The Propcast Louisa Dickins

In the final episode of season 12 of The Propcast, Louisa is joined by Jeffrey Berman, General Partner at Camber Creek, where they discuss how to set yourself on a path for the potential to create venture return, Camber Creek’s investment thesis, portfolio, their approach to investment and JB’s predictions for 2024.
Jeffrey dives into the importance of a ‘less is more approach’ when it comes to investment, and how Camber Creek’s investment strategy is based around a ‘need to have’, rather than a ‘nice to have’ method, providing examples like Flex and Built whose products provide solutions to the challenges that tenants and landlords are facing in the US.
Tune in to this episode to hear more about what 2024 has in store for the real estate technology space, as well as what JB’s ‘walking out’ song would be if he were to headline Coachella…
 
Companies mentioned
Flex
Notarize
Bilt
Measurabl
Placemakr
Pet Screening
VTS
Curbio
Arcadia
Jones
Bowery
 
Shoutouts
Michael Beckerman
Casey Berman
Shragie Lichtenstein
YeTong Shao
Matt Ellis
 
Episode Highlights
We invest in exceptional entrepreneurs who are building companies that are changing how we interact with the built world – Jeffrey
The way we always thought about fund size was we looked backwards. Not forwards. – Jeffrey
We have this massive group of strategic limited partners, over 300 around the globe, whose reading points become the foundation layer of ‘these are the types of companies we need to look at’ – Jeffrey
 
Key Takeaways
How Camber Creek has created its investment theses from an initial investment hypothesis, and how they continue to utilise that to invest in the best companies within the real estate technology sphere.
The two main questions that sparked Camber Creek’s investment thesis idea
Camber Creek’s different funds, including its opportunity fund
Jeffrey shares with us a bit more about some of their fastest growing companies, like Flex and the mission behind it
The massive opportunity set for climate tech and carbon tech
 
About our guests
Jeffrey Berman
Jeffrey Berman is a General Partner at Camber Creek. Jeffrey participates in all aspects of Camber Creek’s operations and portfolio management and serves on the boards of numerous Camber Creek portfolio companies. He has more than two decades of executive management experience and deeply rooted relationships in the startup, real estate, and venture capital ecosystems. Prior to Camber Creek, he was a Principal at one of the Washington, DC area’s largest privately held real estate development and management companies. Jeffrey has also been an active early-stage investor, backing more than three dozen startups, including Jackpocket, Kindbody, and Rappi. 
 
Camber Creek
Camber Creek is a venture capital firm providing strategic value and capital to operating technology companies focused on the real estate market. Camber Creek contributes in a direct and significant way to the success of its portfolio companies by leveraging the real estate expertise, operating experience and portfolio of assets of its partners, investors, and advisors. Our investment team has investing, operating, and technology experience and expertise across a range of real estate businesses, including construction, property management, development, and leasing. Our investors own, operate and manage billions of square feet of real estate in the U.S., giving us a unique competitive advantage as an investor and value-added partner in the real estate technology space. The firm has ~$1bln AUM.
 
About Our Host  
 
Louisa Dickins  
 
Louisa is the Co-Founder of LMRE, which has rapidly become the market-leading global built environment recruitment platform and search consultancy, specializing in finding the best strategic talent for the most innovative organisations in PropTech, ConTech, Smart Buildings, ESG, Sustainability and Strategic

In this episode of the Propcast, Louisa is joined by John Rogers, Chief Innovation Officer for CoreLogic and Kirby Brendsel, Flagstar Bank’s VP, Environmental, Social, & Governance (ESG) and Sustainability Director, where they discuss all things climate and housing affordability, and the solutions that are out there to help solve the issues! 

John and Kirby explained the importance of providing data and analytics around climate risk to allow companies to measure the financial impact of climate change up to the year 2050, thus helping companies, cities, and governments to put in place mitigation plans.   

Tune into this episode to hear more about how climate solutions can help with mitigation, housing affordability and insurance, and how our guest’s collaboration create a rising tide that lifts all ships. 

 
Companies mentioned 

New York Communities Corp Inc 

IBM 

Deloitte  

LMRE’S 2023 Salary Report 

IPCC 

 

Episode Highlights 

My big advice for anyone would be that if you're passionate; follow your passion, go for the things that you want to do, or things that you can make a difference on, even on a small scale related to sustainability. – Kirby 

We provided something called ‘climate risk analytics’ which is an insight that allows companies to measure model and mitigate the financial impact of climate change – John  

It’s all about using data, improving your data, and capturing your data to make sound strategic decisions that helps you drive things forward – Kirby  

The chef scientist of NASA said to us that he’d never expected to get to this level of granularity in his lifetime – John  

 

Key Takeaways  

How Flagstar and CoreLogic are working together to help address the issue of climate change and housing affordability 

John explains the ‘average annual loss’ which CoreLogic provides that is a ratio of a building’s risk in terms of reconstruction costs, allowing companies to understand their financial risk 

Kirby explains how important the use of data is in making strategic decisions around climate and sustainability 

The opportunity in cities that have a high climate risk to use CoreLogic’s analytics platform 

The guests discuss the importance of educating people on the long term impact of climate change 

John discusses how the needs of CoreLogic’s customers change and how they accommodate for this 

 

About our guests 

John Rogers  

John Rogers holds the role of Chief Innovation Officer for CoreLogic and is responsible for the R&D. From driving new solutions that understand the impacts to the real estate economy due to climate change, to ground-breaking models that identify suitable land for affordable housing development, the R&D group tackles major housing issues and works with many clients across the housing industry to drive growth and mitigate risk on their book of business.    

Prior to joining CoreLogic, John was a Partner with IBM Global Business Services where he focused on the delivery of large multi-million transformational programs for the financial sector both in the United Kingdom and Australia. Prior to this, John worked as a consultant for Itim Consulting, a boutique management firm based in London. John’s primary role was as a program manager on a number of assignments delivering global solutions within retail, pharmaceuticals, logistics and information services industries.  

John earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Glasgow, United Kingdom in Aerospace Engineering.  

  

Company Summary: CoreLogic  

CoreLogic is a leading provider of property insights and innovative solutions, working to transform the property industry by putting people first. Using its network, scale, connectivity and technology, CoreLogic delivers faster, smarter, more human-centered experiences, that build

In this week’s episode of the Propcast, Louisa is joined by Emanuel Heisenberg, CEO and Founder of EcoWorks, and Mauricio Weiss, GP and Founding Partner of Zacua Ventures where they discuss all things renovation, regulation and innovation.  

With 40% of emissions being used on buildings and 20% on materials, the guests delve into the short- and long-term costs of going carbon neutral and whether it is a realistic goal with today’s current economic climate. The guests discuss how an increase in sustainability pressure, paired with geopolitical instability and labour scarcity are a handful of the challenges that accompany reaching net zero targets.  

Emanuel shares how the EcoWork’s product can help tackle key issues around scarcity of labour and materials from factories, whilst Mauricio discusses the trends he has seen with his portfolio companies in terms of increasing their sales. 

 

Companies mentioned 

MIPIM 

JLL Spark 

 

Shoutouts 

Vivin Hegde 

Arnaud Bouzinac 

Robert Habeck 

Josh Levy, Document Crunch 

 

Previous episodes mentioned 

The evolution of global construction technologies  

 

Episode Highlights 

Regulation is actually pushing for a lot of technology adoption in terms of higher requirements, and these requirements just make the processes much more complex, right? - Mauricio  

So they really tackle the 80 percent renewable energy goal for 2030 and they really decarbonize the heating system with good and aggressive regulations. - Emanuel 

The construction sector invests 1 percent in R&D and the housing sector 0.1%. So, they will not bring any transformation towards affordability and decarbonization. - Emanuel 

You do need regulators – to start pointing the marketing to the right direction, but you also want to keep competitiveness and ensure a free environment and a secure environment to make investments and to see the return of these investments. - Mauricio 

Investors and a lot of stakeholders are questioning whether this is the right moment to be investing in technologies or an economic turn that will potentially slow down the piece of adoption for technology - Mauricio 

 

Previous episodes mentioned  

The Evolution Of Global Construction Technologies 

 

Key Takeaways  

The use of circular building materials in helping companies reach net zero targets 
The need for common standards across Europe, as well as the challenges that this would bring due to difference in buildings and needs for each country 
The need for regulators to be very close to investors in sharing short term and long-term goals of decarbonisation and technology adoption  
How to position certain aspects of ESG to pitch to create sustainable competitive advantage for that company without changing the core of your business 
Emmanuel shares some advice about the German market for founders looking to expand  
The lack of construction companies in Germany  

 


About our guests 

Emanuel Heisenberg 

Emanuel Heisenberg studied history and economics in Munich and Cambridge. He has over 15 years of experience in setting up and developing companies for renewable energies and ESCO and has contributed to more than 50 energy projects. His international network includes numerous funds, utility companies, IPPs, entrepreneurs, and research institutions. After founding a contracting and geothermal energy company, he established ecoworks in 2019, introducing the concept of serial renovation to Germany. An initial pilot project in Hameln proved challenging but was also a significant success. The renovated buildings there have demonstrably achieved NetZero levels. In addition to his role as CEO and founder, he is also active as a speaker and expert in energy and climate policy, advising the German federal government, companies, and private equity funds

In this episode of the Propcast, Louisa is joined by Arie Barendrecht, Founder & CEO at WiredScore, Bayron Lopez Pineda, Director of Operational Technology at Kilroy Realty Corporation and Richard Paine, Head of Development in Singapore at Lendlease.  

The guests help unravel the macro and micro trends, as well as the challenges that the industry is seeing in selecting and implementing technology. This episode provides a global view of PropTech from various perspectives, providing valuable insight into the opportunities as well as challenges that the industry currently faces.  

Arie discusses some of the successes as well as mistakes he made whilst expanding across 30 countries, Bayron explores the impact the pandemic had on the use of technology within buildings, and Richard dives into his role at Lendlease and what he has seen on the development side of the industry.  

 

 

Episode Highlights 

The importance of getting employees back to the office and how this can be done effectively 
The differences in markets based on geography  
The reasons why Europe is ahead of other regions in its adoption of technology   
The challenges in innovation and adoption of technology in the US versus the Asia-Pacific region 


Cybersecurity and the financial implications of data breaches 

 

Key Takeaways  

Our purpose is to be able to lease space out and do that effectively by providing our tenantes the best quality of technology we have available, but also the best experience - Bayron 

We’re looking to the future to make sure that we’re relevant, not just today, but 10 years from now. And that’s in our DNA – Arie  


The pandemic put us in a space where a lot of people went back and looked at the technology to try and figure out what is really needed – Bayron 

You have to think a lot in the future, and you have to predict where you think the future is going with technology - Richard 

 

About our guests 

Arie Barendrecht   

Arie is the founder and CEO of WiredScore, the pioneer behind the international WiredScore certification system that evaluates and distinguishes best-in-class Internet connectivity in commercial buildings. Prior to founding WiredScore, Arie worked as a consultant with the Boston Consulting Group in New York City where he focused on the technology and media industries. Arie holds an MBA from the Wharton School and a BA and BS in Business and Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley.  

WiredScore 

At WiredScore, our mission is to make the world's buildings smarter and better connected. We believe everyone should be empowered by technology, wherever they are.  

At WiredScore, our mission is to make the world's buildings smarter and better connected. A champion of cutting-edge technology in real estate, WiredScore defines and certifies digital connectivity and smart technology in homes and offices on a global scale, ensuring that buildings provide the best-in-class infrastructure that businesses and individuals require to thrive.  

 

Bayron Pineda  

Bayron Lopez Pineda is the  Director of Operational Technology at Kilroy Realty responsible for managing and innovating smart buildings systems. He helps determine policies and processes from security, maintenance, and growth to increase building efficiency and tenant experience. He has over a decade in the Commercial Real Estate sector and is a Founding Fellow of the Control Systems Cyber Security Association International. He is also a Graduate Student at Georgetown University, School of Continuing Studies pursuing a Masters in Technology Management.  

Kilroy Realty Corporation  

With over 14 million square feet in our portfolio spanning five distinct regions, we have built deep experience within vibrant commercial real estate markets.  

We put our experience to service a

In this bonus episode of the Propcast, Tabitha is at Blueprint in Las Vegas, where she is joined by Julieta Moradei, Managing Partner and Founder at Overlay Capital, where they explore why the construction space has been slow to adopt technology, the startups that are leading the way in digitalisation, and Julieta dives into the Women in Construction Tech community.  

Women in Construction Tech is dedicated to empowering female founders, investors, and adopters to help create opportunities, and develop relationships for women driving innovation in the construction industry. Julieta explains some of the DEI trends she predicts to take full flow in the next 18 months and how she hopes to see more and more women coming into the construction space. 

 

Companies mentioned 

Y Combinator 
McKinsey  
Autodesk
BuiltWorlds
Blueprint  


 

Shoutouts 


Antonia Soler  
 

Episode Highlights 

Julieta talks us through her journey into the construction space 
They discuss why the construction industry is so under-digitalised compared to that of other sectors. 


The lack of adoption of technology past Series B 
Julieta’s experience in the VC space 
The ‘missing middle’ that is the biggest barrier to technology adoption in construction 
The Women in ConTech platform and their mission  

 


Key Takeaways  

That's when I realized that in order for you to actually be able to adopt technology in the space, you need to have a catalytic pilot project – Julieta  
It's one of the largest markets in the world in terms of its value, yet least digitized. – Julieta  
But I think what's going to be even more interesting is solutions that are integrating together and bringing a lot of these point solutions together – Julieta  

 


About our guest 

Julieta Moradei 

Julieta is the Managing Partner of the recently launched Overlay Capital Build. Overlay Build is part of the asset manager, Overlay Capital. Overlay Build is a consultancy working to accelerate adoption of critical digital transformation technologies in the built environment by connecting innovative technologies with adopters. We specialize in advising technology adopters with significant real estate holdings like multinational corporates, contractors and real estate developers in need of innovative digital technology solutions. We can help you identify solutions that can address their project needs, develop adoption and implementation strategies at an organizational and project level, and track financial and impact ROI of technologies.
Julieta is a structural engineer and architect, turned social entrepreneur, and venture capitalist investing in early-stage startups mitigating the biggest barriers in the built environment. Her unique path from technical design to VC, has led her to hyperfocus on innovation in the construction industry, and empowering entrepreneurs through catalytic partnerships for the past decade.
Her career path ranges from technical engineering to venture capital: from structural engineering at Disney and Arup, to creating an R&D team to mitigate the biggest barriers in the housing crisis, to then launching and managing a venture capital firm investing in construction technology. As a founding member and former Partner of Hometeam Ventures, Julieta launched, fundraised, and managed operations of the venture fund investing in early-stage start-ups bringing breakthrough technology to the world's largest - but least innovative - industries: construction and housing. This was a spin-off from New Story Homes (YCombinator) where she kickstarted and led as Head of R&D. New Story Homes built over 3,000 homes across Latin America, and in 2018, invested in ICON and built the world's first 3D printed housing technology; in 2022, ICON raised its Series B with a $2B valuation and has partnerships with NASA, HUD, etc

A recent Deloitte report cited the Middle East real estate market is projected to expand by up to 111% in the next five years.  

In this episode of the Propcast, Louisa was joined by Anas Bataw and Prakash Senghani, Co-Founder and CEO at Navatech Group. They discuss the vast opportunities for innovation and growth through technology in the Middle East, the geographical advantage that has put the MENA region at the forefront of smart technology adoption and urban development, and the huge appetite for digitalisation that the guests have seen in the last few years.  

Tune in to hear about examples of some of the technologies being used in the Middle East that are leading the way in revolutionising MENA real estate, as well as some of the challenges that come alongside this diversification. If you are interested in learning more about how construction technology and PropTech is revolutionising MENA real estate, this episode is not one to miss! 

 

Companies Mentioned 

Deloitte 
Watheeq PropTech Venture 


Fifth Wall  
NEOM 
Red Sea Project 
Mace 
Amar 


MIRA 
ROSHN 
PwC 
Balfour Beatty 
WSP 


AECOM  
JLL 
Technology Innovation Institute (TII) 
WakeCap 
WorkPanda  


Procurified 
Modular 
Aldar 

 

 

Episode Highlights 


The huge appetite for digitalisation in the middle east  
Prakash’s journey from the corporate world into building his own start-up   
Anas’ experience in the COP28 committee and the push to sustainability and reducing carbon emissions  
The growth areas that Prakash has seen within construction over the past five years and what we should be watching out for in the future   
Prakash talks us through some of the stand-out technologies being used in the Middle East  


The Middle East’s geographical advantage and its wide talent pool 
Anas explains how having a clear strategy is so important  

 

Key Takeaways 

The pros are that you’re involved in large projects and that there’s a push towards technologies and innovations, and people really want to challenge the current status of what we have – Anas 


I wanted to use artificial intelligence and particularly chatbots to help do things in construction, and one of those things was safety – Prakash    
The complexion of the people working in the construction industry is going to change massively – Anas 
Changing something is always more difficult than planning for the way that you want it in the first place - Prakash 

  

 

About Our Host  

Louisa Dickins  

Louisa is the Co-Founder of LMRE, which has rapidly become the market-leading global built environment recruitment platform and search consultancy, specializing in finding the best strategic talent for the most innovative organisations in PropTech, ConTech, Smart Buildings, ESG, Sustainability and Strategic Consulting with operations across North America, United Kingdom, Europe, Asia-Pacific and MENA.  

To promote the industry she is so passionate about, Louisa set up the Global podcast ‘The Propcast’ where she hosts and invites guests from the built environment space to join her in conversation about innovation.