The five, hedging up on 45 years' experience, interviewed with several other leading brokerage houses in the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex, Insignia/ESG's Dallas Phil Baker executive director, tells GlobeSt.com. "It seemed to be a perfect fit," he says of the bulk hire.

Baker confides he's not done raiding the DFW ranks. He's not saying who, but he is saying when–"in the immediate future"–he will select a director of office leasing and director of property management from those who have come knocking on his door in the past month when he stepped into the office's lead role and set off a firestorm for change.

In addition to Kaplan, the team consists of Steve Wentz, now one of four managing directors; Jeffrey C. Laures, one of four directors; and Jeffrey D. Eiting and Robby Skinner, associates. The hires take Insignia/ESG's Dallas team to 30 tenant reps and brings the capability for a major push in that arena for all product types.