Transwestern Hires Regional Leader Of Business Development And Operations

July 31, 2008

Transwestern’s Atlanta office today announced that Bruce Ford has joined the firm as Executive Vice President.  Ford will be responsible for all the company’s business development efforts in the Southeast as they relate to new leasing, management, and investment sales assignments, as well as the firm’s sustainability services throughout the Southeast. 

Ford will also support Jim Ledbetter, president of Transwestern’s Southeast region, as the chief operations officer for the region, directly overseeing the day-to-day activities of the firm’s Atlanta and Miami offices.  Transwestern employs approximately 150 professionals in the Southeast and out of Atlanta oversees a portfolio of commercial assets totaling more than 10.7 million square feet.
 
Ford was most recently regional president of GVA Advantis, working out of that firm’s Atlanta headquarters office and overseeing all lines of business in Georgia and the Carolinas. 

“I am very excited that Bruce is joining us and will be taking charge of our new business efforts,” said Jim Ledbetter, president of Transwestern’s southeast region.  “Bruce brings to Transwestern his great working relationships with owners of commercial assets in the Southeast and a strong career track record generating new third-party business.  In addition, his proven executive management skills will greatly enhance our internal organization, a critical need for us as Transwestern continues to grow in Atlanta, Miami, and throughout the Southeast.”
 
Over the past six months, Transwestern’s two full-service offices in the region have added more than 2.0 million square feet of new leasing and/or management assignments.  In Atlanta, these include 200 Ashford Center north in the Central Perimeter and The Shops Around Lenox in Buckhead.  In Miami, the firm recently picked up the responsibilities for Miami Center, the second-largest office building in the State of Florida, as well as leasing and marketing assignments for two new, under development mixed-use projects. 

Transwestern has also grown in terms of employee headcount, adding five new brokers since the beginning of 2008.  In Atlanta, the new hires include the senior retail team of Spencer Bomar and Patrick Arnold, industrial broker Brent Dutson, and office broker Baxter Lusink.  In Miami, the firm added senior broker Eric Groffman from Jones Lang LaSalle. 
 
“Despite the slow economy and a lackluster commercial real estate market, we’ve been able to outperform expectations,” said Ledbetter.  “We’ve won considerable new business since the start of this year, added experienced brokerage professionals, and have a lot of momentum under way from a recruiting standpoint.  Bruce joins us at an opportune time and will be instrumental in maintaining and enhancing our growth.” 

Ford is charged with growing Transwestern’s owner services business throughout the Southeast, which includes new agency leasing, property management, and investment sales assignments, as well as integrating the company’s sustainability and energy services with the leasing, management, and sales disciplines.  He will also be responsible for the firm’s regional operations in the Southeast, overseeing the day-to-day running of the two offices, including all aspects of human resources, information technology, and financial planning and budgeting.  As the regional president of Transwestern, this will allow Ledbetter to spend more time on the overall growth of the company, including recruitment of new brokerage professionals, geographic expansion through partnerships and acquisitions, and identifying new development opportunities. 

“I was attracted to Transwestern because of their growth and their people, both in the Southeast and around the country,” said Ford.  “Transwestern is a highly regarded, quality, results- and customer-driven firm.  The opportunity to join Transwestern and play a leadership role, partnering with Jim Ledbetter, is exciting.  The company is experiencing similar success in the other markets where they operate, both in terms of growing their business and attracting quality talent.  I look forward to being a part of that continued growth and success in Atlanta, Miami, and eventually other Southeastern markets.” 

Ford’s career not only includes executive-level leadership at GVA Advantis, but also at its predecessor, Goodman Segar Hogan Hoffler, a Virginia-based real estate firm.  He started his career at The Smith Companies.  Ford is a graduate of Wake Forest University and has completed post-graduate level courses, including the “Running a Real Estate Company” program at Harvard.  He holds the Real Property Administrator (RPA) professional designation from the Building Owners and Managers Institute (BOMI), is active in Holy Innocents Episcopal Church and School, and is a board member of Childspring International. 

About the Company
Transwestern, one of the largest privately held commercial real estate and development firms in the U.S., is focused on creating value for our clients in each local market we serve.  Transwestern’s unique business model offers fully integrated real estate services and operates through six distinct functional lines of business - agency leasing, property and facility management, investment services, tenant advisory, development and research - for a broad range of property types, including office, industrial, retail, healthcare and multifamily.  Transwestern leads the industry in sustainability and has received multiple EPA ENERGY STAR® awards.  We have partnered with our clients and the USGBC to pursue LEED® certification on projects across the country. Please visit us at www.transwestern.net.