What is Ken Kendrick's Net Worth?
Ken Kendrick is a billionaire businessman who has a net worth of $1.1 billion. Ken Kendrick is the principal owner and managing general partner of the MLB team the Arizona Diamondbacks. He has been involved with the team since its inception in 1995, when he became a part-owner. Prior to that, Kendrick was a co-owner of Datatel, the world's leading developer of infrastructure technology for colleges and universities.
Early Life and Education
Ken Kendrick was born as Earl Kendrick Jr. on September 2, 1943 in Princeton, West Virginia. For his higher education, he attended West Virginia University, from which he earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 1965.
Technology Business Career
Kendrick began his business career working at IBM. Soon after that, he founded Data Technology Corporation, which merged with Tom Davidson's data processing company Datatel in 1973. Toward the end of the decade, Datatel began offering software and professional services to develop enterprise education platforms for higher education. The company eventually became the worldwide leader in developing software for managing the infrastructure technology of colleges and universities. Datatel grew to having over 800 client institutions throughout the United States and Canada. In 2005, Datatel's executive team purchased the company from Kendrick and Davidson. Four years later, the company was acquired by the private equity firm Hellman & Friedman. Later, Datatel merged with SunGuard Higher Education to form Ellucian.
In the 1980s, Kendrick served as the president of a Texas-based financial services technology company. As the decade came to a close, he became the principal investor in Texas's Woodforest National Bank, one of the largest primarily employee-owned banks in the country. The $9 billion, 5,000-employee bank is a subsidiary of Woodforest Financial Group.
Arizona Diamondbacks
In 1995, Kendrick became a part-owner of the newly formed MLB team the Arizona Diamondbacks. About a decade later, in 2004, he became the team's managing general partner, overseeing day-to-day operations and serving as the Diamondbacks' designated representative during meetings with MLB owners. Kendrick also became the franchise's principal owner. During his tenure, the Diamondbacks won NL West championships in 2007 and 2011 and competed in the NLCS in 2007 and 2023. In the latter year, the team played in the World Series for the first time in 22 years. Under Kendrick, the Diamondbacks also hosted the All-Star Game at Chase Field in 2011, and the same year opened the acclaimed Salt River Fields at Talking Stick stadium complex for spring training. Among his other achievements with the Diamondbacks, Kendrick has helped the team eliminate over $350 million in debt through equity and debt restructures.
Philanthropy
On the philanthropic side of business, Kendrick served as the chairman of the Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation, which has donated more than $80 million to charity since its inception. He has also sat on the boards of several charitable organizations, including Phoenix Children's Hospital, Barrow Neurological Institute, Dignity Health, and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
Following severe flooding from torrential rains in West Virginia in 2016, Kendrick initiated a relief program that raised over $1 million. Later, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he helped raise over $2 million for nonprofits assisting those in need. Kendrick also created a fund for Chase Field staff who couldn't work during the shutdown. Among his other philanthropic endeavors, he pledged $20 million to his alma mater West Virginia University in 2022 to expand its economics education.
(Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
Other Ventures
In other ventures, Kendrick is an avid collector of baseball cards, and owns the infamous T206 Honus Wagner card that is regarded as the most valuable trading card in the world. That card, as well as several other iconic and rare baseball cards owned by Kendrick, were previously displayed at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. In 2020, Kendrick was appointed to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum's board of directors.
Personal Life
With his wife, conservative political donor Randy, Kendrick has two children named Cal and Catie. The family resides in Paradise Valley, Arizona. Kendrick is also the owner of Bumble Bee Ranch and the Ironbridge Golf Club.
