Cornuke: Unification. Integration with our colleagues in the UK and Asia-Pacific operations gets us in line with their thought process as well, and I believe moving forward now with having our regional offices in the US and having boots on the ground is critical to our success. In the past, we were coming out of New York and Charlotte, and we opened up an office in Orange County, and even though we were well represented, now having people in those markets we're looking to be most active in is key. To be really strategic and successful is to have offices in San Francisco, Seattle and Boston, where we're most active, and to have people who know where the bones are buried and have relationships in those market is critical. We have people now that can go immediately to walk and talk and see a building and who also understand the dynamics of the market conditions.

GlobeSt.com: What's your strategy for remaining focused when you're dealing with such a far-reaching company and so many different asset classes?

Cornuke: The biggest thing is buying the best product in the best location. It depends on market timing. We're in all four sector classes—industrial, office, retail and multifamily—and the cycles ebb and flow for each. Right now, we're looking at a lot of retail, but within that could be malls versus High Street, it could be in the CBD or suburban. We're looking at what the micro markets of those suburban markets are, being really granular and laser focused and looking at the best properties and the best opportunities for returns. We set out each year with a business plan of what markets we want to be in and what subsector or micro markets of those markets do we want to be in. For example, in L.A. do we want to be in Downtown L.A.? Maybe not so much, but perhaps in the peripheral areas, like the Arts District. We're also looking at industries within the markets. San Francisco was at one time financially focused and is now technology focused. Where are Millennials moving to? We look at trends in the market as a gauge for where we are going to be most strategic.

GlobeSt.com: Where are there untapped opportunities in asset management today?

Cornuke: It's so broad, and that's really what I've done my whole career: understanding the property inside and out, where it sits in the market and looking at the transition of tenants. Tech companies are looking at more of a work/play environment, so it's not just your 8-to-5 office building anymore. People are coming in earlier and leaving later, so what supports that? Better amenities, areas to sit and collaborate, WiFi-centric lobbies—not just a place to sit and wait for a meeting—health clubs, food. Companies can provide pressed juiceries or snacks and a better lifestyle for tenants. People probably spend more time at the office than at home, so we want to make it as comfortable as possible to encourage tenant retention.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about your company?

Cornuke: We're about our clients and being in the markets. I think we're evolving. We have been in real estate for 60 years, and we have got really good people now entrenched within their markets and understanding what the clients' needs are. There are good and bad times in the market, so we need to anticipate change and weather that no matter whether times are good or bad.

NEWPORT BEACH, CA—No longer just dead space or a place to wait for a meeting, lobby space is being activated with WiFi as another important amenity in attracting and retaining talent, John Cornuke, regional investment head, the Americas, for TH Real Estate, a division of TIAA Global Asset Management, tells GlobeSt.com. TIAA recently integrated its US real estate operations with TH Real Estate (a London-based investment company which TIAA purchased last year). As the third-largest real estate manager in the world, TH Real Estate now manages $97 billion in assets under management and a suite of nearly 80 funds and mandates spanning both debt and equity.

As testament to its significant activity in the Orange County market, TH Real Estate recently sold 3 Hutton Centre in Santa Ana, CA, a 198,161-square-foot trophy office tower (for what Real Capital Analytics reports was approximately $50.5 million) to Cypress Office Properties LLC, with joint-venture partner Harbert United States Real Estate Fund VI L.P. Cushman & Wakefield brokers Jeffrey Cole, Ed Hernandez, Nico Napolitano, Robert Lambert and Rick Reeder represented the seller in the transaction, along with CBRE's John Weiner.

We spoke exclusively with Cornuke about the company's recent changes, remaining focused when dealing with such a far-reaching company and untapped opportunities in asset management.

GlobeSt.com: What are you most looking forward to with this recent change to TIAA Global Asset Management and TH Real Estate?

Cornuke: Unification. Integration with our colleagues in the UK and Asia-Pacific operations gets us in line with their thought process as well, and I believe moving forward now with having our regional offices in the US and having boots on the ground is critical to our success. In the past, we were coming out of New York and Charlotte, and we opened up an office in Orange County, and even though we were well represented, now having people in those markets we're looking to be most active in is key. To be really strategic and successful is to have offices in San Francisco, Seattle and Boston, where we're most active, and to have people who know where the bones are buried and have relationships in those market is critical. We have people now that can go immediately to walk and talk and see a building and who also understand the dynamics of the market conditions.

GlobeSt.com: What's your strategy for remaining focused when you're dealing with such a far-reaching company and so many different asset classes?

Cornuke: The biggest thing is buying the best product in the best location. It depends on market timing. We're in all four sector classes—industrial, office, retail and multifamily—and the cycles ebb and flow for each. Right now, we're looking at a lot of retail, but within that could be malls versus High Street, it could be in the CBD or suburban. We're looking at what the micro markets of those suburban markets are, being really granular and laser focused and looking at the best properties and the best opportunities for returns. We set out each year with a business plan of what markets we want to be in and what subsector or micro markets of those markets do we want to be in. For example, in L.A. do we want to be in Downtown L.A.? Maybe not so much, but perhaps in the peripheral areas, like the Arts District. We're also looking at industries within the markets. San Francisco was at one time financially focused and is now technology focused. Where are Millennials moving to? We look at trends in the market as a gauge for where we are going to be most strategic.

GlobeSt.com: Where are there untapped opportunities in asset management today?

Cornuke: It's so broad, and that's really what I've done my whole career: understanding the property inside and out, where it sits in the market and looking at the transition of tenants. Tech companies are looking at more of a work/play environment, so it's not just your 8-to-5 office building anymore. People are coming in earlier and leaving later, so what supports that? Better amenities, areas to sit and collaborate, WiFi-centric lobbies—not just a place to sit and wait for a meeting—health clubs, food. Companies can provide pressed juiceries or snacks and a better lifestyle for tenants. People probably spend more time at the office than at home, so we want to make it as comfortable as possible to encourage tenant retention.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about your company?

Cornuke: We're about our clients and being in the markets. I think we're evolving. We have been in real estate for 60 years, and we have got really good people now entrenched within their markets and understanding what the clients' needs are. There are good and bad times in the market, so we need to anticipate change and weather that no matter whether times are good or bad.