CBRE promotes Mike Lafitte and Cal Frese to Group President role

CBRE has promoted Mike Lafitte and Cal Frese to the role of Global Group President. Lafitte takes responsibility for CBRE’s Lines of Business and Client Care, and Frese takes responsibility for oversight of the firm’s Americas, EMEA and APAC geographies. Both senior advisors will report directly to CBRE President & CEO, Bob Sulentic.

Mike Lafitte took on the President of Americas role at CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) in 2009, which he held until 2012. From 2012 Lafitte was the Global President of CBRE Services for just under a year, taking on the Chief Operating Officer role at the company in 2013. Lafitte holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Real Estate from the University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Business Administration in Finance and Real Estate from the Southern Methodist University.

Lafitte takes on the executive position of Global Group President responsible for the CBRE’s Lines of Business and Client Care. The role will see Lafitte work towards further developing the firm’s range of services, including transactional, property, facilities and project management services. In addition, Lafitte will be responsible for CBRE’s Client Care programme.

Cal Frese joined CBRE in 1998. In the years that followed, he ascended to the rank of President of Global Services and in 2012 took on the role of CEO of the Americas. Previously, Frese worked at Whittier Partners for nine years, where his last role held was as Chief Operating Officer. Earlier roles include Senior Vice President at Cabot, Cabot & Forbes and Manager at Arthur Andersen, where he started his career in 1979. Frese holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economic from Trinity College-Hartford and a Master of Science in Accounting from the New York University – Leonard N. Stern School of Business.

Frese takes on the executive position of Global Group President, directly responsible for oversight of the Americas, EMEA and APAC. The role sees Frese take charge of CBRE’s geographic leadership team, setting the tone for driving financial and operations performance across the regions. The role will also see Frese responsible for better aligning Research and Marketing within CBRE’s global operations.

Both Presidents will report directly to CBRE President & CEO, Bob Sulentic, who adds “Mike and Cal are exceptional leaders who have helped steer the company to strong growth and many key strategic gains. Their new responsibilities will enable us to continue to differentiate our services, while advancing the quality of our geographic leadership team and the financial and operational performance of our regions.”