JLL Snags Lipscomb from Transwestern as Major TCG Principals Continue to Find New Homes

BOSTON—The peripatetic Freedom Trail emanating from Transwestern Consulting Group’s Hub operations at 75 State St. has wended around the corner to Post Office Square where former partner Jamey Lipscomb has joined rival JLL, the US Army veteran with 16 years of brokerage experience recruited to complement a series of other hires and promotions made in recent months. It also comes amid separate departures of TCG principals this year, including founding partners Michael Joyce and Robert B. Richards Jr. to Cushman & Wakefield.

“I am looking forward to writing my next chapter,” Lipscomb tells Real Reporter this week just a few days after making his move to JLL, one he explains was motivated by an evolving marketplace and opportunity to join an organization “really hitting its stride” in the ability to address the rapidly changing needs of investors, landlords and tenants, his book of business eclipsing 500 transactions and encompassing 8 million sf of activity focused north and west of Boston.

“When considering various real estate firms, I was drawn to JLL’s culture, commitment to excellence and extensive services lines that will benefit my clients,” Lipscomb outlines. Besides transactions for such major property owners as Campanelli, DivcoWest and Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Lipscomb advises a roster of tenants whose horizons are rapidly expanding. “Their reach is growing and my own personal reach has also grown to where having a (global) platform with all the tools and resources available that let us (efficiently) go into new areas was critically important, and then to be supported by some of the most competent and dedicated talent you will find around was also very appealing,” he outlines.

Lipscomb says he is further impressed by JLL being “a flat organization,” i.e. one de-emphasizing bureaucracy and embracing management empowerment of staff, the sort of company willing to promote from within as evidenced this week when JLL announced it was elevating suburban leasing brokers Michael Ciummei and Joseph Fabiano to lead its Industrial Practice Group, a decision unveiled by Real Reporter on Wednesday even though there was reportedly interest for the opportunity by several capable outside professionals.

Familiar with Ciummei from the field, Lipscomb has bountiful praise for him as an “energetic, talented” professional who serves as the face of the industry’s next generation of high-end performers. “I am very impressed with the people JLL has put together to bring the company to another level,” says Lipscomb, among them former TCG colleague Frank F. Petz, who came aboard five years ago to rebuild JLL’s Capital Markets platform, and Matthew Daniels, head of the Cambridge and suburban leasing teams through which Lipscomb will operate in his role as Executive VP.

“Matt is a real leader who has always conducted himself superbly in the market, and I see that same leadership evident behind four walls that proves it is a core part of his makeup and not just a show,” says Lipscomb. Petz, who greeted him with “a big hug” upon Lipscomb arriving at JLL’s One Post Office Square headquarters, “has done an incredible job” establishing the Capital Markets team as a formidable Tier One player in a highly competitive arena, observes Lipscomb.

The Capital Markets approach relies on market intelligence from leasing experts, and that is an area Lipscomb is familiar with in TCG brokers often juggle leasing and sales assignments. A sales listing is sometimes precluded by boosting occupancy, creating another level of symmetry between the groups. In a statement provided Real Reporter, Daniels calls Lipscomb “a perfect fit at JLL,” predicting that “his suburban market insight, track record, skill set, business acumen, deep knowledge and client relationships will perfectly complement our group.”

“Energy and competency” are other Lipscomb traits Daniels is counting on that will “make an even stronger presence for us in the suburbs while strengthening our firm’s culture and collaboration,” adding, “We are elated to have him on board.”

And they should be, according to a competitor who maintains JLL fared well in the TCG sweepstakes. “You’ve get someone with 16 years of experience who spent four years in the Army— that’s a huge win for JLL to grab that (level) of competency,” says the industry professional who has interacted with Lipscomb in the field and declares him “the real deal” as a proven producer and trusted advisor whose clients include Mercury Systems and Puma North America.

Prior to joining TCG, known until a 2013 merger as Richards Barry Joyce & Partners, Lipscomb began his career at CBRE/NE in 2002. Before that he was a US Army officer and holds a BA from Dartmouth College. A member of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board and its Commercial Brokers Association, Lipscomb civicly is a youth sports coach, active with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston’s Friends Council and a member of the Dartmouth Alumni Club.

Lipscomb to JLL follows Joyce and Richards leaving TCG while this week it was announced brokers Thomas Ashe and Robert Byrne have also been hired at C&W. As Real Reporter unveiled in late December, another contingent led by founding partners John Lashar, Steve Purpura and Jonathan Varholak are in talks to depart for CBRE/NE where they will reportedly take on leadership roles. Parties from both sides of those rumored discussions have not responded to Real Reporter inquiries, although one observer spoken to maintains “the other shoe is about to drop” in regard to the CBRE/NE situation.

Frank Petz

Matthew Daniels

Jamey Lipscomb