Constant Growth, Consistent Culture

Johnson Institutional Management has its roots in Johnson Investment Counsel, a firm founded in 1965 by Timothy Johnson, PhD.  While teaching full time at the University of Cincinnati, Tim registered with the SEC and began to provide investment counsel to individuals and doctor groups.  Throughout the 1970’s, the firm grew steadily as colleagues and satisfied clients referred business to Tim. Included in this was the University of Cincinnati, who hired Johnson to manage a portion of their endowment during 1976, becoming the firm’s first major institutional client.

During its first twenty years Johnson Investment Counsel was managed from the home of Tim Johnson while he continued to write textbooks and teach full time at the University. Johnson’s first office was established in the early 1980’s when several former students joined Tim and began expanding the business. Today, Johnson Investment Counsel employs 95 people and manages more than $5 billion. Despite our growth, the culture of building the business to serve one client at a time remains the same.

In 2001, ownership was broadened to 16 key employees, including Dr. Johnson. Today, that ownership consists of 26 employees with no shareholder owning more than 20% of the company. The firm consists of three divisions, each created as an extension of our foundation – Johnson Institutional Management, Johnson Wealth Advisors, and Johnson Trust Company.

Johnson Institutional Management – Same Principles, Sole Purpose

While working with institutions has always been an integral part of our firm, Johnson Institutional Management was formally launched with the sole purpose of serving corporate, public, endowment, foundation and Taft Hartley clients. There was no breakup, spinoff or lift-out, just a committed effort to meet the unique investment and service needs of institutional investors. This structure provides clients the best of both worlds – the benefits of the “boutique” nature of Johnson Institutional Management and the resources and support of a much larger organization.