Matt Hunter

Coffee Break

Matt Hunter
Vice president
CBRE Inc.
777 E. Wisconsin Ave, Suite 3150, Milwaukee
www.cbre.com/milwaukee
Industry: Commercial real estate
Employees: 70,000+ globally
Family: Wife, Andrea and three kids, Kate (8), George (6) and John (4)


Coffee-Break-Matt-HunterWhat is the smartest thing your company did this past year?

“CBRE completed the acquisition of Johnson Controls Inc.’s Global Workplace Solutions business, a leading provider of facilities management solutions for global corporations and other large occupiers of commercial real estate. The Global Workplace Solutions business line serves a roster of large occupiers across a wide range of industries, particularly financial services, health care, industrial/manufacturing, life sciences, technology and telecommunications. CBRE will make available to these clients the full range of its services, including property leasing and sales transactions, project management and construction services, technical engineering, consulting and more. As a result, CBRE now manages approximately 5 billion square feet of commercial real estate and corporate facilities around the world.”

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What’s new at your company?

“In addition to the Global Workplace Solutions news, CBRE has been working on upgrading our own office spaces into Workplace360, which is a global strategy initiative designed to support the way employees work today and will work in the future through enhanced flexibility, mobility, technology and productivity.

“One factor driving the increase in creative office strategy is the underutilization and inefficiency of traditional office configurations. The new offices create environments that fuel collaboration, productivity and wellness, including different ways of working throughout the space such as “offices for a day,” focus rooms for when privacy is required, as well as huddle rooms and conference rooms providing employees with ample collaboration space. In addition, “free address” seating with sit-stand desks are available with dual monitors, “follow me” phones allow employees to receive phone calls to their direct line from any location in the office and “follow me” printing enables employees to wirelessly print to any printer. Enhanced technology that supports this mobile way of working is a core element of the Workplace360 model.

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“These are completely new office suites and I believe CBRE’s Workplace360 is pioneering some of the new trends in office space that specifically cater toward the needs and wants of millennials.”

What will be your company’s main challenges in the next year?

“I believe a challenge with any company the size of CBRE is to constantly find better ways to collaborate internally and share information across more than 70,000 global employees. We are continually making strides in this area through the development of various proprietary platforms and relationships to increase the sharing of information.”

What’s the hottest trend in your industry?

“Workplace solutions are the hottest trend in the office market today. Companies are more concerned with better understanding how employees work today in the hopes of increasing the overall productivity and happiness of their employees while at the office. Fueled by the increasing mobility of today’s modern workforce, many of the more traditional type firms are now focused on developing a creative workplace strategy to eliminate the traditional cubicle environment and executive offices in favor of highly functional, shared workplaces. The cumulative effect being cultural changes to an office that enhance collaboration, creativity and productivity.”

Do you have a business mantra?

“‘It’s not whether you get knocked down; it’s whether you get up.’ – Vince Lombardi”

From a business standpoint, who do you look up to?

“My father, Vic Hunter, has been a business advisor to me throughout my life. I’ve also considered Peter Sommerhauser, an attorney with Godfrey & Kahn and well-respected philanthropist, to be a mentor of mine.”   

What was the best advice you ever received?

“Stay positive; think enthusiastically about everything, especially your job.”   

What’s the funniest thing that ever happened to you in your career?

“Early on in my career, I thought I was sending my wife an email saying, ‘I’m losing my mind here… tick, tock, tick, tock…’ Later that day, I found out that I had mistakenly sent that email to a client instead of my wife. The client was concerned by the e-mail and quickly sent me a response asking, ‘Is everything alright?’ After explaining myself and apologizing for the email to my client, I’m much more careful with my emails today!”   

What do you like to do in your free time?

“I love spending time with my family and friends, including watching the Badgers and Packers, playing poker and grilling out.”

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