Nori Gerardo Lietz
About Nori Gerardo Lietz
Independent director at Veris Residential, Inc. since 2019; age 68. Senior Lecturer of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and President of Areté Capital. Education: A.B. with honors, Stanford University (1979); J.D., UCLA School of Law (1982), former Chief Comment Editor of the UCLA Law Review. More than three decades in institutional real estate investment management and advisory, including senior roles at Partners Group and co-founding Pension Consulting Alliance.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partners Group Holding AG | Partner & Chief Strategist for Private Real Estate; member, Global Investment Committee | 2007–2011 | Strategy and investment oversight |
| Pension Consulting Alliance, Inc. | Co‑founder; Managing Director | 1988–2007 | Built institutional real estate advisory practice |
| Public Storage Institutional, Inc. | Co‑founder; Senior Vice President | pre‑1988 | Managed institutional capital deployment into real estate assets |
| Paul Hastings LLP | Attorney, Corporate Department | 1982–1985 | Corporate legal practice |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Areté Capital | President | 2010–Present | Real estate advisory firm founder/president |
| Harvard Business School | Senior Lecturer (Finance and Entrepreneurial Management) | Current | Teaches Real Estate Private Equity and Starting a Private Investment Firm |
| Pension Real Estate Association | Former Director | Historical | Industry governance contribution |
| Real Estate Research Institute | Former Director | Historical | Industry research oversight |
| USA Water Polo, Inc. | Former Director | Historical | Non‑profit governance |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Chair of the Nominating, Environmental, Social and Governance (NESG) Committee; NESG met four times in 2024. Not listed as a member of Audit, Compensation, or Strategic Review Committees.
- Independence: Determined independent under NYSE standards; eight of nine directors, including Ms. Gerardo Lietz, are independent.
- Attendance and engagement: Board met seven times in 2024; no director attended fewer than 75% of board and applicable committee meetings; all nine directors attended the 2024 annual meeting; non‑management directors held seven executive sessions.
- Governance practices: Majority voting with director resignation policy; anti‑hedging/anti‑pledging; director stock ownership guidelines; stockholders can amend bylaws; independent Chair.
Fixed Compensation
| Element | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Board Cash Retainer | $75,000 | Effective June 12, 2024 |
| NESG Committee Member Retainer | $7,500 | Effective June 12, 2024 |
| NESG Committee Chair Retainer | $15,000 | Effective June 12, 2024 |
| Meeting Fees | $0 | Only the Strategic Review Committee pays $1,000/meeting; she is not an SRC member |
| 2024 Cash Fees Earned (Paid/Deferred) | $97,500 | She elected to receive $97,500 as deferred stock units |
| 2024 Director Stock Award | $130,000 | 8,904 restricted shares granted June 26, 2024; vest June 11, 2025 |
2024 total director compensation: $227,500.
Performance Compensation
Directors do not receive performance‑based cash incentives at VRE; equity grants are time‑based restricted stock vesting after one year (no disclosed TSR/financial metrics for director equity). 2024 grant: 8,904 restricted shares, $130,000 fair value, vesting on June 11, 2025.
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company/Organization | Role | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Veris Residential, Inc. | Director | 2019–Present | NESG Chair |
| Pension Real Estate Association | Director | Former | Industry body, not a public company |
| Real Estate Research Institute | Director | Former | Industry body |
| USA Water Polo, Inc. | Director | Former | Non‑profit |
Potential interlocks/conflicts: The board includes principals of significant shareholders Madison International Realty (Ronald M. Dickerman) and Bow Street (A. Akiva Katz). Madison beneficially owns ~6.5% and Bow Street ~5.6%; however, no related‑party transactions involving Ms. Gerardo Lietz are disclosed, and NESG oversees related‑party reviews with recusal requirements.
Expertise & Qualifications
- Legal and institutional real estate expertise: Co‑founded major advisory platforms; Partners Group investment strategy leadership.
- Academic and technical proficiency: Senior Lecturer at HBS (real estate private equity and entrepreneurship).
- Education: Stanford A.B. (1979); UCLA J.D. (1982).
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Shares Beneficially Owned | % of Outstanding | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nori Gerardo Lietz | 48,591 | <1% (non‑material) | As of April 17, 2025 |
- Deferred compensation election: $97,500 of 2024 director cash fees received as deferred stock units under the Directors’ Deferred Compensation Plan (units credited at quarterly prices; paid in shares after board service ends or change in control).
- Director ownership guidelines: Must hold shares/units equal to five times annual cash retainer; 100% of net‑after‑tax shares from vesting/exercises must be retained until in compliance; directors are in compliance and progressing toward the goal.
- Alignment safeguards: Anti‑hedging and anti‑pledging policies for directors.
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independent status, strong attendance, and leadership of NESG overseeing board composition, governance, and ESG risk management.
- Ownership alignment via equity retainer and personal beneficial ownership; deferred fee election increases exposure to stock performance; robust anti‑hedging/pledging policy and director ownership guidelines.
- No disclosed legal proceedings or adverse matters; related‑party transaction review process with director recusal; no director compensation red flags.
- Investor sentiment: 2024 Say‑on‑Pay support at ~96.1%, indicating positive governance/performance alignment across compensation structures.
-
Watch items
- Board includes principals of large shareholders (Madison, Bow Street), which can be value‑aligned but requires ongoing NESG vigilance for independence perceptions and related‑party oversight; no specific conflicts disclosed for Ms. Gerardo Lietz.
- ESG oversight is centralized in NESG; continued transparency on ESG KPI linkages and cybersecurity governance is beneficial as these areas expand.
Overall signal: As NESG Chair, Ms. Gerardo Lietz’s institutional real estate and governance expertise, attendance record, independence, and alignment practices are supportive of board effectiveness and investor confidence.