Doing the REIT Thing: Seizing Opportunities in Today's Markets

Moderator

Arthur I. Segel
Professor of Management Practice,
Harvard Business School

Arthur Segel is a Senior Lecturer in the Entrepreneurial and Service Management area at Harvard Business School where has been writing cases and teaching the Real Property Asset Management course since 1996. He is a graduate of Harvard College (1973) and Stanford University's Graduate School of Business (1975).

Mr. Segel was the founder and owner of TA Associates Realty, an institutional real estate advisory firm with almost $8 billion under management. The firm specializes in commercial and multi-family real estate with over 75 million square feet in over thirty markets in the United States and Canada. Prior to TA Associates Realty in 1982, Mr. Segel worked as a Vice President at Boston Properties and as Deputy for Finance and Administration at Massport under Governor Michael S. Dukakis. Mr. Segel is a member of the Urban Land Institute, NAIOP, and is an officer, board member or overseer for numerous charities.
Mr. Segel is married to the Honorable Patti B. Saris and has four children.

Bryce Blair
Chairman and CEO,
AvalonBay Communities

Bryce Blair is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. Mr. Blair previously held the positions of Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President of Development, Acquisitions and Construction. He has overseen the development, construction, acquisition and management of over $8 billion of multifamily assets.

Prior to the formation of Avalon Properties in 1993, Mr. Blair was a Partner with Trammell Crow Residential (TCR) from 1985 to 1993, overseeing multifamily investments in the New England area.

Mr. Blair received his Masters degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School. He graduated magna cum laude with an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering from the University of New Hampshire. Mr. Blair is a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) where he serves as chairman of the multi-family council, the National Multi Housing Council (NMHC), Young President's Organization (YPO) and the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT), where he is on the Board of Governors.

David Jarvis
Chief Executive Officer,
Mercury Partners LLC

David co-founded Mercury Partners LLC and its affiliates in February 2000. David is the Senior Portfolio Manager for the real estate securities hedge funds that Mercury manages. David has managed Mercury Asia Real Estate Securities Fund LP, Mercury Asia Real Estate Securities Offshore Fund Ltd., Mercury Special Situations Fund LP, Mercury Special Situations Offshore Fund, Ltd., Mercury Real Estate Securities Fund LP, Mercury Real Estate Securities Offshore Fund, Ltd., Mercury Targeted Securities Fund LP, as well as three institutional managed accounts. David has over 25 years experience in the real estate and securities industries, with extensive experience in analyzing, structuring and acquiring real estate securities and real property. Furthermore, David has structured and executed over $20 billion of public and private equity and debt capital market transactions as well as mergers and acquisitions for real estate companies. David has been involved with numerous notable real estate transactions including the sale of the Rockefeller Center. Prior to joining Mercury Partners, David was a Managing Director and Co-Head of the Real Estate Group at PaineWebber Incorporated (1994-2000) and a founder of the Kidder, Peabody & Co. Real Estate Group (1991-1994).

Previously, David was a Principal and Chief Investment Officer for Greystone Realty Corporation, the real estate investment advisory affiliate of New York Life Insurance Company, and a Principal of Copley Real Estate Advisors (now AEW). Formerly, David practiced real estate and securities law in Los Angeles and Newport Beach, California with the law firm of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky &Walker and also clerked in the Enforcement Division of the SEC.

David received a Bachelor of Arts, Phi Beta Kappa, from Williams College in 1975 and a Juris Doctor with Honors from George Washington University in 1978.

Walt Rakowich
President and COO,
ProLogis

Walt Rakowich is President, Chief Operating Officer, and a member of the Board of ProLogis. Mr. Rakowich also serves on the Executive Committee, responsible for setting the strategic direction of the company and monitoring its implementation and progress. Prior to becoming President and COO in January 2005, Mr. Rakowich served as Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer of ProLogis, positions he held since December 1998. As CFO, Mr. Rakowich was responsible for worldwide corporate finance, including treasury, cash management, financial planning, financial reporting, accounting, information technology and investor relations.

Prior to becoming CFO, Mr. Rakowich held the position of Senior Vice President/Director of the company’s Mid-Atlantic region where he was responsible for expanding the reach of ProLogis to the leading logistics markets in the Midwest and Atlantic states.

Prior to joining ProLogis, Mr. Rakowich spent nine years as a Partner with real estate provider Trammell Crow Company where he was a member of the Management Board responsible for commercial and industrial development, leasing and management throughout Southern California. Prior to joining Trammell Crow, Mr. Rakowich was with Price Waterhouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for four years as a senior audit and tax consultant.

Mr. Rakowich received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and his B.S., with distinction, in Accounting from Pennsylvania State University.

Seth Weintrob
Managing Director,
Morgan Stanley Real Estate

Seth Weintrob is a Managing Director of Morgan Stanley. He has eleven years of investment banking experience at Morgan Stanley, and has completed over 75 transactions aggregating over $140 billion in value.

Seth joined Morgan Stanley Real Estate as a financial analyst in 1996, and has also spent time in Morgan Stanley’s Mergers, Acquisitions and Restructuring department.  He covers a range of blue chip clients in the real estate industry, financial sponsor universe and other sectors.  His significant transaction experience includes mergers and acquisitions, secured and unsecured debt financing, preferred and equity financing, private equity investment, and private capital raising.

Seth received an AB in Economics, cum laude from Harvard University in 1996.