WASHINGTON, DC-Besides its comprehensive look at the Washington economy and commercial real estate market, Transwestern also awarded Bob Murphy, managing principal of MRP Realty and Bill Alsup, senior managing director of Hines the "Trendsetters of the Year" award at its Trendlines 2013 debut.

Certainly the award recipients acknowledge the hard work their individual firms have done to receive the awards. "This recognitions of Hines' Washington offices accomplishments is what is so special and important to me," Aslup tells GlobeSt.com. Indeed, Hines has been instrumental in some of the area's most notable projects, including Columbia Square, Franklin Square and the Gannett/USA Today Headquarters. Then there is CityCenterDC, a 2.5 million-square foot mixed-use project that is beginning its condo sales.

There is also a clear sense of how far their respective companies have come since the Great Recession. "This should be called a survivor's award, not a Trendsetter's award," jokes Murphy.

"Four years ago, we were down to 12 people—now it is 65. What we did was put our heads down and develop a path forward after the financial meltdown and worked hard to move down that path," Murphy tells GlobeSt.com.

One trend MRP honed in on was the changing demographics of the area, the changing nature of work and what it all means for how and where people live. "People are getting married later. So if you are single and 30, you are probably not living in a single-family home in Reston," he says. "Forward-looking companies will find success by investing in areas that reflect these changes in work-live-play."