The industrial asset class shows little sign of wear and tear, although it is equally true that the category is not surging as it did last year. That, though, is a function of the economy and not necessarily industrial's fundamentals. Change, however, is underway in the category as we have discussed elsewhere in this issue and it will require the top men and women to continue to navigate these new trends. We believe we have picked that top talent with this year's industrial influencers.

INDIVIDUALS

MELISSA ALEXANDER Melissa Alexander insists that she didn't choose the industrial sector; the industrial sector chose her because she built her real estate career in Memphis, TN – a large distribution hub and inland port. Working as a broker in industrial tenant representation, Alexander distinguished herself in the male-dominated field. In 2017, she moved back to her hometown of Nashville and joined Foundry Commercial, where she currently serves as SVP and assists users of all sizes to lease and purchase industrial real estate. Although she was not new to the industry at the time, she started her industrial tenant representation brokerage business over from scratch in a new market. Alexander is well-recognized within Foundry Commercial as a top producer and an active go-getter, and she is looked to as a model of social media engagement and influence. Alexander teamed up with colleague Casey Flannery to create a monthly online Twitter chat called #CREchat that hosted CRE influencers. The Twitter chats have evolved into a podcast called CREchat Live, which accelerated to a weekly format during the pandemic. The chats proved to be a viable form of communication and an anecdotal source of information and support for the industry during the upheaval of COVID-19. Because the chats brought together thought-leaders during the pandemic, Alexander enabled brokers to gain insight from other brokers and leaders and navigate the crisis while helping their clients. In April 2020, Alexander launched a daily newsletter for her own clients that provided the top articles of the day pertaining to COVID-19. The project garnered praise for her guidance and insight during an uncertain time.

NICOLE BENNETT Nicole Bennett brings deep expertise to Cushman & Wakefield's occupier business from her 15 years in supply chain, business development and industrial real estate. Bennett serves as executive managing director and logistics and industrial co-lead for the Americas at Cushman & Wakefield, where she and her colleague are responsible for driving the overall direction, strategy and growth for the firm's Americas industrial platform. Before moving into her current role, Bennett built and led Cushman & Wakefield's client experience program, where she developed key performance indicators and client interviewing practices, which allow the firm to measure performance and ensure it meets client expectations. Prior to joining Cushman & Wakefield, Bennett led the occupier side of the industrial business at CBRE, where she grew the industrial multi-market account business from $14 million per year to $60 million per year during her tenure. She is an accomplished leader with a successful track record of winning and growing business relationships with strategic clients, including one of the largest occupier transactions in Cushman & Wakefield's recent history with Macy's department store for its 1.4-million-square-foot e-commerce fulfillment facility. During recent supply chain disruption, Bennett and her team started to view industrial real estate differently, which for many clients meant re-evaluating their current distribution models. Bennett and her team uncovered new opportunities and efficiencies for clients, such as relocating distribution centers, expanding footprints to meet growing inventory capacities, helping clients plan for the worst-case scenarios and future-proofing clients' distribution models.