TIAA Henderson RE to reveal global head of investor relations

Victoria Sharpe, the veteran of Pramerica Real Estate Investors, is due to be unveiled as the worldwide head responsible for marketing, distribution and client service.

TIAA Henderson Real Estate, the $73 billion global alliance between TIAA-CREF and Henderson Global Investors, is set to unveil Victoria Sharpe as its worldwide head of investor relations. News of her appointment is said to be imminent and comes in the wake of the official launch of TIAA Henderson Real Estate in April, following the signing of a 60:40 joint venture between TIAA-CREF and Henderson Global Investors last summer.

In its announcement, TIAA Henderson is expected to say that Sharpe will be responsible for marketing, distribution and client services worldwide for the joint venture, providing investors with a link to all the real estate funds and products managed by it. Reporting to chief executive James Darkins, she initially will be based at the venture's London headquarters before relocating to New York. In her capacity as global head of investor relations, she also will take a seat on the executive leadership team, which is comprised of senior professionals from TIAA Henderson Real Estate and TIAA-CREF.

The big-name hire is all the more significant as Sharpe is among the best-known women in the private equity real estate industry. In an article entitled ‘Glass-ceiling breakers’ in the July 2010 issue of PERE, she was named as being among 10 for her profile in the sector.

Most recently, Sharpe has been with Prudential Asset Management, the asset management arm of Prudential Financial. Prior to that she spent 13 years with Pramerica Real Estate Investors, where she held positions across the globe including in New Jersey, Singapore and Munich. In March 2013, Pramerica announced she was leaving her position as head of its Asia business for a new role with Prudential Asset Management’s global institutional relationship group.

TIAA Henderson will want to tap into what it regards as her significant network across Europe, the Middle East, Americas and especially the Asia-Pacific region, where she is widely credited with building up Pramerica Real Estate Investors’ business. The joint venture has been looking to hire a significant senior real estate professional to create what it calls a “global touch point” and “shop front” for all products and investors, it said. The global alliance real estate offering comprises TIAA Henderson’s $23 billion in Europe and Asia and $49 billion of assets in the US, which are owned and managed by TIAA-CREF.

Before her long stint at Pramerica, Sharpe worked at Capri Capital, Institutional Property Consultants, LaSalle Advisors and Northern Trust.