Remembering H. Ross Perot, Sr.

A legacy of integrity: A commitment to relationships

une 27 is an extraordinary date in the annals of the life of Henry Ross Perot, Sr.

From his birth to his military service to his extraordinary career, fate would see this summer date become a recurring indicator of good fortune and milestone moments in the Perot family story.

H. Ross Perot, Sr. (b. June 27, 1930 – d. July 9, 2019) will be remembered for his patriotism, entrepreneurship and vision. But those who knew him best will also speak of his integrity, compassion, love of family and respect of relationships. Hillwood associates know that his commitment to these principles has been the guiding force in building the company’s culture during the past three decades. J

Ph.D. in business fundamentals Mr. Perot was born in Texarkana, Texas, the son of Gabriel, a cotton broker, and Lulu May, a lumber company secretary. During that Depression decade, he was taught from an early age to work, save and budget, whether it was to buy his first bicycle or sticks of chewing gum.

“When I was about 10 years old, my dad would take me to the Owen Brothers’ barn on Friday nights for the premier horse, cattle and mule auctions in Texarkana,” he said. “This was where my dad began teaching me the fundamentals of trading and negotiating. I consider this to be my Ph.D. in business, taught at my father’s knee.”

Once he attained the rank of Eagle Scout and graduated high school, Mr. Perot’s dream was to attend the U.S. Naval Academy.

After graduating from Texarkana College and sending persistent letters to a congressman, he was granted admission and took the midshipman’s oath on his 19th birthday: June 27, 1949. Mr. Perot served in the Navy through 1957, which included a tour of duty during the final days of the Korean War. From ensign, he would be promoted to full lieutenant, directing the landing and launching of planes off the USS Leyte aircraft carrier.

Following his Navy service, Mr. Perot joined IBM as a data processing salesman and arrived back in Texas on June 27, 1957. Mr. Perot became intrigued with the idea of servicing computer software, noting that companies leasing from IBM sometimes had trouble learning how to use the technology. He saw a need for a service to design, install and operate data processing systems on a contract basis.

“What I gleaned from my customers was that they were desperate for more than the hardware,” he said.

This laser-focused attention to customer service and developing solutions compelled Mr. Perot, after meeting his annual quota in only 19 days, to strike out on his own, founding EDS on June 27, 1962. From a $1,000 investment – a loan from his wife, Margot – to an eventual $2.5 billion sale to General Motors, he became an American success story.

From Legacy to Alliance In the early ’80s, Mr. Perot fixed his entrepreneurial vision on real estate when he acquired 2,655 acres of vacant land in Plano, where he ultimately moved the EDS headquarters. Frito Lay, an early customer of EDS, soon followed. Then followed JCPenney, releasing massive momentum for corporate business attraction. Over the next 25 years, the Legacy campus would become the epicenter for new development and corporate headquarters in the North Texas region – leading to Collin County’s exponential population growth.

Although Mr. Perot had historically been focused on the information technology business, his son Ross, Jr. developed a passion for real estate based on his experience with his father at Legacy.

“The real estate business was something Dad and I could do together,” said Ross, Jr., having learned it at his father’s side.

Their combined strategic vision strengthened the father-son collaboration. They saw and out-maneuvered the real estate, oil and defense spending crashes of the mid-80s, sharpening their focus on north Tarrant County and south Denton County. Consequently, they acquired tens of thousands of acres of raw ranchland, with growth certain to come.

In 1987, Ross, Jr. was approached by the Federal Aviation Administration about donating land for an airport in north Fort Worth. That was the catalyst for the founding of Hillwood and AllianceTexas.

Early hires included Mike Berry, now president of Hillwood. Berry said he attributes Mr. Perot’s success in the Legacy development as the foundation of the AllianceTexas development. “When Ross, Jr. came into the business in the mid-’80s, Mr. Perot and Ross Perot, Jr. together took that same philosophy of high-quality master-planned corporate campus development that Mr. Perot used in the early days of Legacy, and they brought it to North Fort Worth.”

Berry added, “They began to look at the land that was here; and, at the time, there was nothing out here except wheat fields and prairie. They had the vision to believe that, in the long-term as Dallas-Fort Worth and North Texas grew, the area north of Fort Worth would likely be a major growth corridor.”

A shared culture Mr. Perot would not only influence his son’s real estate career but the corporate culture of Hillwood. Its core values of integrity, respect, excellence and teamwork are integrated into relationships within the company as well as with regard to all external stakeholders: customers, partners, government entities and taxpayers. “The leadership that Mr. Perot gave to Ross and to all of us in the early years was invaluable in shaping what we have been able to do, and the culture that he created is still the culture that we live by and promote within our company today. He was the bedrock,” said Berry.

Those values also extend in a special way to active U.S. military and veterans. Since 1969, Mr. Perot was an advocate for fellow service members, veterans and Vietnam prisoners of war (POWs). He not only donated financially to their health care and well-being, he also flew to military zones with wives of POWs to draw attention to the cause, and visited individual veterans in hospitals. Coupled with Ross, Jr.’s love of aviation, the annual Alliance Air Show, founded in 1991, showcases the U.S. Navy Blue Angels and U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, as well as other military and private aviation performers. The award-winning show broke attendance records in 2019 with more than 130,000 visitors.

Back on the ground, Hillwood continues win-win public-private partnerships that improve business and quality of life for the region’s burgeoning population. The company’s advocacy for the expansion of Interstate Highway 35W and current efforts to expand State Highway 170 through the 35W Coalition have been essential to the movement of people and goods in Northeast Tarrant and Southeast Denton Counties. ” In the days following Dad’s death, we were overwhelmed by all of the new stories we heard about what he did for others over the years.... These quiet acts were the most valuable and the most important investments my dad made. “ Ross Perot, Jr. Chairman, Hillwood

‘The quiet investments’ In addition to the business lessons Mr. Perot’s father taught him, his own personal experiences led him to leverage his success for the good of others. He modeled the art of applying “people-first” practices that mark the immense social value inherent in a truly successful enterprise.

“In the days following Dad’s death, we were overwhelmed by all the new stories we heard about what he did for others over the years,” said Ross, Jr. “These were the quiet investments my dad made in everyday people – some were veterans, others just needed help or a compassionate hand. These quiet acts were the most valuable and the most important investments my dad made.” Hillwood’s core values are not derived from business textbooks, but from the value of cultivating and growing personal connections.

“Business is not just doing deals; business is having great products, doing great engineering, and providing tremendous service to customers,” Mr. Perot said. “Finally, business is a cobweb of human relationships.

Mr. Perot’s visit to Fort Benning in 2010. Supporting our nation’s troops was an enduring part of Mr. Perot’s legacy, providing resources to those still in service, families of POWs/MIAs, as well as those disabled in combat.

Mr. Perot was a regular visitor to AllianceTexas. Pictured below with Ross, Jr., attending the first Alliance Air Show in 1991 and, more recently, hosting special guests at the Circle T Ranch.

Hillwood’s patriarch, Mr. Perot embodied the core values that the company holds dear (pictured with the Hillwood team in 2015). As a Navy veteran, his love and support for the armed forces was evident throughout his life. Mr. Perot, a former Eagle Scout, proudly supported the Boy Scouts of America. Pictured below, with scouts at the Bell Fort Worth Alliance Air Show earning their aviation merit badge.

Opposite page: Father and son were featured in a cover story for Forbes in September 2013, focused on AllianceTexas.

First and foremost, Mr. Perot loved his family and took great joy in their successes. Pictured below with Ross Perot, Jr. in 1981 before his departure on the first helicopter flight around the world, and also with his grandson Hill Perot celebrating his first solo helicopter flight at Fort Worth Alliance Airport.

Much of the world was introduced to H. Ross Perot, Sr. through his candidacy for U.S. President in 1992 and 1996. However, his connection to Fort Worth Alliance Airport, as well as his leadership addressing key national issues were already important parts of his legacy.

Ross, Jr. and Mr. Perot recognize beloved Fort Worth Mayor Bob Bolen, a champion for the AllianceTexas project, at the dedication of Bob Bolen Plaza in 2001.

HILLWOOD’S CORE VALUES

INTEGRITY

We do the right thing. Our ethics are beyond reproach. Our interactions are open, honest, and above board. Our constant standard is a higher moral value, never compromised by adversity or success.

RESPECT

We treat every associate, customer, and business relationship with the same fairness, courtesy, and dignity with which we would want to be treated. Our people are our most important asset. We respect every associate’s beliefs, ideas, contributions, and need for life balance. We respect the culture and environment of each community we touch.

EXCELLENCE

We deliver innovation, quality and value. We are dedicated to customer and partner success. We create lasting contributions in our communities. We seek talented people who are exceptionally motivated for higher performance.

TEAMWORK

We are Hillwood! We win because we listen, we collaborate, and we work as a team. Every associate’s energy, expertise, and dedication are critical to Hillwood’s success. We hold ourselves and each other accountable for living our values.