BOSTON-Mort Zuckerman will relinquish his role as CEO of Boston Properties, effective April 2, the office REIT announced Monday morning. He'll be succeeded in that capacity by Owen Thomas, currently chairman of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., and Zuckerman will remain executive chairman of BXP.
Zuckerman, who cofounded BXP with the late Ed Linde, took on the CEO role in 2010 after Linde's death. As part of BXP's succession planning process, the REIT's board has been focused on identifying “the right person to take over as CEO of the company,” he says in a statement.
In the statement, Zuckerman calls Thomas “an accomplished executive and well known throughout our industry, and he is the right person to lead the company for the future and to build on our success. Boston Properties has tremendous momentum as we adhere to a disciplined strategy of focusing on high-quality, iconic assets in attractive markets. Together with Doug Linde, Ray Ritchey and our other talented colleagues, Owen will build on that legacy and we look forward to his contributions.” BXP's president, Douglas Linde, adds that he looks forward to a strong partnership with Thomas, whom he's known for many years, “as we drive the next phase of the company's growth.”
At Lehman Brothers Holdings, the successor company to Lehman Brothers, Thomas has overseen the successful disposition of assets including the sale of Archstone Enterprise LP to Equity and AvalonBay Communities Inc. that marked the biggest CRE deal of 2012. He also held various senior positions at Morgan Stanley for over 20 years, with roles that include serving as head of Morgan Stanley Real Estate and as CEO of Morgan Stanley Asia Ltd.
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