At the 2025 Graaskamp Center Spring Board Conference, over 150 industry leaders, alumni, graduate students, and guests gathered at Chicago’s London House to explore the evolving landscape of real estate. Under the theme “Transforming Real Estate: Adapting to Change, Embracing Innovation,” the event featured top-tier keynote presentations and panel discussions that addressed the most pressing challenges and groundbreaking trends in the industry. Kicking off with insights from Jeff DeBoer of The Real Estate Roundtable, the conference tackled tough issues—from global tariffs and immigration policy to economic uncertainty—while embracing the transformative potential of AI, climate resilience, and smart building technologies.
Throughout the day, sessions explored emerging intersections of technology and risk management, urban market headwinds, and creative strategies for repositioning underutilized commercial assets. Experts from leading firms like AON, JLL, Gensler, and Cushman & Wakefield shared perspectives on urban renewal and conversion projects, sustainable development, and navigating shifting capital markets during this uncertain economic climate. The closing CEO Outlook panel offered a forward-looking view on leadership in a changing political and economic climate, leaving attendees with thought-provoking insights and renewed strategies for navigating the real estate industry.
Conference Slides
- Dinner Keynote Presentation:
Christopher Kennedy, Chairman of the Joseph P. Kennedy Enterprises Inc. & Former President of the Merchandise Mart Properties.
SLIDES: View the slides here. - Panel 1: Emerging Trends in Real Estate: The Intersection of AI, Risk Management, and Climate Resilience
- SLIDES: Climate and Insurance Slides
Moderator: Jacques Gordon, Director, James A. Graaskamp Center for Real Estate
Ryan Barber, Global Head of Property for Commercial Risk, AON
Lauro Ferroni, Head of Capital Markets Research, JLL
Raphael Dawson, Senior Principal, Walton Street Capital
Mary Ludgin, Senior Advisor of Investment Research & Global Investment Committee Member, Heitman - Panel 2: Headwinds and Current Trends in Urban Markets
SLIDES:- Rebecca Rockey, Deputy Chief Economist and Global Head of Forecasting, Cushman & Wakefield
Reimagining Cities: Disrupting the Urban Doom Loop Slides - Joseph Pagliari, John Mazarakis and Chicago Atlantic Clinical Professor of Real Estate, University of Chicago
Gateway v. Non-Gateway Markets: Repricing Risk Slides - Moderator: Glen Weiss, Executive Vice President and Co-Head of Real Estate, Vornado Realty Trust
Panelists:
Liz Butler, Partner, Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP
Joseph Pagliari, John Mazarakis and Chicago Atlantic Clinical Professor of Real Estate, University of Chicago
Rebecca Rockey, Deputy Chief Economists and Global Head of Forecasting, Cushman & Wakefield
- Rebecca Rockey, Deputy Chief Economist and Global Head of Forecasting, Cushman & Wakefield
- Panel 3: Repositioning and Converting Commercial Real Estate Properties
SLIDES:- Sheryl Schultz, Co-Managing Director, Building Transformation & Adaptive Reuse Leader, Principal, Gensler Scoring Criteria for Office Conversion Slides
- Tom Sitz, Executive Managing Director, Cushman & Wakefield, 111 West Illinois Conversion Case Study
- Moderator:
Jessica Brown, Principal, Sterling Bay
Panelists:
Nooshin Felsenthal, Managing Director, Tishman Speyer
Sheryl Schulze, Co-Managing Director, Building Transformation & Adaptive Reuse Leader and Principal, Gensler
Tom Sitz, Executive Managing Director, Cushman and Wakefield
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