous gift, the board of trustees renamed the college the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business. The donation helped create special professor positions, a program for students earning a doctorate in finance, and the Harbert Investments Center, a research center in the business school that works with the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering. This was the largest gift ever given to Auburn University. The donation is believed to have helped the Harbert College of Business grow quickly, nearly doubling its student numbers in 10 years and becoming the largest college at the university.
Harbert also served on the board of directors of the Alabama Trust Fund. He was a member of the Liberal Arts Advisory Council at Wake Forest University. Currently, he is a member of the board of trustees at Children's of Alabama, a children's hospital in Birmingham. He also serves on the executive committee of the Birmingham Business Alliance.
Personal life
Harbert is married to Kathryn Dunn Harbert, and they have three children. They live in Mountain Brook, Alabama, a town near Birmingham. Harbert also owns a 10,000-acre farm in South Alabama, where he hunts quail and turkey.