Omar Blaik is the President and CEO of U3 Ventures. Mr. Blaik was most recently the Senior Vice President of Facilities and Real Estate Services at the University of Pennsylvania. Omar joined the University in January 1997, and served as the Chief Planning and Real Estate Officer, with responsibility for Planning, Design and Construction, Facilities Operations and Maintenance, Utilities, and Real Estate Development. His responsibility spanned the management of 14 million square feet of space, $400 million of operating and capital budget and 1,000 employees.
During his tenure at Penn, Mr. Blaik led the effort to enhance the quality of life on campus and in the neighborhood by creating a vibrant and engaging environment for students, faculty, and staff. Under his management, Penn embarked on more than $2.0 billion of construction and real estate development transforming both campus and the surrounding community. These efforts have been recognized with prestigious awards. Penn has received the 2003 Urban Land Institute Award for Excellence for the West Philadelphia Initiatives, and 2001 and 2002 Business Week/AIA Award – Good Design is Good Business. In addition he directed a comprehensive energy conservation strategy that saved millions of dollars and won the 2002 EPA and Governor’s Awards for Environmental Efficiency. Under his direction Penn by the year 2006, has completed the largest purchase of wind energy by any university in the nation representing more than 20% of its annual usage. Mr. Blaik came to Penn from Coopers and Lybrand, were he led a team of consultants providing advisory services to Presidents, CEO’s, and Executive Vice Presidents in the areas of facilities planning, real estate, and capital programs. Mr. Blaik received his Bachelor of Science degree from Cairo University, his Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California, and his Master's in Business Administration from New York University, Leonard Stern School of Business.
Mr. Blaik is a nationally recognized speaker who regularly addresses the Urban Land Institute, American Association of Higher Education, National Association of College and University Business Officers, and Penn Institute on Urban Research. He is a member of the CEO's for Cities and a Fellow at the Institute for Urban Design. He currently serves on the boards of the International House, The Preservation Alliance, and the Fairmount Soccer League. Mr. Blaik is also a Lecturer in the School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania.
He lives in West Philadelphia with his wife Hazami, and two young sons Mazin and Jad. He enjoys playing and watching soccer.