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Speakers and Panels

Evolving Dynamics: Trends and Strategies Shaping the Office Market

Exploring Leasing Activity, Hybrid Work Models, Distressed Assets, and AI Tenants

Alex Schwiebert

Alex Schwiebert

SVP, Asset Management

Jamestown

Gordon Childress

Gordon Childress

EVP

Skanska

Danny Murtagh

Danny Murtagh

VP

Boston Properties

Zephyr Snyder

Zephyr Snyder

President

WCI GC

Tony Natsis
Moderator

Tony Natsis

Partner

Allen Matkins

Alex Schwiebert

SVP, Asset Management

Jamestown

Alex Schwiebert is a Senior Vice President of Asset Management at Jamestown. He is primarily focused on West Coast assets. Prior to joining Jamestown, Mr. Schwiebert was Asset Manager of a large, Northern Virginian data center portfolio for Digital Realty Trust, where he oversaw design, development, lease-up, and management of multiple large-scale projects in various stages of completion. Prior to that, he was Vice President of Acquisitions and Director of Asset Management at Level Office Management, a Chicago-based real estate investment company that focuses on value-add office and coworking. Mr. Schwiebert received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics with minors in Mathematics and Spanish from Hope College, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He received a JD-MBA with a focus in real estate from the Kellogg School of Management and the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law.

Gordon Childress

EVP

Skanska

Gordon Childress brings 34 years of experience in the construction industry

across various markets, including airports, education, healthcare and

manufacturing. He currently runs Skanska USA Building’s operations in the

State of California. Previously, he held operational leadership roles at

contractor and developer companies in Northern California and Oregon.

Gordon is active in the local community. He currently sits on the CEA

Executive Board and served as 2021 Chair of the Northern California Hard

Hats with Heart. Hard Hats with Heart benefits the American Heart

Association and works to be a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier

lives, specifically aimed toward the construction industry’s elevated risk.

A LEED accredited professional, Gordon received his B.S. in building

construction from Texas A&M University.

Danny Murtagh

VP

Boston Properties

Through hard work and diligence, my objective is to learn every day, improve every day, help build lasting business relationships, add value and help others be successful in their businesses and careers. Work in commercial real estate in a position that offers the challenge to develop, acquire, operate, maintain, repair, modernize and improve the sustainable areas of the built environment. Provide long range value through thoughtful planning, implementation and execution of the day’s work. Employers deserve this level of commitment from their investment in its employee's, and it is what makes companies fundamentally succeed. Your work should be your resume and it should speak to the success of the business as well.

Specialties: I have extensive experience in facility operations, maintenance, repair and construction as well as operating & capital improvement projects, bidding and execution of construction projects. I have performed multiple due diligence exercises for acquisition and disposition. I have an eye on sustainability and the USGBC LEED goals and objectives, processes and projects. I also have experience in labor negotiations and contracts.

Tony Natsis

Moderator

Allen Matkins

A name partner of the firm, Anton N. Natsis is Chair of Allen Matkins’ Real Estate Department and is one of the top real estate attorneys in the United States. His practice focuses on development, leasing, purchase and sale, and portfolio investment sales transactions involving office, retail, and industrial projects, as well as arbitrating numerous fair market value disputes, CAM disputes and other significant landlord/tenant disputes. He also has extensive experience in debt, equity, and joint venture workouts, and the purchase of distressed assets and distressed debt. Tony is continually sought out by some of the largest national land owners, such as J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Blackstone Real Estate, Brookfield Properties, HCP, Vornado Realty Trust, Regent Properties, The Irvine Company, Boston Properties, Equity Office Properties, Kilroy Realty, Inc., Beacon Capital Partners, MPG Office Trust, Kamehameha Schools (The Bishop Estate) and Westfield Corporation. He represents many governmental entities, including the LAUSD, State of California, and City of Anaheim. Tony is also frequently retained as counsel for major national office tenants, such as AT&T, Citicorp, the FDIC, AIG, The Walt Disney Company, and the Los Angeles Times.

A frequent lecturer and author, Tony is the chief consultant for the California Continuing Education of the Bar Commercial Leasing Series, the legal education reference book on leasing for California attorneys, is an adjunct professor of law at Loyola Law School for a course covering commercial real estate transactions, and has spoken before such national real estate groups as ULI and BOMA. Tony is a founding board member of The Ziman Real Estate Center, which is governed under the joint auspices of the UCLA Anderson School of Business and the UCLA Law School.

In the past decade, Tony has closed commercial office leases exceeding 50 million square feet. He has worked on real estate purchase contracts with a total consideration of more than $30 billion and on development transactions with a total consideration in excess of $25 billion. Since 2006, Tony has represented clients in office building portfolio investment sales transactions involving over $75 billion of consideration.

One of Tony's most significant transactions is the largest real estate acquisition deal in the history of the United States. He provided extensive real estate services in connection with Blackstone Real Estate's purchase of Equity Office Properties Trust, at that point the largest owner of office space in the U.S. other than the Federal Government, for $43 billion. Subsequently, Blackstone contracted to sell over 50% of the properties it purchased with such sales closing in the first and second quarter of 2007. Tony assisted Blackstone in its acquisition due diligence related to EOP and the subsequent sales of the properties. The transactions related to this deal included Maguire Properties' purchase of Blackstone/EOP in Orange County for $2 billion, Irvine Company's purchase of Blackstone/EOP in San Diego for $1 billion, Morgan Stanley's purchase of Blackstone/EOP in San Francisco for $2.5 billion, and Beacon Capital Partners’ purchase of Blackstone/EOP Seattle for $6.3 billion.

Flight to Experience: What Do Tenants Want?

Creating Spaces that Increase Property Values and Enhance Employee Productivity, Efficiency, and Collaboration

Eileen Kong

Eileen Kong

SVP, Asset Management

Kilroy Realty Corporation

Melissa Myers

Melissa Myers

Head of Global Workplace and Safety

Okta

Danielle Friend

Danielle Friend

Senior Director of Development

Harvest Properties

Dan Drake

Dan Drake

Project Executive

Skyline Construction

Jamie Shaw

Jamie Shaw

Partner

LMNL Studio

Bruce Banigan
Moderator

Bruce Banigan

VP

Boldyn Networks

Eileen Kong

SVP, Asset Management

Kilroy Realty Corporation

Eileen Kong currently serves as Senior Vice President, Asset Management for Kilroy Realty

Corporation, overseeing the asset management and leasing of over 6M square feet of Class A

stabilized office assets in the San Francisco Bay Area markets. Ms. Kong joined Kilroy in 2011

and has held various positions in Asset Management.

Prior to joining Kilroy, Ms. Kong held various asset management roles in which she was

responsible for leasing, reposition, and operations with several commercial real estate companies

including CAC Real Estate Management (merged with CBRE), Broadreach Capital Partners,

Legacy Partners (now Steelwave), and Spieker Properties (merged with Equity Office, now EQ

Office).

Ms. Kong currently is an active member of various industry groups including ULI, Cornet,

BOMA, and NAIOP. She is also a designated CCIM®, RPA®, and a licensed Real Estate

Salesperson.

Ms. Kong is a graduate of San Francisco State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in

Finance.

Melissa Myers

Head of Global Workplace and Safety

Okta

Experienced Real Estate & Workplace Operations and Facilities Management professional with a hospitality and customer service background.

Strategic collaborator focused on delivering operational excellence across various site operations to enable the organization's business strategy.

Customer-oriented with a proven track record of innovation and strategy to deliver industry-leading workplace experiences and world-class facilities.

Leverage data analytics to support creating and implementing programs that impact the broader organization.

Empathetic leader and analytical problem-solver with talents for team building, leading, and motivating.

Proven track record in driving results and employee engagement for enhanced performance.

Documented strengths in building and maintaining relationships with diverse stakeholders in dynamic, fast-paced settings.

Specialties: Future of Work Innovation, Corporate Real Estate & Workplace Strategy, Strategic and Operational Planning, Capital & Operational Budgets, Developing High Functioning Teams, Workplace & Employee Experience, Customer Engagement, Program Management, Facilities Planning & Operations, Data Center Construction Management, Supplier Management

Danielle Friend

Senior Director of Development

Harvest Properties

Danielle Friend joined Harvest Properties as the Director of Architecture and Construction in June 2018. At Harvest, Danielle leverages her design and implementation expertise to evaluate acquisition targets as well as to develop the strategy for various asset repositioning efforts. Danielle’s responsibilities include developing and implementing project management processes and tools for the Operations and Asset Management Teams to ensure the optimal execution of capital and tenant improvement projects across the 11MM square foot portfolio.

Prior to working at Harvest, Danielle spent eight years at JLL leading project management services for the Northwest Office Sector, overseeing 5 million+ square feet of capital and tenant improvement projects valued at over $250MM.

Danielle earned her Master of Architecture degree from Pratt Institute. Prior to attending graduate school, she graduated with High Honors from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Originally from New York, Danielle and her husband moved to the Bay Area from Chicago 5 years ago and enjoying hiking in Marin with their dog, Reggie. Danielle and her family support various charitable organizations including the ASPCA, AIPAC, Equality California, and Venice Arts.

Dan Drake

Project Executive

Skyline Construction

Dan Drake is an accomplished Project Executive with Skyline Construction, focused on tenant improvement projects in the Bay Area. His leadership has been instrumental in steering Skyline’s largest and most complex projects for clients, such as Bain, Gibson Dunn, Hogan Lovells, and Reed Smith. He has expanded Skyline’s Law Firm practice area, securing numerous projects and building critical client relationships. Dan leads Skyline’s Project Management Development Group, dedicated to empowering emerging talent and promoting best practices. He’s active in organizations like CoreNet, Bisnow, and CREW, and remains committed to community service, exemplified by his involvement with Habitat for Humanity and his ongoing engagement in philanthropic initiatives.

Jamie Shaw

Partner

LMNL Studio

Jamie co-founded LMNL Studio to bring workplace strategy to experiences and environments co-designed by architects, technologists, and brand thinkers. After an early career as a brand strategist and creative director, she shifted her focus to the built environment with the premise that compelling places are a combination of story, space, and technology. Tapping into hospitality, wellness, environmental design, wayfinding, and digital tools, the LMNL team creates activated workplaces, designed as destinations. Jamie has created immersive experiences and environments for clients including Google, Adobe, Disney, Nike and Chevron.

Bruce Banigan

Moderator

Boldyn Networks

Bruce Banigan is a 25 year veteran of the telecom industry. Beginning with Sprint, he led sales teams in the Enterprise space servicing customers such as Boeing, Honda and Northrup Grumman. In 2015 he transitioned to Wireless Infrastructure with a focus on DAS and Wi-Fi for large public venues. His current role is Vice President of Wireless Services at Boldyn Networks with a focus on Commercial Real Estate.

Bruce previously served as a helicopter pilot in the Marine Corps leading combat missions in Iraq and Somalia as well as a stint in the White House flying Marine One.

Why You Won't Want To Miss This CRE Deal-Making Summit:

What You'll Learn From This Commercial Real Estate Conference:

  • Gain insights into how developers and owners are adapting their strategies to navigate the persistently high vacancy rates in the Bay Area office market.

  • Explore the factors contributing to the flight-to-quality trend in the Bay Area office market and how it impacts office design and development.

  • Understand the current state of San Francisco's leasing environment and the growth of AI tenants taking space.

    • According to JLL, AI tenants accounted for 25% of the total office leasing activity in San Francisco last year, and the demand for new space by AI tenants is expanding.

  • Discover what innovative design elements are being incorporated into office spaces to enhance employee well-being and productivity and how these align with the flight to quality.

  • Explore how the market is differentiating between premium, amenity-rich spaces, and older, traditional offices in terms of vacancy challenges and tenant preferences.

  • Learn how landlords are adapting office leases to meet the changing needs of tenants and employees.

How You'll Do More Business From Attending This Event: While the Bay Area experiences its highest office vacancy rates in 2024, developers and owners remain optimistic about the future, counting on the fundamentals that attracted numerous companies to the Bay before the pandemic. It’s now vital to create lively, vibrant and attractive spaces for tenants. Join us for an insightful event as we bring in experts to explore the current state of the office leasing environment, deals, distressed assets, AI tenants, design trends and essential features to attract and retain tenants.

Who You'll Network With At This Discussion: Owners, developers, investors, brokers, city and government officials, business consultants, architects, engineers, lawyers, accountants and bankers.

Why You Should Attend This Session: Bisnow events bring together the biggest power players in the industry to help you identify opportunities, build your network and expand your business. With the largest audience of commercial real estate professionals in the world, no one knows how to help your business more than we do.

For questions, recommendations, comments or press inquiries please email our event producer, Bora Altunay, at bora.altunay@bisnow.com. To request disability-related accommodations, please contact thea.parkert@bisnow.com no later than seven business days prior to the event.

Venue

Grand Hyatt San Francisco
345 Stockton Street
San Francisco, CA 94108

Ballroom Name/Floor: (3B level: enter lobby, go left through the elevator bay, down 2 sets of escalators)


Valet is $75 per person but there are plenty of self parking lots nearby.

Get Directions

Agenda

Time Activity
3:00 PM
4:00 PM
Breakfast & Networking
4:00 PM
4:45 PM
Evolving Dynamics: Trends and Strategies Shaping the Office Market

Exploring Leasing Activity, Hybrid Work Models, Distressed Assets, and AI Tenants

4:45 PM
5:00 PM
Networking Break
5:00 PM
5:45 PM
Flight to Experience: What Do Tenants Want?

Creating Spaces that Increase Property Values and Enhance Employee Productivity, Efficiency, and Collaboration

5:45 PM
6:15 PM
Closing Networking

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