Sydney, 19 March 2015 – CBRE has appointed Ray Pittman as President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of its Pacific operations in one of a series of senior leadership appointments.
In tandem, CBRE’s long-standing Pacific President & CEO Tom Southern, has been promoted to a new role as Executive Chairman, Pacific with overall responsibility for the region.
Cameron Grier, currently Senior Managing Director, Victoria, has meanwhile been appointed as Senior Managing Director of NSW – CBRE’s largest geographic business in Pacific. Mark Coster, Director Capital Markets, has been promoted to Senior Managing Director, Victoria.
“In Pacific, we continue to execute our strategy of putting top talent into key roles to ensure the ongoing growth of our business. These appointments will strongly enhance our position to drive advantage for our clients and our people,” CBRE’s Asia Pacific President & CEO, Danny Queenan, said.
Mr Pittman will assume the President and CEO role and operational management of the Pacific business in June. He is presently the Senior Managing Director and market leader for CBRE’s business lines throughout the state of Colorado in the U.S and has over 28 years of experience in commercial real estate, including brokerage, account management, acquisition and development, business development, corporate strategy and executive team leadership.
Mr Pittman’s focus will be on driving the continued growth of the Pacific business; further developing CBRE’s Pacific leadership team; Client Care and Sales Management; in addition to other key initiatives.
He will work in partnership with Mr Southern, who has served in the business for 27 years – nine of which as CEO. In his new role as Executive Chairman, Pacific, Mr Southern’s specific focus will be on the strategic development of the business, with particular emphasis on clients and Capital Markets. He will also assume additional Asia Pacific responsibilities, including driving CBRE’s recruitment program across the region.
“Ray’s appointment reflects recognition at a global level of the significance of the Pacific business, future opportunities and the need to invest in additional leadership to maximise our ability to drive growth. We have ambitious growth targets over the next several years, and these appointments strongly position us to achieve them,” Mr Queenan said.
Cal Frese, Chief Executive Officer of the Americas, added; “As a global company we have a strong focus on moving our top talent throughout geographies and markets for the benefit of both the business and our employees. Ray’s appointment in Pacific is a great example of this.”
Pacific continues to be the lead performer for CBRE in the APAC region, having grown from 729 employees and total transaction value of $2.7bn in 2004 to last year having a total of 2000 employees with a total transaction value of $15.5bn - growth of 474% over a decade. Key 2014 milestones included the acquisition of Paragon Project Management to create a 70-story Project Management division.
CBRE’s other new leadership appointments involve Cam Grier as Senior MD, NSW and Mark Coster as Senior MD, Victoria.
Mr Southern said these appointments were a clear indication of how successfully CBRE’s younger professionals were developing throughout the business.
Mr Grier first joined CBRE Western Sydney in 2001 and was the Managing Director of this office from 2009-2013. He was promoted to Senior Managing Director of Victoria in late 2013. Mr Coster joined CBRE in 2001 and has extensive experience in the sale of major investments in the Melbourne CBD and is a key member of the Pacific Capital Markets team. He has also held various leadership roles in the Victorian business over the past 10 years.
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About CBRE Group, Inc.
CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (in terms of 2014 revenue). The Company has more than 52,000 employees (excluding affiliates), and serves real estate owners, investors and occupiers through more than 370 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide. CBRE offers strategic advice and execution for property sales and leasing; corporate services; property, facilities and project management; mortgage banking; appraisal and valuation; development services; investment management; and research and consulting. Please visit our website at www.cbre.com.
