Robert F. Smith ’94

Founder, Chairman, and CEO: Vista Equity Partners

Founder, Chairman and CEO

Vista Equity Partners

Entrepreneur and philanthropist Robert F. Smith is a ‘94 graduate of Columbia Business School (CBS) and a member of the Board. He is the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners (Vista), a leading global investment firm, and the founding director and President of Fund II Foundation. Fund II Foundation is committed to advancing racial equity for the Black community across the U.S. through education, health, social justice and other core priorities.

Smith made headlines around the world as the commencement speaker for the 2019 graduating class of Morehouse College. In his address, he pledged to pay the student loan debt of the graduating class and their guardians. This act inspired the creation of Student Freedom Initiative (SFI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring freedom in professional and life choices for students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs). His gift of $34 million to eliminate student loan debt enabled the students and their families to reinvest in their communities and themselves.

Smith and Columbia University

When Smith began attending Columbia University, he enrolled in Columbia’s joint JD/MBA program, but after connecting with industry leaders through conversations and interviews, he grew an interest in investment strategy. Smith went on to earn his MBA with honors in 1994 and was elected as his class’s commencement speaker. He was also the President of the Black Business Students’ Association (BBSA) and President of the Japan Business Association during his time at Columbia Business School.

Smith continues to positively affect Columbia Business School and carry the values of the Columbia community. In 2017, he gave back to Columbia with a $15 million gift to complete the school’s $500 million fundraising goal for expansion into the Manhattanville neighborhood in West Harlem, New York. The new state-of-the-art building in Manhattanville opened on January 18, 2022. Recognized for his industry leadership and commitment to the community, Smith was awarded the Columbia BBSA Distinguished Alumni Award.

Smith again donated to the Columbia Business School in 2022, gifting $10 million to establish a scholarship program for students from underserved backgrounds or who are graduating with an undergraduate degree from an HBCU. Through the Robert F. Smith ’94 Scholarship, Columbia has access to highly qualified graduates who have been historically overlooked by non-HBCUs. This fund started during the 2022-2023 school year and granted 200 Columbia MBA students partial or full scholarships from the program, which is intended to continue for ten years.

Early Career and Education

Born in Denver, Colorado, to two educators, Smith learned early on the importance of a quality education. Smith attended Cornell University to study engineering, graduating in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree. He went on to work as an engineer for Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and Kraft General Foods. While at Kraft, Smith earned two U.S. and two European patents for a coffee brewer filtration device and a coffee brewing element.

Following his time at Columbia, he worked in technology investment banking for Goldman Sachs in New York City and later in San Francisco. He oversaw mergers and acquisitions at large technology companies, including Apple, Microsoft and Texas Instruments. After six years at the firm, Smith founded Vista in 2000. As his success grew, so too did Smith’s sense of social responsibility, prompting his philanthropic endeavors.

Philanthropic Initiatives, Board Memberships and Awards

For years, Smith has been known for making many generous donations to notable organizations. His gift of $20 million to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, for example, was the largest by an individual donor at the time. His gift allowed the museum to establish the Robert F. Smith Internship and Fellowship Program, the Center for Digitization and Curation of African American History and the Robert F. Smith Explore Your Family History Center. In 2017, Smith signed the Giving Pledge, committing to give the majority of his wealth to philanthropy or charitable causes during his lifetime. He was the first Black individual to sign the pledge.

Aside from Morehouse and Columbia students, Smith has touched the lives of hundreds of other university and college students through various other donations. For example, he has personally donated over $45 million to his undergraduate alma mater, Cornell University, over the past decade to fund scholarships for women, Black Americans, students from HBCUs and students from other underrepresented and underserved groups.

Smith is the Chairman of Carnegie Hall. He serves as the Vice Chairman of the Board of NAF, on the Board of Directors of the Business Roundtable and as a Member of the Cornell Engineering College Council.

Smith has been recognized throughout the years for his commitment to philanthropy. In 2023, Smith was designated an honoree of the George H.W. Bush Points of Light Award and honored at the Legal Defense Fund’s 35th National Equal Justice Awards Dinner with the National Equal Justice Award. The same year, he was also awarded the Founder’s Award from Foster Love. In 2022, he received theGrio’s Philanthropy Icon Award and the National Arts Award from American for the Arts. In 2020, Smith was named as one of the TIME100’s Most Influential People and has been recognized by Forbes as one of the 100 Greatest Living Business Minds. In 2019, Smith received the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy, bestowed by the Carnegie family of institutions.

Smith also has been a strong advocate for The 2% Solution, calling on corporations to commit 2% of their annual net income for the next decade to empower underserved communities. He also co-leads Southern Communities Initiative (SCI) alongside Dan Schulman (CEO of PayPal) and Rich Lesser (Global Chair of Boston Consulting Group). SCI is a catalytic program for racial equity across six Southern communities representing approximately 50% of the Black population in the U.S.