UC regents' powerhouse chief, Richard Blum

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 4/14/8 | Tanya Schevitz

[SmithL]

San Francisco financier Richard Blum has built his reputation - and his multimillion-dollar fortune - by swooping in and turning around troubled corporations. His first major coup was putting together a partnership in 1968 to buy the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus for about $8 million - and then selling it for $40 million four years later.

So it surprised no one that Blum adopted an alpha dog approach when he became chairman of the UC Board of Regents last year in the aftermath of the university's widely publicized management meltdown.

And he's gotten results: the imminent departure of a university president who was seen as ineffective, support for streamlining the university's bloated headquarters structure and the hiring of a new president with a strong administrative resume.

Blum's gangbusters style, however, has ruffled some in the university community, where people are used to a softer, more collegial approach.

Take the impending departure of UC President Robert Dynes, who was urged to leave by Blum during a private dinner in August. Only a handful of the 26 regents knew beforehand of Blum's move to ease Dynes out.

"It is the most important decision a board can make," said one regent who spoke on condition of anonymity. "It is just not the way you are supposed to run these kinds of things. This is not a corporate board. I just wish he could tackle some of these same issues with a little bit more grace."

Graceful or not, Blum can't be faulted for indecisiveness.

"My view of consensus management is that it gives everybody a veto, and one of the reasons you often don't get things done is because there is always somebody who has a reason for not wanting to do things," Blum said during a recent interview.

[SmithL]

Mr. Dianne Feinstein:

[NormsRevenge]

Made in China - well Made (a whole lot of money) in China. :-)

DiChiFi BumP

[calcowgirl]

Blum, Parsky, Wachter, Reiss.... If I were Dynes, I’d be happy to leave the crew!