Schecky Schechner is a Managing Director and Vice Chairman, Americas Real Estate and Gaming at Barclays. Based in New York, his group is responsible for the coverage of real estate clients for advisory services as well as all forms of real estate capital – be it debt or equity. Clients include the leading REITs, lodging and gaming companies, and real estate opportunity funds and financial sponsors. Mr. Schechner joined Barclays in 2008 from Lehman Brothers Inc. where he held a similar position. Prior to that, he was a Managing Director and the National Head of Mortgage Origination for JPMorgan Chase. He was responsible for overseeing domestic origination of over $11.5 billion per year of fixed and floating rate permanent mortgages. Mr. Schechner started his career in 1984 at Goldman Sachs in the Real Estate Department where he worked on a broad range of sales and financing assignments. He was stationed in London for two years where he had primary responsibility for the construction, leasing and financing of Goldman Sachs’ European Headquarters, Peterborough Court and Daniel House. Subsequently, he held various positions within Real Estate including being a founding member of both the Real Estate Principal Investment Area as well as the CMBS effort. When he left Goldman Sachs, he was co-head of the Real Estate Investment Banking business. Mr. Schechner is currently a trustee of the Urban Land Institute and a member of the Real Estate Roundtable. He has held leadership positions in the Real Estate Lenders’ Association, the Mortgage Bankers Association and the National Realty Committee/Real Estate Roundtable. Mr. Schechner has a BA in Economics and Political Science/Molecular Biochemistry and Biophysics from Yale University (1980) and a JD/MBA from Harvard University (1984).

Ms. McLaughlin tracks, analyzes, and forecasts logistics of the real estate fundamentals and structural industry trends, and translates insights into strategic decision-making for Prologis. Her other areas of specialization include supply chain reconfiguration, location differentiation, and econometric modeling. Before joining Prologis in March 2015, Ms. McLaughlin was a Vice President at Rosen Consulting Group, a boutique firm that provides economic, housing and commercial real estate strategic consulting services to a diverse roster of clients. Ms. McLaughlin holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with a concentration in Real Estate. In 2020, she was deemed one of San Francisco Business Times’ Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business and the Prologis Research team was named one of GlobeSt.com’s Industrial Influencers. She is also a member of the Urban Land Institute.

Andrew is Global Head of Real Estate Research & Strategy at Zurich Insurance, having joined the firm in February 2023. Based in Zurich, he is responsible for shaping the firm’s strategic real estate outlook. He works closely with portfolio managers and investor partners in developing and implementing comprehensive, integrated global investment strategies. He sits on the Investment Committee and is a member of the Leadership Team. Andrew has more than 20 years of experience in real asset research & strategy. Prior to his current role, he was Head of European Research at CBRE Investment Management having worked in London, Paris, and Los Angeles. He has also held positions in land use planning and environmental consulting in the U.S and Germany. He holds a Master’s Degree in Urban and Regional Planning and a Bachelor’s Degree in International Agriculture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is an active member of the Urban Land Institute, co-chairing the European Office and Mixed Use Council. Andrew is a dual citizen of the U.S. and Britain, fluent in German.

Karen Horstmann is the Head of US Real Estate for CDPQ, which manages $330 billion of assets globally. She is responsible for the US real estate investment strategy, asset management and the US real estate team. Previously, she served as the Head of Acquisitions for Allianz Real Estate of America ('PIMCO Prime Real Estate'), part of the world’s largest real estate investor, with equity and debt totaling $76.4 billion worldwide. Prior to joining Allianz Real Estate in September 2019, Karen launched the US real estate business for Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), Norway’s $1.6 trillion Government Pension Fund Global, between 2011 and 2019. Over this period, she built the US investment team, real estate platform, and developed a $28 billion strong portfolio. Before NBIM, Karen launched the inaugural Meyer Bergman Capital Partners pan-European real estate private equity fund. Karen started her real estate career in 1999 in London working for Goldman Sachs’ Real Estate Principal Investment Area. Karen has served on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee, and was the recent Chair of the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate ('AFIRE'). She has been a Key Leader as a member of the Americas Executive Committee, Governing Board of Trustees, Fund and Foundation Investment Committees, and Urban Development Mixed Use Councils Bronze and Blue of the Urban Land Institute ('ULI'). Karen is also an active member of New York Women Executives in Real Estate ('WX'), where she serves on the Scholarship Committee. Karen holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and is fluent in Spanish.