If you want to be a billionaire or a politician, it is a great idea to go to Harvard Business School.
Since 1908, Harvard Business School has been the destination for some of the most successful people in the country, including Sheryl Sandberg, Robert Kraft, Michael Bloomberg, Ray Dalio, Meg Whitman, and more.
One of the sharpest people who graduated from HBS is Stephen Schwarzman. His net worth exceeds 37.4 billion, making him the 3rd richest person in New York and the 19th richest person in the country.
Who is Stephen Schwarzman?
Stephen Schwarzman is an American business executive, investor, and philanthropist.
Stephen Schwarzman was born on February 14, 1947, in Philadelphia. He grew up in a Jewish family. His father, Joseph Schwarzman, owned a good dry store in Philadelphia.
At 14, Stephen Schwarzman started a lawn-mowing business and employed his brother to mow lawns while focusing on customer acquisition.
At Yale, Schwarzman joined Skull and Bones.
He graduated from Yale University in 1969. While at Yale, he joined Skull and Bones, an undergraduate senior secret student society at the same time as George W. Bush.
Schwarzman understood that most of the educational experience at Yale takes place outside the cost room, so he was very intentional about joining organizations and meeting new people.
Schwarzman became a managing partner at Lehman Brothers at 31.
After college, he served in the U.S. Army Reserve for a short time before attending Harvard Business School and graduating in 1972.
Armed with his Harvard degree, Schwarzman worked at many investment banks, including Lehman Brothers. He became a managing director six years later and served as chairman of the mergers and acquisitions committee.
In 1985, Schwarzman partnered with his boss, Peter Peterson, and created The Blackstone Group, which focused on mergers and acquisitions, and a few years later, they expanded their services into real estate and direct lending.
Today, Blackstone is one of the world's leading investment firms, with $881 billion in Assets Under Management.
He plans to give his money away during his lifetime.
In philanthropy, as in business, Schwarzman enjoys tackling complex challenges that require thoughtful, creative solutions.
He views helping others as an obligation and as a privilege. In 2008, he donated $100 million to New York Public Library, and he continues to give a lot of his money away.
In 2015, he donated $150 million to Yale to create a world-class, state-of-the-art campus center, The Schwarzman Center. He also donated more than $100 million to create a scholarship program in China.
In 2020, he signed The Giving Pledge, giving most of his wealth to philanthropic causes.
"My philanthropy has brought a tremendous sense of joy and meaning to my life, and I anticipate I will find more ways to give back during my lifetime."
He is a megadonor for the Republican party.
He was a big critic of President Obama and compared his plan to raise taxes to a war and Hitler's invasion of Poland in 1939. However, according to the New York Times, President Obama invited Schwartzman and other business leaders to the White House "to rebuild relations with the business community in hopes of enlisting it in his showdown with Republicans in Congress over the looming fiscal crisis."
Schwarzman is a long-time friend of former President Donald Trump and provided him with counsel during his term.
In 2019, he made two big contributions of $500,000 to help Senator Susan Collins's re-election campaigns. In 2020, Schwarzman donated $10 million to the Senate Leadership Fund. In addition, he continues to be very engaged in supporting the Republicans to regain control of Congress.
Early this year, Stephen Schwarzman poured millions more into major GOP Super PACs, according to new campaign finance filings. He aims to help Senators build enormous cash reserves before the next 2022 mid-term election.
If you had his money, what causes would you support?
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