Exploring Leadership and Industry Trends with Liz Hart
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Show Notes:
In this episode, Adam Torres interviews Liz Hart, the President of Leasing for North America at Newmark, as part of the Milken Global Conference coverage series. Liz shares her unique experiences, touching upon her participation in the prestigious conference, her career journey, and her insights on industry trends.
About Liz Hart
Liz Hart serves as President of Leasing for the Company’s operating businesses in the U.S. and Canada. She is responsible for driving the strategy of Newmark’s leasing business and serving leasing advisors and clients across the company. Hart is a member of Newmark’s Executive Committee, an internal corporate management steering committee, and reports to Chief Executive Officer Barry Gosin.
In her current role, Hart works closely with the Company’s professionals to identify and leverage cross-platform synergies, improve efficiencies and drive Newmark’s leasing revenue growth while helping to recruit and retain industry-leading talent. Additionally, Hart works alongside Newmark’s Chief Information Officer to leverage the Company’s sophisticated technology infrastructure and identify opportunities for and solutions to benefit advisors and clients.
Hart’s experience representing technology companies, from single entrepreneurs to members of the Fortune 50, enables her to anticipate the specific real estate challenges a company faces at each stage of its growth cycle and the type of workplace culture that companies seek to cultivate. Hart is also well-versed in zoning and entitlement processes, giving her insights on the urban future that she shares with Newmark’s clients. She has represented numerous large-block developments and helped reposition large-scale projects that have transformed skylines.
Hart also served on the leadership team spearheading Newmark’s Technology & Innovation Practice Group, a group of specialized advisors focused on the Technology, Advertising, Media and Information (TAMI)/Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) sector. She has worked with numerous tenants in the sector to resolve their complex real estate issues and with landlords to redevelop their buildings to attract innovation tenants.
Since joining Newmark in 2005, Hart completed transactions totaling close to 35 million square feet and over $4.2 billion in value on behalf of owners and tenants, was a regular Top Five Producers in Newmark’s San Francisco office and ranked among the Top Producers in the Bay Area.
About Leasing for North America at Newmark
Newmark Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NMRK), together with its subsidiaries (“Newmark”), is a leading advisor and service provider to large institutional investors, global corporations and other owners and occupiers of commercial real estate. They offer a diverse array of integrated services and products designed to meet the full needs of their clients.
Full Unedited Transcript
Hey, I’d like to welcome you to another episode of Mission Matters. My name is Adam Torres, and if you’d like to apply to be a guest in the show, just head on over to mission matters.com and click on Be Our Guest to Apply. All right, today my guest is Liz Hart and she is the president of Leasing. For North America over at Newmark.
And this interview is part of our Milken Global Conference coverage series where we highlight some of the top attendees and participants of the Milken Global Conference over in Beverly Hills which we’ve had the privilege of, covering now for the last three, going on four years. First thing, first, Liz, welcome to the show.
Thank you so much for having me, Adam. Okay, so correct me if I’m wrong here now you were, I know we didn’t meet each other in person, but you were at the conference this year. Am I right? you are. It was my first time at the conference. It was amazing. It was such an incredible few days together in Beverly Hills, I.
Oh, I love this. I love talking to first time attendees. So obviously with your, the size of the company you work with, and your position, I mean, I’m sure you go to conferences and have throughout your career what made this one special for you as, as a first time attendee? I think one of the things that I found most amazing about Milken was actually just walking around the hallway and having access to so many leaders across so many parts of the business community.
I saw so many different people that I admire and I look up to, and they were very accessible and very easy to talk to. Mm-hmm. And it was amazing to see at Milken. What are the things that we have in common as leaders? Yeah. So you know, things that we’re all facing, like what’s happening with artificial intelligence, how is the macroeconomic policy impacting our businesses, but all also having a different point of view depending on which part of the business community you’re coming from.
Yeah. Yeah. Now I, one of the, I love, I love that you say that depending on what side of the community or the business community you’re coming from, because obviously you’re in, you’re in commercial real estate, and I’m just, and for myself, I’m in media, but when I go there, I kind of, I’m like a kid in a, candy store.
I go to all these different sessions that have nothing to do with what I do, and it’s kind of fun to be able to see what because we, sometimes I’ll speak for myself. We’re in these silos where we’re, you know, in our day to day, and obviously running the business operations, things like that.
But to be out there is like, it’s like a breath of fresh air. Did you, experience that at all? Like pop into some sessions that maybe weren’t real estate related and things like that? I did. I did. I went to a few on health and there was one on parenting that I thought was fantastic, and I think even at one point I got to hold a puppy, which is pretty fun.
And that wellness area outside. Oh, the wellness area. You know what I, I do have a. FOMO on that one. And next year I will hit that wellness area. It got it completely. I’m working at the conference too, doing interviews and things like that. Mm-hmm. Are some of our onsite covers, so I don’t always get to get away ’cause I get pulled on one thing or another.
So I still get to have to work, let’s say. But I’m like, oh, how did I miss the wellness area? And they had puppies come on. It was so much fun. Well, next year you can interview me and I’ll hold a puppy during it, and so can you, so we’ll be able to kill two birds with one stone game on. Well let’s let’s switch it up a bit.
I do wanna talk a little bit more about what you’re doing and, your role in leadership over at Newmark. So first off, tell us a little bit more about your career really and how you got to where you’re at. Sure, happy to. So actually, I’m up on an anniversary. August 1st will be my 20th anniversary of working in commercial real estate.
Woohoo. Congratulations. A long time, right? August 1st. No, congrats. That’s awesome. Go ahead. And you know what’s even crazier, Adam is I actually started at a company that, the company I’m a president of now acquired. So I’m one of those rare people that’s been in the same business, in the same industry, and at the same company through different chapters for 20 years.
That’s amazing. It’s amazing. Yeah. And so gimme, gimme some milestones. Like a lot, a lot is encapsulated in a, in a 20 year journey. There’s a lot to encapsulate. And I think what’s really great about that is if you do 20 years in a similar trajectory, you get these different chapters of how your leadership style can evolve.
Mm-hmm. And I think you’ll probably know this from your own experience, a lot of those leadership evolutions happen through some of the challenges that happen in our careers, don’t they? Where you have something that comes your way that you’re not expecting, and you gotta figure out how to get through it.
Yeah. Yeah, definitely. And if you were, this is kind of one of those, pay it forward questions that I’d like to get, to say, especially when someone’s been in their field for, bit is if you could, I mean, if you could get, you’re talking to somebody right now, you know, just entering the, entering the industry and commercial real estate.
What kind of, of conversations are you having? Yeah. Well, I think for people who are just starting off, I always say, I was like, you know, when I first started, I had all these superpowers that I didn’t realize were superpowers. And you know, one of ’em is maybe kind of funny, which is that I understood social media, right?
Because 20 years ago it was very nascent and it wasn’t something that was very well known. Now in influencer culture, obviously there’ll be a next generation thing that’s. Coming. It’s never the same 20 years ago as it is today. Mm-hmm. Or it’ll be 20 years in the future. But when you’re starting out in your career, what is amazing is to look around, understand what your generation is doing, and speak to them.
Right. Start developing your network. Start to develop your point of view. And you know, when the GSC happened a great financial crisis mm-hmm. I was pretty new in the business. It was brand new in the business. Mm-hmm. And that was really my first. Time and trying to figure out how to lead, how to tell an opinion, how to leverage my social network to make sure that I was continuing to be in front of clients and growing my business even during a downturn.
Yeah. And it ended up being a great chapter for me ’cause I leaned in to the opportunity of the moment. Mm-hmm. Instead of being kind of overwhelmed by some of the news headlines, that could have been pretty scary back then. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. when you’re thinking about developments or trends?
You did mention briefly when we were talking about the Milken conference, you know, AI and, other, maybe some other sessions you saw. what kind of trends are you following right now? Like what’s on your, day-to-day conversations? I. I’m definitely tracking ai very closely right now.
Mm-hmm. But what I think is very interesting about what’s happening with artificial intelligence is how much I hear myself and other business leaders actually leaning into what makes us innately human. Mm-hmm. So what makes us leaders, how do we actually create. Flexible forward looking people, first cultures in this age, because you’re gonna need those people.
Those really talented people still drive the industry forward, right? Mm-hmm. Even if they are helped by ai, orgen workflows or even, you know agents as employees, which is something that we’re not really experimenting with yet, but we can see sort of potentially on the horizon. I love that we’re already talking about that.
That’s so interesting. Right? Like who would’ve thought like five years ago? Not even, I don’t even know when I would’ve said that. Right. That’s amazing to even have the conversation. Right. Go ahead, please. Yeah, it is crazy to think of, but I think it’s not a moment to be scared. It’s a moment to be.
Confident in our own skills, right? And confident in what do we understand and how are we gonna prompt the machines? We’re still in charge, so how do we grow our businesses with this as a partner? But how do we still make sure that people feel really enthusiastic and excited about the plethora of opportunities that come with this technological transformation?
I mean, I think jobs are coming that you and I can’t even dream of now, right? Because we’ll be able to solve bigger and more complex problems across many industries. Yeah. And so speaking of that, and I don’t, I don’t know, I’m not gonna tie this and say that I’m solving a bigger and complex problem, but whenever, but I do like to mention, when you think about like jobs that will be created and things that we don’t even, we can’t even think about right now.
When I was in college, if you had asked me, am I gonna be a podcaster, Liz, I’ve been, I don’t know if podcasts existed. I don’t know what I’m like, yeah, what does that even mean? So what did you wanna be? I’m curious. Actually my background of all things, I was in finance for almost 14 years before getting into media.
So I was gonna be, I was managed money. I mean, I was, as, I started at Raymond James when I was 16 at my first in their IRA department. So I was a lifer and I thought I’d be, i’m doing that forever. I loved it. I loved the companies. I worked for a bunch of the big companies like Vanguard Schwab. I had my own RIA before I exited it at the end of it all.
But and went full-time in media. But I was very, I mean, and I, I like to bring that up when I can or when the opportunity arises on this show, because I feel like when, whether it’s commercial real estate, whether it’s whether it’s, you know, being a financial advisor, managing money or things like this, I don’t, I like to always bring that out because especially it’s, they’re great.
Fields, they’re great industries. I think they just provide like great qualities of life that maybe some of the, that, that don’t always get as much attention, let’s just say in the media. And people don’t always even know their opportunities. Yeah. But it afforded me a wonderful life and many other individuals like yourself included from what I’m hearing.
So I always try to track the younger crowd to like, Hey, look into what this is. It’s cool. Yeah. Set your foundation right, like it probably created a great network for you, which is important. Early career, also a great skillset. Really, you know, how you learn how to do time management and work, right? Mm-hmm.
That’s part of it too, is just learning what that looks like for you so that you can really lean into the opportunities you’re excited about. Yeah, I think, I think it’s, it’s wonderful and it, and it gives you that exactly what you said, it does give you that basis. Well, speaking of the next generation how are you working on and or mentoring the next generation of talent whether it’s at Newmark or one-on-one yourself, like, talk a little bit about that.
Yeah, I mean, I think it would really break into three parts for me. The first part is, is that I think it’s really important just to be accessible for people who are entering in the industry, right? So this morning I met with one of our many interns and just talk to ’em about what’s important to them and how are they thinking about their early career.
And I really try to be accessible and visible to them. Yeah. I think particularly as a woman in the industry, I wanna make sure that I’m available so that people can ask questions. ’cause there aren’t as many of us as, you know, in senior leadership positions. Mm-hmm. And so that way you know, people have my point of view that may be a little bit different.
The second thing is. I think, you know, try and encourage people that commercial real estate is bigger than just the buildings. It’s the how you think about your city, how you think about the people who live in that city. It, it’s more than the buildings, it’s the community. Right? And how are they engaging with the community so that they can be good corporate citizens and also, you know, have a point of view on the policies that are gonna certainly impact the commercial real estate that we work with every day.
Mm-hmm. And then the third is. Look as much as mentorship is about you helping someone else, I think you, and I know it’s also a strategic priority as a leader, right? Mm-hmm. Because you wanna be bringing people in, and it’s about talent development and making sure that the next generation is shaping what we want real estate to become and what we want Newmark to become in the future.
Yeah. So we’re very committed to making sure that we have a place for people to come and learn. I mean. As I told you at the beginning of the show, like I started because someone took a chance on me. And I hope that you know, coming up behind me are other people who get to have as rich and enjoyable of a career as I’ve had here.
Amazing. Final question, Liz. What’s next? I mean, what’s next for you? Anything you care to comment on for Newmark or otherwise? What’s next? I’m really excited about 2025. I mean, I think the five years post pandemic was a little bit rough for aspects of commercial real estate to see, say the least.
Mm-hmm. But this year we’re seeing a 30% increase in national demand across the country. Really great growth from the technology sector, which is, you know, as I mentioned, what I kind of focused on for majority of my career. Mm-hmm. The financial services sector, the legal sector. We’re really optimistic about what this year is gonna hold for the industry.
And I think what’s really exciting is our clients are really starting to understand how real estate can be a mechanism to align to their business goals. And so it’s not just a place to sit, but it’s really a tool that you can use to accelerate your business and it’s really exciting to see people engaging in a really meaningful way about that.
Again. Perfect. If somebody’s listening or watching this Liz and they wanna follow up, learn more about Newmark follow you how do they do that? I would just follow me on LinkedIn. It’s Liz Hart and I’m at Newmark. I’m very easy to find and if you send me a message there, I’m also happy to chat further and get to know your audience.
Perfect. And for everybody listening, just so you know, we’ll definitely put some links in the show notes so you can just click on it and head right on over. Check out Liz’s profile on LinkedIn. And speaking of the audience, if this is your first time with Mission Matters and you haven’t done it yet, hit that subscribe or follow button.
This is a daily show. Each and every day we’re bringing you new content, new ideas, and hopefully new inspiration to help you along the way on your, on your journey as well. So you can hit that subscribe or follow button. And Liz, thanks again for coming on the show.
