Real Estate Career Advice, Million Mile Flyer, Life

You guys sent me quite a few requests for my "Advice to Real Estate Graduate Students" piece and have also gotten back at least one suggestion of an addition to it. "Great document!  My favorite was number 10.  "Be willing to learn from the ground up.  No attitude."  If I had to add my own, I'd say, "Ask questions.  You'll be amazed at how much you can learn by listening to people." A few of you who requested it have children who are about to enter the industry.  Others wrote telling me they would circulate it to members of their team and one university professor asked permission to reformat, and "White Label" the document and give it to his students.  Connectivity.  Collaboration.  Sharing.  Isn't that what it's all about?  Coincidentally, I've gotten a few invitations to come speak at graduate real estate programs about careers in real estate starting early in 2012.  I'm really looking forward to that.

Many thanks to those of you who wrote me about your company's summer intern program.  As I mentioned, I've had a number of very bright, very dedicated people approach me asking if I can help them connect with summer 2012 internship opportunities.  If your company has that program, please let me know.  

One company is:

National Capital Partners

Salt Lake City, Utah

Contact:  Randy Norton, Head of Research and Investments

randy@natcapfunds.com

801.618.2231 x. 103

Customer Appreciation?  This week, I opened an envelope from United Airlines.  Normally I just throw them away, unopened, as from experience I know they are solicitations for me to open a credit card account with them (if their systems actually worked, they'd know that I have been one of their credit card customers for a long time....it's a dynamic of customer service that is not lost just on them....it's the danger of using automated databases for 'mailings' etc.  You end up sending something intended for a non-customer to an existing customer.  How does that make the customer feel?  Appreciated?).  However, this envelope contained:

1.  My 1K (100,000 mile flyer) Card that expires January 2012 (why they would send me one that expires so soon I can't figure out)

2.  Free drink coupons (I usually give them to others)

3.  A note card, glossy faced and "signed" by the President of United's  frequent flyer program:  "Congratulations.  It is our privilege to recognize you as one of the distinct few to reach 1 Million LIfetime Flight Miles.  Thank you for your years of loyalty.  We are honored that you have chosen to travel on United."  Hmmm,  I looked back into the envelope to see if I had missed something.  Nope.  The free drink coupons came with my new frequent flyer card.  Perhaps they forgot to put in a coupon for a complimentary in-flight meal to thank me for the million miles?  Oh well, I'm sure that someone will appear at my door one of these days with a delivery of something that shows United's appreciation.  Not~  If I'm one of the 'distinct few' (however many thousands of people that is) wouldn't you think that they'd do something special for me?  Do I see an opportunity here for a "Customer Appreciation" consultant?

I found a wonderful resource this week.  It's a site created by James DeLisle, Ph.D.  Among other great resources it offers a number of "cases and tutorials to help students and other interested parties master various skill sets for real estate."  Jim is the Runstad Professor of Real Estate and Director of Graduate Real Estate Studies in the College of Built Environments at The University of Washington (State of Washington vs. Washington, DC). P.S.  I love visual image that "College of Built Environments" suggests.  

One of our OTR community members wrote me this week and reminded me of a story.  Here it is:

There were three people laying bricks in Paris. A curious passer-by went to one of them who was looking quite tired and was laying the bricks one at a time in a sloppy manner. In all his curiosity, the man asked him “what are you doing?” The visibly tired man replied quite angrily, “Can’t you see, I am laying bricks.” The passer-by, still curious, approached the next man who was working faster but was still a little sloppy. The man asked what he was doing and the man said “Can’t you see I am building a wall”. Finally, the passerby asked that last man who man who seemed to be enjoying laying bricks and asked the same question, ”What are you doing.” The man looked up and with pride said, ”I am building a cathedral.”

She also added this, which, I pass along to you in the spirit that many (dare I say all) of us look in the mirror from time to time (I've been doing that a lot lately) and these type reminders are very poignant.  

"Attitude and goals are the difference between whether you will win or you will lose. Whether you are moving in the right direction or the wrong direction. Whether you have set up right goals for you or you need to change directions. Also more importantly whether you will enjoy your life and add happiness in others life in both work and play or you will complain that no one cares for you. This will make a huge difference between whether you will love and live your life, have passion and how you will spend it."

Congratulations to my friend Alexia Gottschalch who has taken over as co-CEO for Grosvenor's US fund business.

Congratulations to the Kenan-Flagler (University of North Carolina) team which took first place in the 2011 Real Estate Challenge hosted by the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin.

On the road....

Nov. 30-Dec. 2:  Chicago to attend NCREIF's Nuts & Bolts of Institutional Real Estate 2.0 program.

Dec. 12-16:  New York

(On December 12, I invite you to join me at my "Not quite annual, buy your own, commercial real estate holiday drink thing."  I'll be at the Russian Vodka Room (north side of 52nd Street between Broadway and 8th Avenue) starting at 6pm.  If you're in New York and have time, please stop by.  It's likely to be an eclectic bunch of commercial real estate people (and some other random folks).  Hope to see you there.

Jan. 18-20:  Laguna Beach, CA to attend IMN's Winter Forum on Real Estate Opportunity & Private Fund Investing.

Jan. 25, 2012:  London to attend and moderate a panel at the Thompson Reuters Global Property Outlook 2012 

Jan. 30-Feb. 1:  Scottsdale, AZ to attend IREI's VIP Conference.

Photo:  Somewhere in the vast Los Angeles Convention Center

Please pass this along to others who may not be receiving it now.  The more subscribers I can get to OTR the more it'll help with a project I'm working on.  I alluded to this a couple of weeks ago and some of you asked me about the project.  While I don't have the 'elevator pitch' down yet, it's something I've been developing since 2005 and involves all of you, in fact everyone in the commercial real estate business around the globe!  I'll share more with you as things evolve but for now....Thanks!

These are my views and not that of my employer.

Summer Internships, The Ones In Between, Thanksgiving

Summer internships:  If your firm takes on summer interns please let me know.  I have been asked by a few top-notch students if I could help them connect to find one...both in the U.S. and Europe.  Thanks.  BTW, in preparing some years back for a tour of Graduate Real Estate Programs and speaking with those students about careers in real estate, I reached out to a number of my industry friends and asked them "What advice would you give a graduate student who is  focused on the real estate industry?  I've been invited to visit some of these programs again in 2012 and have pulled out that document and will be handing it out to the groups I talk with. I'd be happy to send you a copy.  Just email me (steve@simplicate.com) with the word "Advice" in the subject box.

Here are a few websites I added to my "Bookmarks" this week.  I hope you find one or more of interest:

1.  The Domino Project 

2.  Songs that made you feel good 
3.  Meaning & Heart
4.  Bondi's Blogspace 

Someone sent me this years ago.  I re-discovered it poking through some document folders and wanted to share it with you.

" The Ones in Between" 

When the road we walk on
is sometimes rough
or is it that we suddenly
take away all what is not necessary
shoes, boots or high hills
from  which we easily fall
i suddenly prefer the thrill
to walk on my bare feet
to feel each imperfection of the street
to know each things i did right or wrong
to learn from each mistake
nor to be rich nor to be strong
but just to be  human again

like the first day , like the last
and all the ones in between

The U.S. will celebrate it's Thanksgiving Day next Thursday.  Canada, already celebrated theirs.  While it's roots (no pun intended) were about celebrating a good harvest, it's become a holiday where families and friends get together to eat, enjoy each other and in some neighborhoods, play touch football.  As a holiday, it can be a time for personal reflection as well.  In challenging times like these, that's not a bad thing to do once in a while and maybe, just like it's suggested that you replace the battery in your smoke detector every year on a holiday, it's important to rediscover "the things worth being, a search that many neglect while striving to obtain the things worth having." (Meyer Friedman, Type A Behavior and Your Heart). My family is spread out geographically and while we'll be together in spirit we won't be able to be physically together next week.  I wish you and your family a happy Thanksgiving and just want to let you know how grateful I am to you for being part of the global community that has been created around this weekly column.  Thank you.

On the road....

Nov. 30-Dec. 2:  Chicago to attend NCREIF's Nuts & Bolts of Institutional Real Estate 2.0 program.

Dec. 8-9:  Chicago for various meetings

Dec. 12-16:  New York

(On December 12, I invite you to join me at my "Not quite annual, buy your own, commercial real estate holiday drink thing."  I'll be at the Russian Vodka Room (north side of 52nd Street between Broadway and 8th Avenue) starting at 6pm.  If you're in New York and have time, please stop by.  It's likely to be an eclectic bunch of commercial real estate people (and some other random folks).  Hope to see you there.

Jan. 18-20:  Laguna Beach, CA to attend IMN's Winter Forum on Real Estate Opportunity & Private Fund Investing.

Jan. 25, 2012:  London to attend and moderate a panel at the Thompson Reuters Global Property Outlook 2012 

Jan. 30-Feb. 1:  Scottsdale, AZ to attend IREI's VIP Conference.


Manney Felix-May 1, 1917-November 19, 2009

Photo:  San Francisco Bay Bridge.

These are my views and not that of my employer.

PERE Forum; Presentation plea; Joe Frazier

"Real estate investors are comfortable sitting on the sidelines."

"We're in for a long, cold winter that will last through 2012 into 2013."

"Every recap deal is a nail biter."

"Until the CMBS market stabilizes it's hard for buyers of single assets to see how they will recapitalize somewhere down the road."

"We're selling everything that looks or smells like core."

"The vault has been opened and the 'good stuff' is coming out-quality real estate marked down-good opportunities for the next 3-4 years."

I heard heavyweight members of our industry say these things this week-a combination of optimism and pessimism but what is reality?  The audience at the PERE Forum in New York was attentive and engaged.  It was great to see so many young real estate professionals in the audience and they were treated to one of the best programs I've seen (or been part of) in years.  Kudos to Zoe, Arleen, Nicole and Erik at PERE who pulled the program together.  Also, the venue they used was terrific and I highly recommend it (Sentry Centers, 730 Third Avenue, NY.  Contact person there is Chris Ryter (cryter@sentrycenters.com).

I've mentioned Reutersrealestate.com to you before but got a chance to poke around the site this week.  There's a bunch of information including analytics and slides you can use in your own presentations.  There are free research reports from some of the top commercial real estate industry service providers.  This site is in Beta test mode for now.  It's a good time to take advantage of it...and it's free!

Some stuff from The Recovery at a Crossroads piece published this week by Asieh Mansour, Head of Americas Research at CBRE:   

-Recent evidence confirms our view that the U.S. will avoid a recession.

-The Canadian domestic economy is performing well.  Both business and consumer spending are expected to make modest headway this year.

-The outlook for economic growth in Brazil has downshifted.

Africa.  It's a word I've heard several times in the past two weeks in relation to where will the next real estate/infrastructure investing opportunities be.  There are certainly some compelling reasons to take a look at Africa as a continent and more specifically certain countries.  Like with everything, there will be those who are 'early', just like when any investment market emerges.  Think back to when U.S. institutional investors first started going abroad (i.e. Europe).  It wasn't that many years ago.  But, if we want to live up to our own self-billing as a global industry we need to keep looking for those countries/markets where our capital can both make a difference and can provide a reasonable return on our investments.  As many of you know, my only personal experience with Africa was my time in Liberia, now five years ago, working with needy children and experiencing a third-world country, up close and personal, for the first time.  But listening to a presentation last week by a firm looking to raise capital for investment in Africa has gotten me thinking.....  

On Wednesday, I attended the first American breakfast meeting sponsored by PIE (Property Investor Europe) in New York.  Allan Saunderson, the fellow behind this publication and I have known each other a number of years.  He's got a good sense of what's going on in the European commercial real estate industry.  Due to a prior commitment I could only stay for part of the first panel which included my friends, Lee Neibart (AREA Property Partners) and Bob White (Real Capital Analytics).   Bob gave a little overview presentation that fueled the conversation.  Here's what I took away:

1.  Europe:  Better 3Q than expected.

2.  Clear investor favorites have emerged:  Germany, France, Nordics (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden).

3.  Cross-border capital is looking at taking on more risk.

4.  Industrial and peripherals are offering attractive yields.

5.  Trophy retail malls attracting interest as are regional markets in the UK.

6.  Europe deal volume is halfway back from 2007 peak;  U.S.  is nowhere near halfway back.

And a few quotes from others:

1. "Italy is the last country that real estate investors are thinking about today."

2. "The Nordics are considered to be one of the best places to invest."

3.  "The personality of equity capital has not changed much over the past five years."

An open letter to presenters of any type: 

If you use statistics in your presentation/speech (and this is particularly obvious when you use PPT slides...which as you know from earlier writings I feel is the most abused technology tool known to mankind) please update your information periodically.  Making any presentation today, for example, with data from 2008, 2009 is absolutely unacceptable. You owe it to your audience to have current data.  Making the excuse, "I've been too busy to update the information" is an insult to the audience.  And, as 2010 comes to a close, as soon after year-end as the data in your 'one size fits all' presentation becomes available, you have an obligation to update it.  Whether you realize it or not, people in the audience notice it...they won't be as vocal as me, but it doesn't make you look good at all.  

Joe Frazier, the former heavyweight champion of the world, died this week at 67.   My father's was a boxing family (except for him).  A couple of this older brothers not only fought in the streets of Brooklyn and the Lower East Side, they also fought professionally.  The one who went the furthest was Harry Felix, the oldest brother, who fought for food money for the family and was at one point a middle-weight contender (before an opponent 'thumbed' his eye and ended his career).  Another of my fathers' brothers, Barney, was a referee who officiated a number of major bouts including the first Liston/Clay fight when the title was transferred for the first time to Cassius Clay soon to become Muhammad Ali.  My Dad liked watching boxing on TV right up to his death on November 19, 2009. But over the years things had changed in the boxing world (as in all other sports) and he more often than not referred to some of the fighters on TV as 'bums.'  That term apparently referred to boxers who were brawlers and not fighters or other definitions of his own creation.  During the period when Ali was banned from boxing due to his stand as a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War, he went on a college speaking tour.  At that time I was the sports editor of our school weekly newspaper.  When he came to our school, I was invited to the press conference held before he spoke to the general audience.  I asked him, "Champ, do you think Joe Frazier could ever beat you?"   Ali replied, without skipping a beat, "Son, if Frazier even dreamed of beating me, he would wake up apologizing!"  Joe Frazier was no bum. Frazier, in his quiet, workmanlike way, brought some class into the ring every time he entered it.  He exuded quiet confidence.  He was a class act.

OTR news:  There have been some people starting to follow OTR on Twitter as well as through the Linkedin.com OTR group.  I am trying to increase the number of subscribers. There's a reason behind it but I can't tell you about that just yet.  So, if you have had this forwarded to you and are not a subscriber please sign up.  Also, if you are so inclined I'd appreciate you sending this to others and asking them to sign up as well.  Thanks a lot.

Steve
Publishing from somewhere between New York and California in 'The Friendly Skies."

On the road....

Nov. 15:  San Francisco to moderate the panel at JPMorgan's "The New Investment Climate:  Fostering Transparency from Front to Back Office." It's an important topic and I'm particularly pleased that a good friend, Don Holcher, who spent many years with the City & County of San Francisco Employees Retirement System, is one of the panelists.  

Nov. 30-Dec. 2:  Chicago to attend NCREIF's Nuts & Bolts of Institutional Real Estate 2.0 program.

Dec. 8-9:  Chicago for various meetings. 

Dec. 12-16:  New York 

(On December 12, I invite you to join me at my "Not quite annual, buy your own, commercial real estate holiday drink thing."  I'll be at the Russian Vodka Room (north side of 52nd Street near 8th Avenue -small black awning) starting at 6pm.  If you're in New York, and have time, please stop by.  Last year we had 45 people and while I knew most everyone, I love when I can help bring people together who have never met each other and who work in the same industry.  Hope to see you then/there.  No RSVP necessary).  

Jan. 18-20, 2012:  Laguna Beach, CA to attend IMN's Winter Forum on Real Estate Opportunity & Private Fund Investing 

Jan. 25, 2012:  London to attend the Reuters Real Estate Annual Real Estate Conference and moderate a panel and to visit a good friend who is recovering in a hospital in Geneva.

These are my views and not that of my employer.  

Counselors of Real Estate, Tent Cities, 70 year olds talk about their lives

This week I attended the CRE (Counselors of Real Estate) annual convention in Washington, DC.  One thing that surprised me as I made my way around the city was the number of tent cities connected to the "Occupy Wall Street" movement.  I hadn't been following this story much but I asked a few folks what the purpose was and it sounds to me like a very disjointed effort with different people 'protesting' about different things.  Just like in the 60's and early 70's, the reason that change could not be effected then, and now, is that people cannot get behind just one cause at a time.  If we could elected officials would be forced to sit up and take notice and take action.  But they knew then, and now too, that if they just sit back and do nothing the effort will evaporate due to lack of single purpose.  

Anyway, I may have written this before but I want to say it again:  The Counselors of Real Estate is a bunch of knowledgeable, talented, successful real estate professionals who also happen to be very nice. Egos are checked at the door and the collaborative, nay, totally friendly environment that exists at their events is a breath of fresh air.   The CRE Consulting Corps case studies are fascinating and global.  The debates about key issues affecting the commercial real estate industry are stimulating. And the collegial atmosphere is special.  They are openly welcoming of new members and guests.  I am proud to be a member and appreciate Geof Dohrmann of IREI who nominated me to be considered for membership.

Some takeaways from a presentation from a well-known and respected industry strategist:

• "Those of us who don't live within The Beltway (Washington, DC area) don't really understand what's happening."
• "Today money is  basically free."
• "Maybe its' time for radical answers."
• "The other shoe?  Forget about commercial real estate, it's state and local governments....and it's dropping."
• "State and local governments had always been an engine of growth...but no more."

The more people, of all ages, that I talk with, the more two things are clear: (1) Things are changing on a daily basis globally; (2)  No one really knows what is going on or what to expect.  Uncertainty, about  most anything in our lives, creates stress.  Stress is not healthy.  But now, in addition to personal stress, we have an inordinate amount of Earth-stress, challenges to our basic way of life and to the future of our planet.  I've always admired the 'big thinkers', those that don't get bogged down in the day to day stuff.  I haven't been hearing much from these people lately, in fact, I'm not even sure who will go down in history from this period as a truly big and forward thinker.  Right now, I'm focused on the small things but I am not sweating them.  However, I recall Steve Winwood's voice when he and Traffic recorded, "Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring?"  Let's put our collective mental energy together towards a better tomorrow for our selves and our children's children children (Moody Blues).

New York Times columnist, David Brooks, wrote in one of his columns this week, "If you are over 70, I’d like to ask for a gift. I’d like you to write a brief report on your life so far, an evaluation of what you did well, of what you did not so well and what you learned along the way."  He got more than 200 comments submitted pretty darn quickly.  I like this kind of life stuff so went through those comments and pulled out some things that I found interesting and I hope you do too:

• The United States, for the past 70 years, has been a place of soaring optimism, where things always got better. So 70 year olds today, for the most part, can recall fondly their past lives (despite any foolish risks they took)--because today they are still much better off than when they were growing up.   But it is now possibe to contemplate that the US has peaked, and life in the United States, today, may be the best the younger generation will ever experience. 
• Don't try to prove things to other people, especially your parents and friends, try to prove a few things to yourself. Try to balance being responsible with the grand adventure that life can be while also making a positive contribution. Our existence on this tiny planet is a miracle, don't waste it.
• Aim high and see how far you can go. Learn from everything and everyone, all the time. Be self critical only when it can help you grow, not as a force of habit. Realize, too, that everyone before you who accomplished something grand started out with doubts, fears and doubters saying it couldn't be done. Live your dreams because, otherwise, you will have to watch while someone else does it in your stead.
• I have learned that I don't know anything, don't understanding anything, and never will. Far from making me despondent, this has been a big relief. I also realize that no-one else knows anything or understands anything, especially the "experts" - a word I think should always be in quotation marks. Trust your own judgment more than you trust anyone else's. Even the honest and well-intentioned can lead you astray, and most certainly they do not have your well-being at heart as much as you do.

These are just a few. If you like this kind of stuff here is the link to the page where all the comments are posted.  It's a pretty interesting read.  

RCA’s 3Q2011 Europe Capital Trends report was recently published.  Here are a few of their conclusions:

• Despite the economic and financial market turbulence European investment activity continues to improve.  Countries showing an improvement in transaction volume, notably Germany, France, Nordics and Central Europe are increasingly being driven by cross-border capital.
• Prime retail continues to perform strongly, with office volume flat year-over-year. Hotels also posted robust gains, while large transactions boosted the apartment and in­dustrial sectors.
• While London and Paris still boast the larg­est volume, many other cities now are drawing a larger percentage of cross-border investment.
• The most significant changes in the sources of these global inflows have come from Asia and Can­ada, with their investment activity in Europe reach­ing or surpassing peak levels.
• US investors, while comprising half of global capital flows into Europe, acquired just €14.7b over the past 12 months, a frac­tion of 2007 levels. 

To me, Canada is the story to watch as they have become a very aggressive investor in direct real estate in many parts of the world.  

Congratulations to my friend Julian Schiller who joined Brookfield Asset Management as senior vice president at the firm’s global private funds group in London.

Cool stuff of the week:  ArX Solutions.  Terrific animation company. This art/technology has really evolved since I was first exposed to it at the MIPIM conference in about 2004.  

Photo:  Six of the 17 CRE Band members at rehearsal studio earlier this week preparing for the show last night at the Chairman's Gala Dinner where John Leary handed the Chairman's title to Ken Riggs.  It was a really fun night.

On the road....

Nov. 4-11:  New York

Nov. 9-10:  PERE Forum in New York where I'll be moderating a panel called "LPs: Far from Limited).  My panelists:  Tom Arnold, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority; Steve Hason, APG Asset Management; David Rose, HewittEnnisKnupp and Bill Bowman, former senior portfolio manager for an institutional investment management company.  There is still time to sign up and be there.

Nov. 15:  San Francisco to host a discussion sponsored by JP Morgan's Private Equity and Real Estate Services Group on "The New Investment Climate:  Fostering Transparency from Front to Back Office."  

Nov. 30-Dec. 2:  Chicago to attend NCREIF's 'Nuts & Bolts of Institutional Real Estate 2.0.'

Dec. 12-16:  New York (Including my "Not quite annual holiday buy your own drink holiday drink thing."  Date, time and location TBA.  Stay tuned.

Jan. 25:  London to moderate a panel at the annual Reuters Real Estate Conference.

These are my views and not that of my employer.

ULI, Emerging Trends, The Beach Boys

This week, at the last minute, I decided to attend the ULI Fall Conference in Los Angeles.  +/-6,000 commercial real estate industry people and as diverse a group as you can imagine which spans the entire spectrum of commercial real estate were there.  I ran into a good number of people I knew including two that I haven't seen in a dogs' age.  ULI/pwc also released the legendary Emerging Trends 2012 report authored by my good friend, Jonathan Miller.  The findings are based on opinions of trends for 2012 gained in more than 950 interviews (including me for the first time!) or surveys . The release presentation featured Jonathan, Mitchell Roschelle and Chuck DiRocco of pwc and one of the most savvy guys in the commercial real estate industry,  ULI Senior Fellow (and long time good friend) Steve Blank.

• "Demand drivers don't exist and fundamentals need to catch up."
• "Is it global chaos or crisis?"
• "Dysfunctional government."
• "Too much capital chasing too little product."
• "No refinancing emergency."
• "Pension funds:  Talk-Seek income returns.  Walk-Shout for more opportunistic returns to fill liability gaps; the denominator effect is back."
• "Foreign investors:  The U.S. looks relatively safe compared to their home countries."
• "Most U.S. markets have stopped deteriorating but most haven't really improved."
• "Most 'walkable' cities are doing better (NY, San Francisco, Boston, Seattle, DC, San Jose, Austin)-check this out."
• "Caution rules-it's not the time to be "all in"-investors should maintain liquidity."
• "Holders and sellers may do better than buyers."

One interesting sidenote:  It appears that the word 'tenant' is gone from our lexicon.  It's been replaced by 'occupier' which is the term used by our British friends.  Can it be long before "z" is replaced by "s?" and what about that 'u?'

One ULI panel that was of particular interest to me was where very senior leaders of CBRE, C&W, JLL and Colliers shared their thoughts on commercial real estate service companies.  Here are a few of their comments:

• Clients want 
• more integration of  services
• more information
• their problems solved
• a broad range of services
• consistency and quality of services
• targeted solutions that create value
• customized solutions to their needs
• From the service company perspective
• Winners will be those firms able to bundle services, align them and price them properly
• Services where one size fits one vs. one size fits all are key
• You can't just offer services; you have to be really good at what you offer
• Be able to offer strategic advice for the lifetime of an asset
• Clients don't care how we do it; they just want their needs met
• Young people joining our organization have less of an entitlement issue

There was another panel, apropos of the Gender Networking piece I quoted (and a bunch of you asked  me to send you the whole article) last week, made up of all women.  The dynamics were much different from all-male panels.  Even the way some things were said shows the differences between how women and men do and say things. The subject focused on doing business globally.  A few quotes:

• "We want to find opportunities we can believe in." 
• "There's no difference between doing business in Galveston, TX in the late 70's and going into Brazil now."
• "There is only one time that the world is globalizing and that's now and I want to be part of it."
• "I love operating cross-border because people will pay you for it."
• "In the Western world you negotiate a pre-nup before you get married; in China you work out the details afterwards."
• "Don't forget:  Americans think linear; Chinese think circular."
• "You have to know what makes the other person tick."
• "In China, there's a lot of domestic money searching for knowledge."

At ULI, a former boss of mine and I were catching up when a former boss of his ambled up with his sons who are also in the industry.  I had not met this fellow before but he was introduced first as Jim.  And then in a few minutes, Jim's other 'titles' came out:  "Godfather of the Workout", "Pioneer of Asset Swaps" and "Jimmy the Magician."  Having been involved in workouts for so long myself I don't know why I hadn't heard of him.   He's a guy that I could see sharing workout stories with for hours and hours.  In my career I have worked for (although never met as he lived somewhat like a recluse), the original sale/leaseback "King" and others who have been pioneers in the industry.  I've also met some who claim to have been pioneers but they are cut from a different cloth.  It's one thing when others give refer to you a certain way versus how you refer to yourself.  Anyway,  we had a great time for those few minutes and that is why I love attending conferences and other industry events so much...that random connection that you remember for a long time.

Last item about ULI:  They hired Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys to perform.  Listening to Brian and his great back-up band go through hit after hit after hit, so true to the original recordings, sent chills down my spine.  Brian, as brilliant as he is, has had a difficult life.  Seeing him, on stage, leading that band was really, really special.  

Personal note:  My heartfelt thanks to all of you who wrote to me or talked with me at the PREA and ULI conferences about the upcoming changes in my career announcement that was sent out by my employer, Aviva Investors.  I appreciate all the offers of assistance and support.  I'm having some very interesting conversations about different things but have determined that whatever I do I'm going to be true to myself.  Recently, I've begun to appreciate and understand who I am and what that would mean to what I do going forward.  Conveniently, many of my friends see me in the same way I see myself.  Phew!  Anyway, I will be in my current position until the end of the year.  We are looking for recapitalization deals (fund, joint ventures, etc.).  Please feel free to contact me if you have something which is up that alley.  Thanks.

Photo:  A really interesting thing at the ULI Convention.  "Reimagine Wilshire" by James Rojas.  "An interactive model that invites participants to explore and reshape this Los Angeles street to fit their ideas.  Participants will be provided with a medley of recycled materials ranging from colored (no 'u' yet!) and popsicle sticks and discarded metal and bottle tops.  Using these materials, they will create their ideal urban forms on a plot plan of Wilshire Blvd. that will change and develop throughout the course of this exhibition."  Fun eh?  No, these pieces are not edible!

On the road....

Nov. 2-3:  Washington, DC to attend the Counselors of Real Estate (CRE) annual convention and play once again with the "CREatures of Havoc" band.

Nov. 4-11:  New York

Nov. 9-10:  PERE Forum in New York where I'll be moderating a panel called "LPs: Far from Limited).  My panelists:  Tom Arnold, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority; Steve Hason, APG Asset Management; David Rose, HewittEnnisKnupp and Bill Bowman, former senior portfolio manager for an institutional investment management company.  There is still time to sign up and be there.

Nov. 30-Dec. 2:  Chicago to attend NCREIF's 'Nuts & Bolts of Institutional Real Estate 2.0.'

Dec. 12-16:  New York

Jan. 25:  London to moderate a panel at the annual Reuters Real Estate Conference.

These are my views and not that of my employer. 

PREA, Animal Murder, Networking: Women v. Men

This week, along with more than 900 of my closest friends, I attended the PREA Fall Conference in Chicago.  It's the semi-annual get-together of the institutional real estate world.  One smart change this year is that on the first day, after the PREA "official" reception, a number of managers joined forces for an "invitation only" cocktail party (see venue comment below).  Heretofore (is that really a word?) there have been several competing cocktail parties with everyone trying to attract the same 34 people (you know who you are!).  So, this is sensible and seems to indicate that there is a more collaborative feel these days which also runs to collaboration in taking down deals rather than competing and driving prices up.  I hope this is true as I believe that collaboration is the future (along with "Alternate Merge" which I am also a big believer in...and not just on the road).

So what did I take away from the PREA conference?

-Definitely less interest in commingled funds and more towards co-investment & club deals.

-Clear concern about the state of the world economies and politics and their current and future impact

-More 'new' managers getting into the game (these are typical real estate operating companies that have not approached institutional investors about investing with them).

-Still a lot of interest in investing in 'distress' in one way, shape or form

-Valid interest from U.S. institutional investors in investing with established managers in Asia and Europe

-Caution.  I wish I could say cautious optimism but I didn't sense too much optimism; sort of a 'what it is, it is' feeling.

-Consensus that we are not out of the woods and uncertainty about when things would start feeling good again

-Desire to keep things simpler rather than more complicated

A good industry friend of mine shared this with me about PREA:

There was a European cloud over the conference and I must say the mood I sensed is “frustrated.”   LPs are looking for distributions from older vintage investments,  GPs are looking for commitments, and people don’t seem to have much optimism.    

How many of you besides me had tears flood their eyes when reading or seeing the murder of animals that had been let loose by their cowardly and warped owner in Ohio this week?  The police defended their actions (Don't they always?)  I know, some animal rights people said the police had no choice.  Sorry.  Some local police force who were completely unprepared for anything like this just reveled in being big game hunters for a few moments.  Why couldn't all or at least a majority of those animals been tranquilized and saved instead of being killed?  In killing those animals, aren't we killing ourselves as well-aren't we all animals, trying to survive on the same planet, bring our off-spring into this crazy world and praying that mankind will not destroy itself?  How sad.   Who will save our souls? And, how dare that guy that owned these animals...letting them out....dooming them.

"All about Steve:"  For those that got my announcement last week or saw the article in PERE about my job situation, I appreciate your support as I received a overwhelming and heartwarming number of emails, wishing me well and offering to help in however they could.  At the PREA conference as well, so many people asked me what I was going to do next.  I can't tell you how that made me feel.  I am thinking about what the next chapter in my career should be, looking at myself and trying, as one friend told me, "to be my own career coach."  Part of that exercise is that I'm learning to appreciate myself more.  Also, to sit down and make a list of what I'm good at, what I like to do and how to combine those two into making a living.  There are a few very interesting conversations I'm having as we speak.  But, because this is a very important time in my career and my life ("Is there any other kind," Jack Nicholson would say to me (stolen and adapted from "A Few Good Men.") I want to take my time and do the right thing.  I'm looking at another 15 years of full-time work.  My father was very proud of working full-time until he was "79 and a half" as he used to tell people.  15 years is still a healthy chunk of time and ideally I'd like to get into something that will take me to 2026!   And, be true to myself.  Anyway, stay tuned!

Within the past few months (this is all about me right  :-) more and more people have been asking me, "So what's up with your music?"  The answer is this:  After more than two years in the making, our next CD, "Robot Mannequin" will be available before the end of the year.  This is another collaboration between my sons and I and an all-star cast of Chicago-based musicians.  "What kind of music is it?"  Impossible to describe as all songs different!

My good friend, Barbara Fish, is a career counselor based in Toronto.  Actually she and I were both summer camp counselors together years ago.  Camp counselor/Career counselor.  Hmmm, maybe they're connected?  Oh well, last week she forward me a piece called The networking gender gap and how to bridge it.  While there are few things in life that we can all agree on,  I know one of them is that, well, men and women are just plain different.  It's part of the attraction (I think).  Anyway, here are some snippets from that piece (If you'd like the whole article just email me with the word "Networking" in the subject box).

-Networking observers say that for men, networking is largely about selling themselves or a product, or trading information. They want their conversation to lead to a tangible result, such as a business lead, a sale or an introduction. They get straight to the point.

-Women, on the other hand, will often initiate an exchange with a pleasantry or a compliment (“Love your shoes”) and will converse on a range of subjects, regardless of potential professional benefits. Rather than thinking quid pro quo, they think “How can I help her? How can I connect?” One networking commentator on Linkedin put the difference succinctly: Men “start with a statement of their status ... Women create community.”

-Another key difference is that women use networks for what psychologists call “social comparison,” a process by which we understand ourselves and learn how to behave by comparing our attitudes and behaviors with those of others. 

-Sadly, women often don’t take advantage of their ability to connect. Here’s where they can take a lesson from the guys. Whereas men talk matter-of-factly about their accomplishments, women tend to undersell themselves lest they be seen as boastful. Or where a man might bluntly ask, “Could you please introduce me to ... ?” women are so nuanced about asking for assistance that a person whose help they seek might not even realize a request has been made.

Interesting stuff, right?

New:  NCREIF Research Center:  Jeff Havsy, Director of Research for NCREIF told me that there's a new 'button' on the top right hand side of their  home page.  This is a new section on the NCREIF website designed to answer a question that was posed by or to Jeff or one of the other members of the staff.  One piece that's posted is called Cap Rate:  Please Explain!  A really good value-add service to the industry.

New Book:  Real Estate Mathematics will be published next week by PEI Press.  "Real Estate Mathematics is a detailed and practical guide for private real estate fund managers and investors. Edited by David Lynn and Tim Wang of Clarion Partners, this guide features contributions from over 25 leading real estate professionals in the industry today that will shed light on some of the most challenging arithmetical problems that face private real estate today."  Congratulation you guys.

Restaurant of the week:  Sunda, 110 W. Illinois, Chicago, IL.  A multi-manager hosted cocktail party on Monday evening brought me to this place for the first time.  When you walk in, the dramatic design suggests an immediate, "Wow."  To call it Asian-Fusion is not fair; yes, there is a serious sushi bar but it's also a lot more than just sushi.  Actually, just go there.  Ask for Nicole who is the Director of Sales and Marketing and enjoy yourself.  Oh, did I mention that it's one of the hippest places in Chicago?

Congratulations to my friends Bob Weaver who is joining TPG Capital and Roman Bas who joined The Carlyle Group.

My, and I know the industry's, sincere condolences,  to the family of Keith Brown of Klaff Realty in Chicago who passed away recently.  Too young.  Too soon.  

Take care and safe travels.

Steve

Photo:  Sign at San Francisco International Airport.  I got a kick out of the last item.

On the road....

Nov. 4-11: New York including moderating a panel at the PERE Forum 

Nov. 15:  San Francisco to moderate a panel for JPMorgan

Jan. 18-20:  Laguna Beach, CA to attend the IMN Opportunity and Private Fund Conference

These are my views and not that of my employer.

Fall Conferences, Seth Godin, Tap Dancing

It's interesting:  This morning I sent an email out to a large group.  The number of "Out of Office" automated replies was surprising in some ways but in other ways it wasn't...it's just indicative of how much traveling people are still doing (or are they?).  Yes, this time of year there are all kinds of conferences and while the bean-counters in many firms have clamped down on travel expenses, when there's a "Must Attend" conference or meeting, people still should be permitted to go.  Our industry manages gazillions of dollars of money invested in real estate, much of it wisely invested for the benefit of retired people who are counting on getting their monthly check (I wonder what that would be like!).  Anyway, to seriously limit those folks that are managing that money from attending any/all conferences that they believe are important to them doing their job properly (and learning something along the way that may help them do their job even better) seems to me to be penny wise and pound foolish.

Some of my takeaways from one of the most stimulating sessions I've attended in quite a while given at the CBRE Americas Summit last week by Lara O’Connor Hodgson:

• What happens when what we know gets in the way of what we notice?
• “Why” is what you notice.
• “What” is what you know.
• We stop asking “Why?” because we're afraid to let people know that we don’t know something.
• Be a contrarian
• What would I never do?
• Defiance
• That won’t work-so how can I make it work?
• Creative Reconstruction
• Break down your assets/challenges and take each one away
• Scenario-based thinking
• Where would we never look?
• Laughter at an idea means something is working
• Innovation: look at a place completely differently and apply it to your industry
• Quotes from Dr, Jonas Salk (Polio Vaccine):
• “The answer is the question.”
• “Ask the right question to find the answer.”
• “You don’t invent the answer; you reveal the answer.”
• Fostering Innovation in Real Estate
• To succeed consistently over time you must understand key trends and time their activities accordingly
• Creativity:  the ability to look at the same thing as everyone else but see something different
• within 8 seconds of creating an idea, someone will tell you there’s something wrong with it-often it’s yourself.
• Suggestion: Wait 8 seconds before commenting/criticizing
• Real estate:  we literally change the world (buildings, cities, etc)
• We commoditize our projects.  So, if we change our thinking.....(i.e.  we think about how to get 10 cents more per square foot, etc).
• What drives value?
• What is unique”
• Don’t commoditize your product.
• Success vs. Significance
• Success is finite
• Significance is infinite
• If you’re focused on success you’re not thinking big enough.
• Innovation is driven by noticing human behavior.
• Your greatest solutions happen when you lack resources.
• If you quit with the first “No” you may be asking the wrong question.
• Don’t be afraid of coming back with another, “Why?"
• Force your brain not to be you!
• Your customer is not you-you have to get into their heads to understand their challenges/problems before you can come up with a solution
• Figure out who does something well-what makes them own their industry-and apply it to your business
• Look in places you’d never look-that is where innovation is-not at your competitors.
• In a down economy no one is talking-you can sneeze and get noticed.”
• Einstein:  “The world we live in today has problems that cannot be solved by old thinking

Seth Godin is a very interesting guy.  I was first introduced to his writing via one of his books called, "The Purple Cow."  He describes himself as a writer, speaker and agent of change.  I subscribed to his blog earlier this year and have found certain of his writings resonate with me.  He publishes every day and one from this week I share with you as I thought many of you would get something out of this:


Open Conversations or Close them.  

• A guy walks into a shop that sells ties. He's opened the conversation by walking in.
• Salesman says, "can I help you?"
• The conversation is now closed. The prospect can politely say, "no thanks, just looking."
• Consider the alternative: "That's a [insert adjective here] tie you're wearing, sir. Where did you buy it?"
• Conversation is now open. Attention has been paid, a rapport can be built. They can talk about ties. And good taste.
• Or consider a patron at a fancy restaurant. He was served an old piece of fish, something hardly worth the place's reputation. On the way out, he says to the chef,
• "It must be hard to get great fish on Mondays. I'm afraid the filet I was served had turned."
• If the chef says, "I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your meal..." then the conversation is over. The patron has been rebuffed, the feedback considered merely whining and a matter of personal perspective.
• What if the chef said instead, "what kind of fish was it?" What if the chef invited the patron back into the kitchen to take a look at the process and was asked for feedback?
• Open conversations generate loyalty, sales and most of all, learning... for both sides.

On Sunday I happened to catch the last half of "Dirty Dancing" on TV.  What a great movie.  How sad that Patrick Swayze died so young (57) another victim of cancer.  Watching that movie got me on to Youtube.  Many years ago, I worked for a company where one of the administrative assistants was the daughter of the famous dancer, Honi Coles (who also had a role in Dirty Dancing).  Check out this great dance routine.  Sad also that tap dancing like is from an era long gone. 

Congratulations to Paul Anthony DiCarlo who has joined Rockrose Development in the acquisitions group and Yokasta Baez who joined Pantheon as Vice President, Global Client Services in New York.  She was most recently with AXA Private Equity.

San Francisco Event:  Larry Souza, a very insightful guy is presenting the conclusions of his deep research project on real estate finance and capital market research, which includes monetary and fiscal policy analysis, public administration and political science, political economy and philosophical analysis.  It's on Tuesday, October 18th at 5:30-6:30 pm at Golden Gate University (536 Mission Street) in San Francisco, in Room 6208.  Larry says "You are all invited."

On the road....

Oct. 17-19:  Chicago for the PREA Fall Conference

Oct. 20:  Boston

Oct. 20-21: New York 

Oct. 24-28:  On the road...destinations TBD

Nov. 1-3:  Washington, DC to attend the CRE Annual Convention

Nov. 4-11:  New York including moderating a panel including at the PERE Forum

Nov. 15:  San Francisco to moderate a panel for JPMorgan.

These are my views and not that of my employer.