Related’s Jeff Blau: The making of a CEO

Will the mega-developer's new chief be able to keep the company on top?

Jeff Blau is the Related Companies’ first CEO to succeed company founder Stephen Ross.
Jeff Blau is the Related Companies’ first CEO to succeed company founder Stephen Ross.

From the October issue: For many students, college is about streaking the quad and doing keg stands. For Jeff Blau, it was about doing deals.

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When the Long Island native was a sophomore at the University of Michigan, the school shut down its printing office to save money. So Blau set up a business producing course packs himself. Then he convinced his professors to let him hire their teaching assistants to take notes in their classes — and sold those notes to his classmates at a profit. As an undergrad, he was also involved in real estate, teaming up with a local contractor to buy single-family homes in Ann Arbor and subdivide them into student apartments. [more]