James Goodnight Net Worth

James Goodnight was born on January 06, 1943 in Cary, North Carolina, United States, and is the CEO of SAS Institute, a global analytics software firm he co-founded with John Sall in 1976. The company has grown to serve over 83,000 organizations worldwide, with 2016 revenue of $3.2 billion. Goodnight and Sall have also co-founded a private school and co-own a country club and a hotel.
James Goodnight is a member of Technology

Age, Biography and Wiki

Who is it? CEO, SAS Institute
Birth Day January 06, 1943
Birth Place Cary, North Carolina, United States
Age 80 YEARS OLD
Birth Sign Aquarius
Other names James H. Goodnight, Jim Goodnight
Alma mater North Carolina State University
Occupation Businessman and software developer

💰 Net worth: $7.4 Billion (2024)

James Goodnight's net worth is estimated to reach a staggering $7.4 billion by 2024. As the CEO of SAS Institute, a prominent software company based in the United States, Goodnight has played a pivotal role in revolutionizing the field of analytics and business intelligence. Recognized for his exceptional leadership ability and strategic vision, Goodnight has steered SAS Institute to unprecedented success, propelling the company to the forefront of the industry. His shrewd decision-making and dedication to technological innovation have not only propelled his own wealth but have also solidified SAS Institute's position as a global leader in advanced analytics solutions.

2009 $6.8 Billion
2010 $6.9 Billion
2011 $7.1 Billion
2012 $7.3 Billion
2013 $7.2 Billion
2014 $7.7 Billion
2015 $7.7 Billion
2016 $8.7 Billion
2017 $9.4 Billion
2018 $9.74 Billion

Some James Goodnight images

Famous Quotes:

Ninety-five percent of my assets drive out the gate every evening. It's my job to maintain a work environment that keeps those people coming back every morning.

Biography/Timeline

1943

Goodnight was born to Albert Goodnight and Dorothy Patterson in Salisbury, NC, on January 6, 1943. He lived in Greensboro, NC, until he was 12, when his family moved to Wilmington. In his youth, he often worked at his father's hardware store. Mathematics and chemistry were Goodnight's strongest subjects in school, thanks in part, he says, to a "wonderful chemistry teacher" at New Hanover High School.

1968

Goodnight received a Master's in statistics in 1968. While working on his Master's, his curiosity was piqued over the prospect of a man being sent to the moon. His programming skills helped him land a position at a company building electronic equipment for the ground stations that communicated with the Apollo space capsules. While working on the Apollo program, Goodnight experienced a work environment that had an annual turnover rate of approximately 50 percent. This shaped his views on corporate culture and his Future role as an employer. Goodnight returned to North Carolina State University after working on the Apollo project. He earned a PhD in statistics with thesis titled Quadratic unbiased estimation of variance components in linear Models with an emphasis on the one-way classification under the supervision of Robert James Monroe and became a faculty member from 1972 to 1976.

1976

Goodnight joined another faculty at North Carolina State in a research project to create a general purpose statistical analysis system (SAS) for analyzing agricultural data. The project was operated by a consortium of eight land-grant universities and funded primarily by the USDA. Goodnight along with another faculty member Anthony James Barr became project Leaders for the development of the early version of SAS. When the software had 100 customers in 1976, Goodnight and three others from the University left the college to form SAS Institute in an office across the street.

1981

In 1981 Goodnight was elected as a Fellow of the American Statistical Association. In 2004, he was named a Great American Business Leader by Harvard; that same year he was named one of America's 25 Most Fascinating Entrepreneurs by Inc. Magazine. He has also been a frequent speaker and participant at the World Economic Forum.

1993

Goodnight remained CEO of SAS Institute for more than 35 years as the company grew from $138,000 its first year in Business, to $420 million in 1993 and $2.43 billion by 2010. Under his leadership, the company grew each year. Goodnight became known for creating and defending SAS’ corporate culture, often described by the media as "utopian." He rejected acquisition offers and chose against going public to protect the company's work environment. Goodnight has maintained a flat organizational structure with about 27 people who report directly to him and three organizational layers.

1996

Goodnight has an interest in improving the state of education, particularly elementary and secondary education. In 1996, Goodnight and his wife, along with his Business partner, John Sall and his wife Ginger, founded an independent prep school Cary Academy. Both of the Goodnights are also involved in the local Cary, NC, community. He owns Prestonwood Country Club and The Umstead Hotel and Spa situated on the edge of the SAS campus.

2002

Goodnight's career with computers began when he took a computer course his sophomore year at North Carolina State University. At the time, he said, “a light went on, and I fell in love with making machines do things for other people.” The following summer he got a job writing software programs for the agricultural economics department. With contributions from other alumni, Goodnight was responsible for the construction of a new fraternity house in 2002.

2014

Goodnight met his wife, Ann, while he was a senior at North Carolina State University and she was attending Meredith College. They have three children. Goodnight was America's 61st richest individual, with a net worth of approximately $7.3 billion, as of 2014.