NAIOP Podcast: Inside CRE

In this episode, Marc sits down with longtime Hubbell Realty Company CEO Rick Tollakson to discuss four decades of leadership, growth and transformation in the real estate industry. Rick, also the author of the recently published book, “Think Bigger, Lead Better,” shares the origins of his “Eight to Great” leadership framework, the key market signals he watches, and how a stare down with a nun challenged him to think bigger. From fostering entrepreneurialism to mastering process improvement, he outlines the principles he believes successful developers need most. He closes with the legacy he hopes to leave: a culture rooted in continuous improvement, having fun and giving back. Recorded on Jan. 29, 2026.

In this conversation, 2026 NAIOP Chair Celeste Tanner, co-founder, president and chief development officer of Confluent Development, shares the leadership principles that have shaped her career in the collaborative world of commercial real estate. She discusses why stepping outside your comfort zone unlocks opportunity, how empowering experts leads to better decisions and details the “breakout evolutionary cycle” she sees ahead for CRE. She outlines her priorities as chair, including changing public perception of the industry and fostering connections between members across cities, states and provinces. She also lands a punchline about what happens when you put a developer, an architect and a contractor in a room. Recorded on Jan. 15, 2026.

On this final episode of 2025, NAIOP’s Senior Vice President for Government Affairs Aquiles Suarez joins the podcast to break down a historic year for commercial real estate policy. From the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” – securing permanent tax provisions like 100% bonus depreciation and the 20% pass-through deduction – to emerging priorities such as adaptive reuse and energy infrastructure, Suarez shares insights on what these wins mean for long-term stability and CRE investment. He also looks ahead to 2026, discussing the political dynamics shaping future legislation and why educating lawmakers remains a critical challenge. Recorded on Dec. 3, 2025.

Global strategist and AlphaGeo founder Parag Khanna joins Inside CRE to explore how demographics, geopolitics, climate risk and new infrastructure are reshaping North American real estate. From regionalization and the Great Lakes “New North” to migration trends, climate-adaptation opportunities and the industrial resurgence, Parag shares data-driven insights on the forces guiding long-term development decisions. Hear his take on what investors should consider – looking beyond last quarter’s cap rate – as they plan assets with 30-year horizons. Recorded on Nov. 24, 2025.

In this episode, Marc sits down with Ryan Severino, chief economist and head of research at BGO, for a deep dive into the forces shaping commercial real estate across North America. Fresh off his keynote at the CRE.Converge conference, Ryan shares his data-driven outlook on the economy, interest rate cycles, and what today’s uncertainty means for developers and investors. From policy risks and central bank moves to sector-specific trends in industrial, multifamily, retail, office and data centers, Ryan offers clear insights on where resilience and opportunity are emerging. Recorded on Nov. 6, 2025.

In this special episode, NAIOP Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Shaine Anderson, CAE, explores how technology is transforming commercial real estate in partnership with CREtech. She’s joined by three industry leaders – Carrie Denning Jackson, director of innovation and sustainability at Jamestown; Colin Joynt, senior vice president and chief information officer at BXP; and Will O’Donnell, managing partner at Prologis Ventures – to discuss how AI, data and emerging tech are reshaping operations, investment strategies and tenant experiences. From evaluating new tools to managing cybersecurity and measuring ROI, this episode offers practical insights for CRE professionals looking to innovate and future-proof their organizations. Recorded Oct. 1, 2025.

Industrial real estate is evolving fast. In this episode of Inside CRE, Greek Real Estate Partners’ David Greek and Matt Schlindwein share insights on today’s investment climate and the headwinds shaping logistics real estate – from rising interest rates to shifting community sentiment. They discuss opportunities in small-bay, port-adjacent and cold storage products, how developers are adapting to higher costs and political pressures, and how their NAIOP involvement has shaped their careers. Recorded Sept. 18, 2025.

On this episode of Inside CRE, we’re joined by Ada Healey, Chief Real Estate Officer at Vulcan Real Estate, recently honored as NAIOP’s 2025 Developer of the Year. Ada reflects on what this recognition means for the team and shares lessons learned since Vulcan first earned the award in 2013. She discusses how the company’s relatively small core team has delivered more than 13 million square feet of transformative projects, guided by values of prosperity, sustainability, urban vitality, and engagement. Ada also offers insights on navigating market cycles, fostering inclusion, and embracing innovation, while looking ahead to opportunities both in Seattle and beyond. Recorded on Aug. 21, 2025.

In this episode, we welcome back Carey Heyman, managing principal for the real estate industry at CLA. Carey breaks down the newly enacted One Big Beautiful Bill Act and what it means for commercial real estate. He covers key provisions like 100% bonus depreciation, Section 179 expensing and business interest deduction relief, along with updates to the Opportunity Zone program, including rural investment incentives and expanded reporting requirements. Carey also shares strategies for balancing today’s tax advantages with uncertainty around tariffs, offering practical insights to help firms enhance benefits, manage costs, and stay ahead of emerging risks. Recorded on Aug. 7, 2025.

Mark Roberts, managing director of research at Crow Holdings, joins the podcast to share his insights – from macroeconomic trends to individual asset classes. He sees current valuation lags in open-end funds as a rare investment opportunity and predicts inflation will fall below 2% by year’s end. Roberts remains optimistic about the economy, citing strong household balance sheets, business investment, and low credit spreads. He highlights opportunities in retail, moderate-sized industrial assets, and select multifamily markets like Chicago and Miami, while advising caution in overbuilt metros like Austin and Phoenix. Emphasizing solid research and current market data over headlines, he concludes that real estate is poised to outperform bonds for the first time in years. Recorded on July 9, 2025.

Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo delivered a candid assessment of the U.S. economy in her keynote remarks at NAIOP’s I.CON East conference in New Jersey last month: strong at its core but held back by what she called “self-inflicted wounds.” On this special episode of Inside CRE, you’ll hear Secretary Raimondo’s conversation with NAIOP President and CEO Marc Selvitelli, where she discussed the future of American industry and how strategic investment can help reshape the nation’s industrial future. Recorded on June 4, 2025.

In this episode, Moody’s Analytics Chief Economist Mark Zandi joins us to unpack the extraordinary uncertainty facing today’s economy – on par, he says, with the global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing from insights shared during his keynote at NAIOP’s National Forums Symposium, Zandi discusses the weakening labor force, volatile economic policy, and growing pressure from tariffs and immigration shifts. He explores how inflation, interest rates, and consumer trends are affecting commercial real estate and why many developers are in a holding pattern. For an industry built on long-term decisions, navigating a short-term, policy-driven fog is a major challenge. Recorded on June 11, 2025.

In this episode, Melinda McLaughlin, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Research at Prologis, discusses the evolving state of global trade and its impact on logistics real estate. She highlights how trade disruptions, starting with tariffs in 2017 and intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic, have accelerated supply chain diversification – especially toward non-China Asia and Mexico. Companies are moving away from fragile, hyper-optimized supply chains toward diversified, resilient networks. While some growth decisions are paused due to market ambiguity, long-term strategies emphasize adaptability. McLaughlin stresses the importance of understanding micro-market dynamics and using scenario planning to navigate multiple potential futures in an evolving trade landscape. Recorded on April 28, 2025.

Commercial real estate leaders Amy Curry, Chief Strategy Officer of Dermody; Ed Griffin, CEO, Griffin Partners; and Kevin Hardy, Head of Eastern Canadian Office, Oxford Properties; join us for a special episode to discuss the impacts of tariffs on the industry. In this candid conversation they share how uncertainty is increasing scrutiny, moderating deal velocity and complicating risk assessments. They also address how developers are adjusting construction budgets and managing relationships with lenders and equity partners in uncertain times. While short-term market volatility poses challenges, the group’s long-term investment perspectives remain optimistic. Recorded on May 16, 2025.

Christopher Thornberg, Ph.D., founding partner of Beacon Economics and recent I.CON West keynote, joins the podcast to parse the growing disconnect between economic data and public sentiment. While U.S. households are financially strong and consumer spending drives growth, this prosperity is propped up by an unsustainable government deficit and foreign capital inflows. Thornberg stresses the need for immigration-driven labor growth, explains how current spending is masking deeper fiscal risk, and shares to the data point – not the 10-year Treasury – that we should all be keeping track of. Recorded on April 15, 2025.

Scott Jennings started his political career licking envelopes in a campaign office but went on to work for campaigns at both the local and national level, including four presidential campaigns. The CNN senior conservative political commentator – and keynote speaker at NAIOP’s 2025 Chapter Leadership and Legislative Retreat – joins the podcast to share his views on political strategy, including what it takes today for a candidate to win, the two policy areas he believes drove Donald Trump back into the White House, and how Republicans “completely revolutionized” their ground game in the 2024 presidential election. He discusses the ambitious timeline for Congress to pass a tax bill, the Trump administration’s use of tariffs and other economic levers, whether J.D. Vance gets the nod as the Republican candidate for 2028, and even his opinion on the Democratic Party’s best option for a candidate in 2028. Recorded on March 18, 2025.

As the national director for office analytics, Phil Mobley leads the development of CoStar's house view of the office market. In this episode, he examines the office sector from every angle, highlighting the misconception of a simple “flight to quality,” explaining that both premium and affordable office spaces are thriving while mid-tier buildings face challenges. Mobley shares what he’s watching with the greatest interest over the next 12-24 months, discusses fragmentation in the sector, and how limited new supply is slowing move-outs as occupiers hold onto space longer. Despite ongoing hurdles, he remains optimistic about the long-term role of office as landlords adjust to tenant needs and get a handle on each “micro market.” Recorded on March 13, 2025.

Artist. Architect. Chairman. Philanthropist. Author. Lawrence Armstrong, chairman of leading international design firm Ware Malcomb, joined the firm nearly 40 years ago and served as CEO from 1992 to 2020. In addition to expanding the company from a Southern California firm to a national and international firm with 28 offices across North America, his tenure as CEO is hallmarked by an unprecedented 40x revenue growth. He talks candidly about the importance of succession planning, navigating economic downturns over the years, and how creative leadership can drive double-digit growth. Recorded on Feb. 19, 2025.

Is the era of tariff-free goods on the North American continent coming to an end? Shannon O’Neil, Senior Vice President and Director of Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of “The Globalization Myth: Why Regions Matter,” joins us for this especially timely episode. Shannon discusses how tariff uncertainty and shifting global trade patterns will impact commercial real estate markets across North America, the potential renegotiation of the USMCA, and Mexico’s growing role in global supply chains. She shares why she believes that regionalization – not globalization – has had the biggest economic impact of the last 40 years and details a counterintuitive strategy for creating more jobs in the U.S. Recorded on Jan. 15, 2025.

Opening our third season of Inside CRE, Christopher Ware, NAIOP’s Vice President for Business Development and Strategic Initiatives, speaks with Alex Thomson, founder of Prevail Consultants and 2025 NAIOP Chair. With two decades of experience in commercial real estate, Alex has gained expertise in every aspect of the business, spanning acquisitions, entitlements, development, financing and dispositions. Notably, he’s also NAIOP’s first Canadian chair. In this episode, Alex discusses his priorities for the association during his tenure, his family’s longstanding spirit of volunteerism, and why a career in CRE won out over one as a mountain guide. He comments on the unprecedented political changes occurring in Canada with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent resignation, and explains the collaborative approach taken by NAIOP’s Canadian chapters in addressing legislative issues. Get to know Alex – including his surprising hobby (influenced by Robert Burns) and what kind of peated scotch he recommends. Recorded Jan. 14, 2025.