This week, correspondent Jon Wertheim profiled himself on 60 Minutes Steve Ballmerthe former CEO of Microsoft and current owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Ballmer is consistently ranked among the top billionaires in the world, but doesn’t live the high-flying life of some of his peers.

He bought a basketball team, which he admits is extravagant, but he has no superyacht, no new wardrobe and no new husband. And Ballmer gives away billions of dollars through a philanthropy he runs with his wife Connie called the Ballmer Group.

In an interview at their home in Washington, Steve and Connie Ballmer shared their views on that philanthropy.

Steve Ballmer, who retained most of his Microsoft shares after stepping down as CEO in 2014, has seen his fortune soar above $120 billion.

Connie Ballmer strongly believed that with all that happiness came responsibility.

She first presented the idea of ​​philanthropy to her husband a decade ago, but Steve said he was skeptical.

Essentially, he believed that the government could handle the distribution of resources in the US. He believed that the private sector could not match the effectiveness of government and change people’s lives on a national scale. He said Connie changed his thinking over time.

“The government provides almost all the money to help people. (But) philanthropy plays a role in helping provide proof points, proving where things are going, and intervening where the government doesn’t want to go,” Steve told Wertheim.

In 2015, the couple co-founded the Ballmer Group after Steve retired from Microsoft.

The Group’s mission is to improve economic mobility, especially for children and families in underserved communities.

“We were both incredibly lucky to have been born in this country at this time and to have so much privilege,” Connie told Wertheim. “Children have no voice. And they are not allowed to vote on where they were born and where they live.”

Her husband agrees. “Every child deserves a chance,” Steve said. “Not every child will be successful. But if you were born to parents who are less wealthy, you should still have the opportunity to pursue your dreams.”

To date, the Ballmers have given away about $7.4 billion in grants.

They have taken a cradle-to-career approach, investing in a wide range of charities: from early childhood and primary and secondary education to access and readiness for study, careers , workforce and housing initiatives.

In 2022, the Ballmer Group donated $175 million to a nonprofit called StriveTogether that connects local communities to a nationwide network. The two organizations can share data and find resources to improve educational and career outcomes for young people.

The Ballmers say they are especially connected to the communities they have personal ties to, such as Los Angeles County, home of the Clippers; Washington state, where they live; southeast Michigan, where Steve was born and raised; and Oregon, where Connie went to college.

Through philanthropy, the couple has pumped $15 million into Partnership for Los Angeles Schools and made a $24 million investment in the Boys and Girls Club of America.

In 2022, Connie’s alma mater, University of Oregon, was awarded a $400 million grant to establish the Ballmer Institute of Children’s Behavioral Health.

Wertheim asked the Ballmers what a “win” looks like and how they measure success.

“Every area is different,” Connie said. “(But) if we have less community violence. If we have more teachers of color in schools that need them. If we have more high school diplomas. When we are better prepared for kindergarten.”

At the end of the interview, Wertheim changed the subject. Steve already owns one professional sports franchise. Could there be another on the horizon?

“I told him he and his next wife would have a good time doing that,” Connie said with a laugh.

Steve Ballmer shot the idea down with a fit of laughter: “No, sir.”

“We have enough sports… I can give my passion to this. I can work on philanthropy.”

The video above was produced by Will Croxton. It was edited by Sarah Shafer Prediger.