What You Don't Know About Brenna Walraven

Photo: Brenna, right, in Machu Picchu. 

Position: CEO of Corporate Sustainability Strategies and BOMA Fellow.

Where she’s located: Huntington Beach, CA.

Where she grew up: Sierra Madre and Monrovia, CA.

Responsibilities: Helping organizations strategically leverage sustainability to lower costs, increase profits and gain a competitive advantage, all while enhancing their brand.

How she got involved in the industry: I was recruited out of college (the University of Southern California) into JMB Realty’s commercial real estate training program.

Industry and life extracurriculars: Prior to starting my own firm, I was a commercial real estate executive reporting to two different CEOs. I also served as the first female Chair of BOMA International from 2007 to 2008. Recently, I worked closely with BOMA leadership and staff to help update and relaunch both the BOMA Energy Efficiency Program (BEEP) and BOMA Energy Performance Contracting (or BEPC, pronounced like Pepsi with a “B”) model toolkit. The market feedback on these two resources has been amazing, and it’s great to be a part of BOMA International’s sustainability leadership and support to the industry.

Daily habit: Exercise of some sort every day, if at all possible.

Hobbies: Golf (she's pictured above at Pebble Beach), kayaking and bodyboarding.

Family life: Married to my partner of almost 23 years with three kitty children.

Favorite book: The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.

Favorite music: My taste in music is pretty eclectic—I like everything from classic rock and alternative to R&B and jazz.

Favorite movie: Rumble Fish and The Wizard of Oz (and I mean the original!)

Favorite restaurant: Too many to name! True Food Kitchen, Allard in Paris and the café just outside the Pantheon in Rome.

Favorite vacation: Hawaii (with Paris as a close second).

First job and what it taught you: I worked at a clothing store my freshman year of college, and I had a boss who was a nice person, but a very bad manager. From that experience, I learned that I’m responsible for my own performance and success.

Job in another life: Professional golfer, professional soccer player or sports radio host.

Item on bucket list: A trip to Australia and New Zealand.

Person she'd like to meet, dead or alive: Bono, the U2 lead singer, philanthropist and game changer.

Startling fact: I have testified before Congress on behalf of BOMA International on the topic of energy efficiency in commercial real estate.