President
Professional Women in Construction National
New York City
One of a dozen founders of PWC in 1980, Janis
today is the nonprofit organization’s president
and CEO. She oversees six chapters along the
East Coast with over a thousand members and a
constituency of close to 10,000; directs all business
and development operations at the New York City
headquarters; and plans and directs monthly events for the national
headquarters. Janis hopes to continue to further the advancement of
women and minorities in entrepreneurial, professional and executive
positions in the A/E/C industries and to help broaden the expansion
of PWC through additional chapters nationwide.
DEBRA G. LACY
President and Chief Executive Officer
Lacy Ltd.
Washington, DC
Lacy founded Lacy Ltd. in 1982 and has used
her 30-plus years of experience to successfully position the company, recently managing the acquisition of two trophy office buildings simultaneously for the same fund for about
$197 million, combined. She also assisted the
Salvation Army by acquiring a two-acre site in Washington, DC for
the development of a Harbor Light transitional housing, rehabilitation and job-training facility and arranged for free retail
space in Downtown DC for its Christmas Toyland project. Lacy
says, “Although the glass ceiling still persists, especially for women
seeking positions of authority in upper level management, the
glass will eventually shatter.”
LORI LEWIS
EVP and Director, Portfolio Operations
KBS Realty Advisors
Newport Beach, CA
Lewis oversees all equity acquisition, underwriting and financing activities nationwide for
KBS, which has invested $3.7 billion in four
REITs since 2005. She has directly managed over
$9 billion in underwriting and financing including $400 million this year alone. She also oversees
portfolio operations for the firm’s $5.8 billion of assets under management and is a member of KBS’ Investment Committee. “We have
seen pricing on short- and long-term commercial financing become
extremely competitive from both traditional banks and life companies, as well as a reemergence of the recently dormant CMBS market,” she observes. Lewis remains active in philanthropy by contributing to a number of organizations including Northrise University, a
fully accredited school in Zambia, and the Somaly Mam Foundation,
a nonprofit charity committed to ending modern-day slavery and
human trafficking in Cambodia.
MARLA MALONEY
Principal and SVP, Corporate Operations
Cassidy Turley
St. Louis
Managing 800 associates and 420 million
square feet of space, Maloney has been influential in establishing best practices among
merging firms and growing Cassidy Turley’s
property management group. She has been a
part of the St. Louis Internship Program Board
since 2007, helping disadvantaged youths. “The challenging financial markets have drawn special servicers and financial institutions
into active roles in the operation of real estate projects,” she says.
“These groups need outside help for receivership work, property
management leasing, valuation and disposition assistance.”
SANDRA McGLOTHLIN
President
Empire Roofing
Fort Worth
Mc Glothlin is a co-founder of Empire Roofing,
a commercial and industrial roofing company
with affiliated Texas locations in Austin, San
Antonio, Houston and El Paso as well as
Tennessee, Florida, Georgia and Mexico. She
volunteers her time with Commercial Real Estate
Women, the North Texas Roofing Contractors Association and the
Roofing Contractors Association of Texas. She has also lent her
expertise to many organizations in her community, serving on the
boards of the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Fort
Worth Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Business Assistance
Center, Fort Worth Arts Council and Expanco Inc. McGlothlin currently serves as chairwoman for the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber
of Commerce. She notes that there is more room for female leadership in the commercial real estate industry, and especially in commercial roofing—an industry historically dominated by males.
EDNA MEYER-NELSON
Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer
Richland Cos.
Houston
As the founder of Richland Cos., Meyer-Nelson brings 20 years of banking experience to the firm and amassed a 30-property
portfolio. This past year alone she has secured
leases in excess of 400,000 square feet and
closed over $40 million in real estate loans. The
longtime board member of Houston Children’s Charity sees a
diversified portfolio as a good buttress against the current economic woes. “Our cycle is down right now, but it will absolutely
bounce back,” she says. “Banks, owners even tenants need to realize we are all in this together. It will take some creative thinking
and a healthy dose of compromise, but if we all work together in
new ways, we can prosper even in the down cycles and emerge
with a brighter future.”
