John H. McConnell
John H. McConnell, a native of Pughtown, West Virginia (since renamed New Manchester) and the son of a steel worker, grew up during the Great Depression. McConnell took his first job at Weirton Steel. After only about a year there, he enlisted in the United States Navy and served aboard the U.S.S. Saratoga during World War II. After the war, he married his high school sweetheart, Peggy Rardin. He then took advantage of the G.I. Bill to attend Michigan State University, where he played guard on the football team.
Following graduation in 1949, McConnell went back to Weirton Steel Corporation to begin his business career as a salesman. It wasn't long before he recognized a niche in the steel industry for custom steel processing services. McConnell decided to become a steel broker, serving as an independent connection between the mill and its customers. From a small apartment in Columbus, Ohio, and with $1,200 in his checking account, he brokered his first load of steel after getting a $600 loan on his 1952 Oldsmobile. He made a $600 profit on the deal. That transaction launched Worthington Industries, a company built to satisfy increasing demand for value-added steel processing with shorter lead times, superior quality and a plan to fill any size order - something the big steel mills did not do. The company began to take off when he put a slitter line for cutting steel into specifications in a small facility in the Columbus suburb of Whitehall. Worthington Industries, which essentially started the steel processing industry, recorded sales of $342,000 during its first year of operation.
Mr. McConnell's business philosophy, which has been studied at Harvard University, led to Worthington Industries being named one of the top 100 Companies to Work For in America. At the core of the Philosophy is the company's Golden Rule: "We treat our customers, employees, investors, and suppliers as we would like to be treated." The company's main campus, located just north of Columbus, includes an onsite health and wellness center with three full-time physicians, a pharmacy, a barbershop, and other innovative employee benefits. This Philosophy is outlined in McConnell's 2004 book "Our Golden Rule," available through the Franklin University Press.
Mr. McConnell is closely associated with the remarkable success of his steel business and is now becoming widely known as one of central Ohio's most generous citizens. The most recognizable example of Mr. McConnell's charitable contributions is the McConnell Heart Hospital at Riverside Hospital in Columbus, which provides the community with a level of treatment and prevention service currently not available anywhere else in the Midwest. Mr. and Mrs. McConnell contributed $7.5 million to develop the Heart Hospital at Riverside, part of the OhioHealth Corporation. Their gift was the largest single gift ever received by OhioHealth Corporation or Riverside Hospital.
A sports enthusiast, Mr. McConnell is majority owner of the Columbus Blue Jackets National Hockey League franchise, which began play in October 2000. He was also one of the early investors in the Columbus Crew professional soccer team and was previously a minority owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball club. Mr. McConnell's community involvement continues with the Columbus Blue Jackets through the Columbus Blue Jackets Foundation. The foundation uses the unique resources of its professional athletes, coaches and staff to improve the quality of life throughout central Ohio.
Mr. McConnell has received numerous honors and awards, including Financial World Magazine's Outstanding Chief Executive Officer of the Year award, the Horatio Alger award, the Ohio Governor's award, the National Football Foundation Gold Medal, the Industry Week award for Excellence in Management, and a place in the National Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame.
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