Grubb Reveals New Senior Team

NEW YORK CITY-Grubb & Ellis has gone into full damage-control mode, nipping in the bud any hint that the firm might be even momentarily hobbled by the departure of president and CEO Barry M. Barovick, CFO Ian Y. Bress and chief strategy officer Elizabeth Kulik, whose contract runs to the end of the month and will not be renewed. A newly released statement outlining Grubb’s new C-suite pecking order suggests the firm’s post-Barovick strategy will be grounded in transaction and property management business and says that chairman C. Michael Kojaian will be taking a hands-on approach, at least until the situation stabilizes.

Notable among today’s appointments is the return of Brian D. Parker, who will replace Bress as CFO. Parker held the position of chief financial officer at Grubb from 1996 to 2000. Responsibility for Grubb’s transaction services group will be split between executive vice presidents of transaction services Richard Fulton, who will handle the Eastern region, and Robert H. Osbrink, who will head up the group’s Western region. Property and facility management services will be run by Maureen A. Ehrenberg. Parker, Fulton, Osbrink and Ehrenberg will report directly to Kojaian and will serve as the firm’s senior management team, overseeing day-to-day operations.

“These changes are designed to maximize Grubb & Ellis’ effectiveness,” Kojaian says in today’s statement. “We believe that our clients, employees and shareholders will be best served by streamlining our organization and directing new investment dollars to our core transaction and management services businesses.”