More than 40 years have passed since Jack Lockton began working from his apartment cold calling companies and selling surety bonds and insurance. That spark of entrepreneurial energy created
what has become the world’s 10th largest insurance broker and the largest privately held independent insurance broker, Lockton.
After Jack graduated from the University of Missouri at Kansas City in 1964 with a degree in
Economics, he worked for Glens Falls Insurance Company, specializing in surety bonds for
contractors. Two years later he got the itch to shift careers. He was attracted by the entrepreneurial opportunity and was a natural at sales. But if you were to ask Jack, he would say that it was the people, the players on his team that generated the firm’s fast-track growth. Jack’s ability to recruit top talent was a natural extension of his ability to sell insurance. He recruited like-minded insurance professionals and created a business philosophy that helped create an insurance brokerage powerhouse. His passion for client service is reflected in Lockton’s WE LIVE SERVICE! motto and value-added services tailored for each client. That passion and his success at building the business earned Jack many honors: Service Industry Entrepreneur of the Year Award (1992), Insurance Industry Leader of the Year (1995), Henry W. Bloch School of Business Entrepreneur of the Year (1996), Regional Entrepreneur of the Year (2000), Outstanding Directors Award from the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Achievement (2000).
Jack gave back to the community in many ways which earn him recognition for his philanthropy, including the Distinguished Citizens Award from the Heart of America Council of the Boy Scouts of America in 2000 and the Woodrow Wilson Center Award for Corporate Citizenship in 2003. Jack also passed along his passion for the community to his company; all of Lockton’s offices are involved in many charitable organizations.
Jack also committed time and energy to Kansas City growth projects. He was a member of the Board of the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City, the University of Missouri at Kansas City, the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, the Kansas City Area Development Council, the Midwest Research Institute, the Kansas City Crime Commission and the Kansas City Area Economic Development Council. In recognition of Jack’s love of the arts, the Lockton family donated to Kansas City’s Nelson-Atkins Museum for the construction of the Jack Lockton III Gallery. In 1998, Jack was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He fought the disease with fervor and became involved in giving hope and comfort to other cancer patients. He and his wife, Cheryl, established the Lockton Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. They donated a garden outside the windows of the Cancer Center Memorial Garden at the Vail Valley Medical Center. They also set up the Compassionate Oncology Pharmaceutical Benefit Program, which assists patients with the costs of chemotherapy.
Jack’s legacy is engrained in Lockton’s culture, which is based on his philosophies of client and community service, working hard and supporting Associates. He started the company as a privately held business, and the family plans for it to remain independent. Jack’s brother David is at the helm of the company and Jack’s sons Stephen, Ron and Don work as Producers for the firm and serve on the Lockton Board of Directors.
