Front Office

Baltimore is the only NFL team to earn the playoffs each of the last four seasons (2008-11), and the Ravens won at least one postseason game each of those years. Under Steve Bisciotti’s leadership, the Ravens, who have made the playoffs five of the last six years, advanced twice to the AFC Championship game – last season and after the 2008 campaign – during this successful stretch.

Baltimore’s current four-consecutive playoff berths are a franchise record. “We’re proud of what we’re giving to Baltimore,” Bisciotti says. “You have to make the playoffs to have the opportunity to compete for championships, and championships are our goal.”

The passionate Bisciotti, who is 52 and the second-youngest owner in the NFL (to Washington’s Daniel Snyder - 47), bought a minority interest in the Ravens in 2000 from Art Modell and completed the purchase of the franchise on April 9, 2004. Steve’s initial investment to the team provided funds to secure free agents for the 2000 Super Bowl XXXV championship team.

When Bisciotti, now in his 13th year as an owner of the Ravens, hired John Harbaugh as the team’s head coach in January of 2008, some eyebrows were raised. Harbaugh had never been a head coach at any level. In fact, he had not been an offensive or defensive coordinator in the NFL. It was obviously the right choice. Baltimore advanced to the playoffs in its first four years with Harbaugh, who is the only modern day (since 1970) head coach to go to and win a playoff game in each of his first four seasons.

“I think leadership is difficult to define, but you can recognize leadership when you see it,” Bisciotti says. “We all saw something in John. And, you have to be willing to separate yourself from the masses – take some chances – to achieve great success. There’s probably a little bit more perception that we took a risk with John. We don’t think we did.”

In 2011, Baltimore (12-4) won the AFC North, sweeping the division and going undefeated at home for the first time in team history. The Ravens, who were the second seed with a first-round bye, defeated Houston 20-13 in the Divisional Playoff at home, but lost a heartbreaker in the AFC Championship game at New England (23-20). In 2010, the Ravens tied Pittsburgh with a 12-4 record, the best mark in the AFC North. Baltimore then dominated the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium with a 30-7 victory in the Wild Card round. In 2009, the Ravens completed a 9-7 regular season campaign and became the first team to win a playoff game at New England (33-14) since 1978. The 2008 Ravens earned an 11-5 regular season record and advanced to the AFC Championship game, where they lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Steelers.

(Since taking over as the Ravens’ owner, Bisciotti’s teams have earned the playoffs a total of five times, including the AFC’s second seed in 2006 with a 13-3 mark. His 2004 team finished with a 9-7 record, missing the playoffs by one game.)

Born in Philadelphia on April 10, 1960, Bisciotti moved with his family to Baltimore (Severna Park) in March of 1961 when Steve, the youngest of three children, was 11 months old. His father, Bernard, took the children to Orioles and Colts games. Sadly, Bernard died of leukemia when Steve was 8. His mother, Patricia, a huge Ravens’ fan, then raised the children.

After graduating from Salisbury (MD) State University with a degree in liberal arts in 1982, Bisciotti worked in the temporary help industry. In 1983 (he was 23), he started Aerotek with his cousin, Jim Davis. They offered aerospace and technology companies access to skilled temporary employees. Starting with two employees and two clients, Bisciotti and Davis produced $1.5 million in sales in the first year.

Aerotek grew into the Allegis Group, which currently is the largest privately-held staffing firm in the United States. The company, which is based just outside Baltimore and has offices throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe, has over 8,000 internal employees and 90,000 high-end contract workers. Allegis Group, which, like Steve, does little self promotion or publicity, places employees in positions from engineers to cable installers, to computer programmers, to marketing specialists.

Until he bought the Ravens, Bisciotti’s business success was not well known to the general public on a national level. In fact, it wasn’t even notable in the Baltimore area, where he and his partners kept a low profile. “I’m okay if I’m one of the least known owners in pro sports,” Bisciotti says.

Steve, an energetic visionary, quietly is dedicated to a number of important causes and projects, some associated with his deep Catholic faith. He is a board member for Catholic Charities. Most of Bisciotti’s extensive charity work and generous giving are done without public notice.

Bisciotti enjoys golfing, boating and is devoted to University of Maryland athletics, especially the men’s basketball team. He and his wife, Renée (Foote), are the parents of two sons, Jason, who owns a master’s in business, and Jack, who earned a degree in sports and entertainment management. Renée helped design the interior and selected the furnishings at the Ravens’ training complex. The family lives in Millersville, MD.

Bisciotti is pronounced Bih-SHAH-tee.