Jade Hendricks on a mission to give back

Despite a 4.3 GPA in high school, teenage Jade Hendricks had no plans to go to college.

It was too expensive she thought, but tasked with writing a final paper on the value of a degree, Hendricks convinced herself to apply. However, she had two conditions: the school couldn’t be in Milwaukee and she would graduate debt free. She eventually met those conditions and in 2015 graduated with degrees in business and Spanish from Fisk University, a top-ranked HBCU in Nashville.

She had secured $600,000 in scholarships. After a “winding staircase” of corporate experiences, Hendricks settled at private real estate investment firm MLG Capital in Brookfield. In July 2022, just two years after being hired, she was promoted to assistant vice president of investor operations. 

Starting first as a branch analyst with Morgan Stanley Wealth Management in Chicago, she came home to Milwaukee as an associate with the accounting firm BDO USA in January 2019. A year later and right as the pandemic began to rage, Hendricks secured a hand-tailored position in investor relations with MLG.

“I wasn’t really looking for MLG, it kind of just landed in my lap,” Hendricks said. “MLG found me.”

Over the last few years, Hendricks has spearheaded the launch of the company’s updated investor portal and overseen the expansion of the company’s Making a Difference (MAD) Initiative, a way for investors to leverage their returns toward causes that champion youth financial literacy. 

Founded in 1987, MLG is a vertically integrated commercial real estate investment company that produces tax-advantaged cash flow and appreciation for high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors through a series of private real estate funds. Investors number in the thousands and span 49 states.

With over 800 employees, including affiliate agencies, the firm owns, manages and sells multi-family units, industrial buildings and office retail spaces. The Brookfield location houses about 90 employees, 60 of whom are directly employed by MLG. To date, MLG’s assets exceed $6.1 billion, covering more than 42.6 million square feet and including over 36,500 multi-family units. 

Real estate is MLG’s bread-and-butter, but it was a niche Hendricks had yet to explore. At Morgan Stanley, she worked in compliance, business development, DEI program management and would later craft wealth education training for the firm’s advisers. 

She originally returned to Milwaukee to pursue an MBA in nonprofit management. Instead, she joined the BDO USA team as an associate on contract. It was Hendricks’ involvement with Milwaukee’s SecureFutures, a student-focused financial literacy nonprofit, that led her to MLG Capital. 

Hendricks was active in the financial literacy and mentorship arena for years, having become a certified financial education instructor (CFEI) and working with over 100 students in two years while in Chicago. While volunteering with SecureFutures in Milwaukee, she met Nathan Clayberg, an MLG employee. David Binder, the firm’s senior vice president, arranged a lunchtime interview.

It was clear within the first moments of their meeting that MLG needed to find a place for her, Binder said. She’s constantly striving to learn.

“I think she’s always looking at ‘How do I,’ you know, ‘improve day-to-day, not only myself but what I can bring to the table,’ which is an amazing quality,” Binder said. 

Hendricks is especially passionate about helping young people become financial literate. MLG’s MAD Initiative is designed to allow investors to choose to donate all or a share of their returns to such a cause. The initiative started with Lifesong for Orphans in 2018 and, under Hendricks leadership, MAD now supports seven youth-focused programs including SecureFutures, Milwaukee College Prep School and St. Marcus Lutheran School. It’s a cause that goes deep for her. Investment commitments number $12.3 million with $164,000 already dispersed. 

Her grandparents helped her set up a savings account, but other than that, Hendricks’ single-parent home didn’t entertain many financial conversations. It was after she found out about her last scholarship on the day of her graduation from Messmer High School that Hendricks knew she would one day “bring it back.” 

In May 2022, Hendricks launched her entirely self-funded, “Building the Dream Scholarship,” a $1,000 award dispersed to a graduate from her high school. With time, she plans to expand it.

Inspired by her mom, Shantel, her manager, Binder, and grounded by her faith, Hendricks lives her life looking to add value wherever she can. 

"If I know that I can add value to a space,” Hendricks said, “if I can utilize my skills and gain new skills, and if I can make a difference in the work that I’m doing … wherever I go, whatever I do, I know I’m in the right place.”

Jade Hendricks