Nikki Greenberg

Nikki Greenberg's Biography

Nikki Greenberg is a futurist and thought leader in the real estate industry. As Founder of Real Estate of the Future, she spends her days finding ways for real estate organizations to gain an edge by capitalizing on PropTech and disruptive innovations.

Today she can be found speaking at leading real estate and technology conferences around the world. With a focus on innovation, Nikki brings big-picture strategic thinking to the full real estate lifecycle. She entered the real estate industry through her established career in architecture where she worked on multi-award winning transformative mixed-use, multifamily, commercial and retail projects with Lendlease, Koichi Takada, Greenland and others. In New York she held the position of Director of Innovation and Marketing for the luxury brokerages Halstead and Brown Harris Stevens within their new development marketing divisions.

Nikki is an alumni of the UNSW in Sydney, Australia where she attained Masters of International Business with a focus on China; Masters of Architecture and Bachelors of Architecture with honors. She is the Founder and CEO of Women in PropTech, the leading global PropTech networking and education organization.

She is the current co-chair of the Urban Land Institute’s New York Technology and Innovation Council and has previously held leadership positions with the National Women in Construction and Propelle.

Nikki is devoted to charitable endeavors and in 2005 could be found in Thailand where she lent her expertise to rebuilding villages affected by the South East Asian Tsunami. In 2020 she became a Habitat for Humanity Featured Woman in Technology. Nikki is an Australian national that now resides in New York.

Speaking Topics Include

WHAT BUILDINGS WILL BE LIKE WHEN ROBOTS TAKE OVER

An entertaining, tongue-in-cheek yet highly informative keynote on the role of service robots, PropTech & automations within real estate. The keynote looks at a history of innovation in the built environment drawing from case studies such as Archigram’s Cities Walking, as well as reflecting on predictions from the popular futuristic cartoon series The Jetsons. The audience is encouraged to interact with one another to discuss and explore what the future that we image might be like.

Topics: Innovation, disruption, real estate, robotics, futurism, sustainability, humanitarianism, architecture

Learnings: Key terminology from tech, robotics and VC. PropTech to enhance operations and UX. The tech-enabled future for CRE

A NEW REALITY FOR REALTY

In 2019, Gen-Z (born 1996-2010) became the largest population group globally. As the first generation to not know a world without the internet, the way that they interact with the world is unique in that they blur the boundary between digital and in-person realities. Gen-Z view products as services and expect a personalized experience from brands. They also turn to social media to search for information and trust reviews over advertising. A New Reality for Realty, explores how Gen-Z’s attitudes and expectations are disrupting the way that real estate is designed and operated, to ensure that what is delivered today will meet the needs of tomorrow.

Topics: Generational change, social media, new technologies, drones, IoT, co-working, co-living, gamification, virtual reality, robots

Learnings: Compimenting physical and digital experiences. Meeting values of Gen-Z. Do’s and don’t for tech adoption

MAKING REAL ESTATE FUTURE-READY

The rate of change in technology is advancing at a rapid rate and yet we continue to deliver places exactly the same way as they always have been. During this talk, the impact of innovative ways of using spaces such as co-working, co-living and ghost kitchens are discussed alongside the disruptive technologies of drones, autonomous cars and service robots. Here the audience will be inspired to ‘think different’ to discover new opportunities for optimizing their assets to increase operational efficiencies and profitability.

Topics: real estate, development, PropTech, co-working, co-living, service robots, innovation, virtual reality

Learnings: Getting started on tech-enabled real estate. Key concepts and alternative uses of space. Identifying new opportunities.

BUILDING A BETTER FUTURE

How do we design place today to meet the needs of tomorrow? In understanding the drive to a Carbon-Neutral society, the way that technology compliments the physical reality has become increasingly important. The question of when to apply high-tech, low-tech or no-tech solutions is discussed through innovative case studies and global presidents.

Topics: net zero, green new deal, climate mobilization act, green buildings, gen-z, sustainability, buildings, Proptech

Learnings: Understand the opportunities brought by the Green New Deal and Local Law 97. Passive design. PropTech solutions

2020: A SPACE ODYSSEY

A decade of innovation has been condensed into a matter of weeks as companies implemented new systems in response to Covid-19. The real estate industry has been shaken-up, with the places in which we work, live, shop, dine and play needing a complete rethink. While the new reality for realty now starting to take shape, there is an incredible opportunity to rebuild with technology, innovation, empathy and sustainable development principals to guide the way that developments are designed, transacted, operated and occupied. How do you design for the future and operate in an environment with so many unknowns?

How do you identify areas for growth and prosperity? How do you adapt assets to the new realty without degrading their core function? What does design for flexibility look like? How do you rebuild responsibly to create a lasting legacy? Topics: Rebuilding New York, COVID-19, CRE, robotics, IoT, future, residential, retail, innovation, realtor, social media.

PropTech Learning: Apply designing thinking to assess your traditional operations. How to focus on a long term outlook in an uncertain environment. International case studies. Design for flexibility of use. How to capitalize on disruption to breed innovation.

THE ANYPLACE WORKPLACE

To contain the spread of COVID-19, the world underwent the largest work-from-home (WFH) experiment. While offices and co-working spaces sat bare, millions Zoomed and FaceTimed with their clients and colleagues from their home-offices and living rooms. While businesses started to question the necessity of a fixed office, employees questioned their daily commute.

Is the Anyplace Workplace practical long term? How can physical realty support and thrive in this new reality? What is the impact on the residential market and the nature of cities as the new reality sets in? How can one capitalize on the opportunities of this environment through transit-oriented development, service robots and IoT? What role do brokers and asset managers play? Topics: Office, transit-oriented development, social media, PropTech, COVID-19, future workplace, innovation, IoT, realtor Learnings: Global case studies on flexible office, transit-oriented developments, and digital workplace. How to rethink and adapt the use of existing assets. Building a lasting legacy. Remote-work do’s and don’ts

THE NO SPACE WORKPLACE - IS IT THE END OF OFFICE OR THE BEGINNING OF SOMETHING BETTER?

With office workers around the world having adjusted to working from home in order to curtail the spread of COVID-19, many companies are questioning the need for having dedicated office space in the future. With some employees thriving and others frustrated by the new arrangement, a hybrid technology-enabled work-from-office / work-from-anywhere solution looks to be the new reality for many companies. This begs the question, does this mark the end of the office?

1. Learn about the state of the New York office market and gain insights through how the world's most innovative city has adapted.

2. Hear about how technology has been leveraged to adapt to the new reality for realty, and what to expect as Ai, facial recognition and robots become increasingly popular.

3. Gain insights on where there are opportunities for increased profitability in this new landscape as global trends and CRE HQ movements are examined

THE 15-MINUTE LIVABLE CITY

As a result of the global pandemic and many people needing to work from home, the notion of densely populated CBDs that workers commute to is being questioned. In August 2020, leading commercial real estate brokerage CBRE reported that only 4% of offices in New York City had reopened, and the New York Times reported that vacancy rates for residential rentals in New York were at a high. If the world's most vibrant city is losing its vibrancy, what does this mean for the future of cities? In this presentation, Nikki will provide a state-of-the-market for New York commercial, residential and retail assets, and discuss how they have changed as a result of the pandemic. The majority of her presentation will be given-over to discuss the opportunities that have emerged from this new reality for the real estate industry.

1. Receive insights on the state of the New York real estate market and the opportunities that exist for savvy operators

2. Learn how cities can use the global health crisis as a catalyst to fix underlying issues and build back better

3. Examine a return to the concept of walkable neighborhoods and how transport-oriented development should be considered alongside new advancements in mobility, last-mile logistics and transportation

RETURN TO WORKPLACE

As organizations discuss their plans to return to the office following the COVID-19 lockdowns, employee safety, wellbeing and productivity is front of mind. Playbooks have been written and re-written as organizations make plans to bring their teams back to the office while facing challenged of increased cleaning requirements, concerns over contamination, and needing to determine who will return when. Thankfully, through a combination of good design, innovative thinking, and Ai, solutions are at hand to make returning to the office productive, safe and preferable to working from home!

1. Understand the ‘bridge’ between return-to-work and the future of work

2. Learn to think strategically about where you want your organization to go and how you are going to get there during this transition period

3. Understand how your workplace can be a hybrid between in-office and work-from-anywhere

4. Gain insights on the technologies available and how to set up a successful framework that considers high-tech, low-tech and no-tech solutions

Nikki’s keynotes include actionable insights for attendees. They are always left feeling uplifted & inspired!