CBRE Appoints John Ferguson Executive Sponsor of Asia Pacific American Forum

CBRE Group, Inc. has announced that John Ferguson, CBRE President of the Southeast Division, has taken a leadership role in the Asia Pacific American Forum (APAF). Mr. Ferguson will serve as the Executive Sponsor of the company’s newest employee network group.

Mr. Ferguson will work with the APAF Chairperson and founder Charles Rho, Senior Vice President, Capital Markets, to help the employee network reach its goals. CBRE launched the employee network approximately six months ago and the leadership team has grown to 10 professionals, including Mr. Rho.

Founded in 2015, APAF is focused on helping CBRE attract, develop and retain Asian-Pacific-American talent while advancing its business to serve the Asia Pacific marketplace. APAF is creating professional development opportunities that build skills and help members advance their careers. It will also support CBRE regions through volunteerism and charitable events. Furthermore, the leadership team is focused on building external connections to Asian professional organizations.

“We have great aspirations for CBRE’s Asia Pacific American Forum,” says Mr. Rho. “From my experience as one of the leaders of GE’s Asia Pacific network, our efforts have the potential to influence many professional lives. Now that John has joined our leadership team, I am confident we’ll make progress very quickly.”

Mr. Ferguson has led CBRE’s Southeast Division since January 2011 and has more than 16 years of experience in the real estate industry. He oversees operations in fourteen market areas – Atlanta, Baltimore, Bethesda, Birmingham, Charleston, Charlotte, Columbia, Greenville, Jackson, Memphis, Nashville, Savannah, Tysons Corner and Washington D.C. – and is the primary relationship manager for CBRE’s JV office in Raleigh/Greensboro. Prior to his regional appointment, Mr. Ferguson served as market leader for CBRE’s Atlanta office, where he was responsible for the activities of more than 500 professionals across the full spectrum of the company’s business lines. Mr. Ferguson has received CBRE’s President’s Award on three occasions, recognizing his outstanding performance as Atlanta market leader.  

“John has an outstanding history as a leader within our company and has done a terrific job leading our Southeast Division. I am confident he will bring the same excellence and enthusiasm to his expanded role with APAF and will help broaden the positive impacts of the group,” says Cal Frese, CBRE Global Group President, Geographies.

Mr. Rho joined CBRE Capital Markets in 2014 to help launch a new direct lending platform, CBRE Business Lending. He is an accomplished business development and corporate strategy executive with 25 years of leadership experience with Fortune 300 companies in building and implementing strategic plans and forging partnerships in the financial services industry. Prior to joining CBRE in Feb 2014, Charles worked for GE Capital for 18 years overseeing sales management, capital markets/syndication and BD/corporate strategy groups. He closed more than $11 billion in CRE loans and portfolio transactions.

“Charles has done a lot of groundwork over the last few years to get APAF started and I look forward to joining him and the whole APAF team. Together we will serve our Asian community and guide CBRE’s continued efforts toward inclusion for all employees,” says Mr. Ferguson.

Additional information about diversity and inclusion practices at CBRE can be found at www.cbre.com/about/corporate-responsibility/people-and-culture.

About CBRE Group, Inc.
CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (in terms of 2015 revenue). The Company has more than 70,000 employees (excluding affiliates), and serves real estate owners, investors and occupiers through more than 400 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide. CBRE offers strategic advice and execution for property sales and leasing; corporate services; property, facilities and project management; mortgage banking; appraisal and valuation; development services; investment management; and research and consulting. Please visit our website at www.cbre.com.