NAIOP National Forums are special interest groups for NAIOP members that provide them with an opportunity for exclusive networking and experience exchange with their peers.

Any member of NAIOP with 10 years of experience in the industry is welcome to apply. For the Developing Leaders Forum, 4 years of related industry experience is required.

Limited Forums are for principal members who are developers, owners or investors in commercial real estate, while General Forums are for all members.

Each Forum is unique, but in general their discussions revolve around the theme of their Forums. Business opportunities, challenges, case studies, trends and market conditions are among the typical points of discussion.

Yes, see Existing National Forums.

We recommend you indicate more than one choice on your application.

Review the existing list of Forums and their descriptions to narrow your selection. If there is already someone from your market on a Forum, chances are your name will be placed on a wait list. Some Forums have restricted their size, so may be temporarily closed. Need advice? Email Bennett Gray or call 703-904-7100, ext. 168.

Members are selected based on their experience in the industry, scope of business and current market area. We attempt to avoid placing competitors from the same market on the same Forum.

The successful Forum is one in which the members freely and openly interact with a complete understanding of the consequences of their statements, opinions and advice. Members in a successful Forum should expect an atmosphere of trust and openness, in which each can contribute and where individual problems and opportunities can be identified. There are six critical principles involved in achieving a successful Forum:

Group Purpose

The Forum must have a common purpose and a shared vision.

Confidentiality

Members must have confidence that matters discussed at a Forum will not become common knowledge. It is essential that confidentiality not be breached by any member of the group, and the Chair and Vice Chair should stress this at every Forum meeting.

Commitment

It is essential that every member in the Forum be committed to arrive on time, be fully attentive and respectful of other members, participate with vigor, stay to the conclusion of meetings, and arrange their busy calendars with the Forum in mind.

Membership

The most effective make-up of a Forum includes a diverse group of peers who have no conflicts of interest.

Participation

How members interact in the group provides a direct link to trust and openness. Nobody trusts until somebody risks and nobody risks until they trust. It is “challenge by choice.”

Leadership

The underlying factor in any success or failure is leadership. The Chair and Vice Chair fulfill the leadership roles within a Forum. A concerned, caring and committed leader is vital to the successful operation of a Forum.

Forums are usually capped at 20. Individual Forums may opt to set their membership size at another number.

If you are selected for appointment, your length of term is for three years. Terms are renewable.

The current annual Forum fee is $1,995 for regular Forums for the full calendar year, $1,295 if you are appointed after June 1. (For Developing Leaders Forums the fee is $1,995 of the two-year term.) This fee covers the cost of admission to the National Forums Symposium, which includes your Forum meeting, private dinner, receptions and other meals. Your annual Forum fee will also cover Forum functions, which include your meeting, dinner and reception and all educational content at the annual Commercial Real Estate Conference in the fall. All educational and Keynotes sessions, as well as tours and networking receptions, are also included in the Forum fee. All Forum members are also subscribed to a listserve restricted to members of their Forum and may access an online directory, which includes all National Forums members' biographies.

Please see the current Meeting Schedule.

Each Forum is led by a chair and vice chair.

Upcoming National Forums Meetings

National Forums Symposium 2021 | In-person meetings: May 17-18, 2021 | Dallas, Texas / Virtual meetings: week of May 24, 2021 | NAIOP’s Zoom Platform

CRE.Converge 2021 | September 26-29, 2021 | Miami Beach, Florida

National Forums Symposium 2022 | May 10-12, 2022 | Houston, Texas

CRE.Converge 2022 | October 9 - 12, 2022 | Chicago, Illinois

CRE.Converge 2023 | October 18 - 20, 2023 | Seattle, Washington

National Forums Symposium 2024 | May 8 - 10, 2024 | Minneapolis, Minnesota

CRE.Converge 2024 | October 7 - 10, 2024 | Las Vegas, Nevada

The successful Forum is one in which the members freely and openly interact with a complete understanding of the consequences of their statements, opinions and advice. Members in a successful Forum should expect an atmosphere of trust and openness, in which each can contribute and where individual problems and opportunities can be identified. There are six critical principles involved in achieving a successful Forum:

Group Purpose

The Forum must have a common purpose and a shared vision.

Confidentiality

Members must have confidence that matters discussed at a Forum will not become common knowledge. It is essential that confidentiality not be breached by any member of the group, and the Chair and Vice Chair should stress this at every Forum meeting.

Commitment

It is essential that every member in the Forum be committed to arrive on time, be fully attentive and respectful of other members, participate with vigor, stay to the conclusion of meetings, and arrange their busy calendars with the Forum in mind.

Membership

The most effective make-up of a Forum includes a diverse group of peers who have no conflicts of interest.

Participation

How members interact in the group provides a direct link to trust and openness. Nobody trusts until somebody risks and nobody risks until they trust. It is “challenge by choice.”

Leadership

The underlying factor in any success or failure is leadership. The Chair and Vice Chair fulfill the leadership roles within a Forum. A concerned, caring and committed leader is vital to the successful operation of a Forum.

Members must have confidence that matters discussed in the Forum will not be shared outside the group. Members are to assume that anything and everything said in the Forum is confidential, no matter how trivial it may seem. Nothing can be discussed with outsiders unless the holder of the information has given permission. Two or more Forum members gathered together are considered a Forum if they are talking about topics raised in Forum meetings and "Forum rules" apply. Therefore, absolute privacy must be assured. Confidentiality is forever. Even after members leave the Forum, they and the remaining members are still bound to this important Forum standard. Members who testify under subpoena must testify under the law. To reinforce the importance of this critical principle, the chair opens and closes each meeting with a confidentiality reminder.

If you are selected for appointment, your length of term is for three years. Terms are renewable.

Your Forum membership may be renewed if your membership is in good standing (attended your 2 meetings per year and have your Forum and NAIOP membership dues up to date), you respond to our inquiry by the deadline and your re-appointment is approved by the chair and vice chair of your Forum.

You may contact them a number of ways. Phone, fax, email and your individual Forum listserv.

A listserv is similar to a group you have set up in Outlook, only we maintain the email addresses. Since it is intended to spark discussion, replies to emails sent through the listserv may be seen by all Forum Members when you click on "Reply All." Your Forum's listserv is restricted to members of your Forum.

You can pull a current Forum roster from NAIOP's online Membership Directory by using the Committee Equals field to perform a search by Forum name.

NAIOP's online Membership Directory includes contact information, photos and biographies for each Forum member. By using this search engine, you can look for a particular Forum member by last name, or generate a full forum roster with contact information by group.

1. In the top right corner of the NAIOP website, look for Login to the left of the search bar. Click on the link and it will prompt you to enter your email address as the username and your member id as the password unless you have changed it. From this same menu, click on Manage My Account.
2. To view your profile page, click My Profile to update your profile photo. To make any changes to your biographical and university information click My Biographical Information. Enter your information into the spaces provided and click save. Each category is limited to 500 characters or less.

The agenda is usually created by the chair and vice chair with input from the members of the Forum. It is then circulated to Forum members via the Forums listservs. Members are expected to volunteer to lead discussions and present on areas of their expertise.

Yes. Simply send an email to Susan Bornt and she would be glad to send you a sample agenda.

Arrangements for dinner are made ahead of time by NAIOP. Forums can either have NAIOP make a selection of Forum leadership can request a particular restaurant. The cost of the meal, tax and tip are included in your annual Forum participation fee. Wine and alcoholic beverages are not included in your Forum membership and members who drink must cover these costs. Groups can opt to cover their bar tab at the time of the dinner or have NAIOP bill members after the event. Please contact your group's chair for details. You may bring a social guest or spouse to the dinner for an additional fee, by indicating on your RSVP form prior to the published deadline.

Spring meeting: Typical attire for the spring meeting is business casual.

Fall meeting: Typical attire for Forum meetings and Education sessions is business casual. Receptions and dinners are more formal depending on the meeting location.

If you cannot attend a meeting you need to inform your chair/vice chair and Susan Bornt, National Forums Administrator as soon as possible. You may miss up to two meetings during your three-year term without penalty, except the Private Developers I Forum who allows only one missed meeting.

You may transfer to another Forum if you are a member in good standing and if your transfer request is approved. Please send transfer requests to Susan Bornt.

Antitrust Compliance Program Guidelines

1. It is the policy of the Association to comply fully with the antitrust laws applicable to trade association activities. The Sherman Act and other applicable antitrust laws are intended to promote vigorous and fair competition and to combat various restraints of trade.
2. In furtherance of this policy, the Association Executive Office periodically consults with Association legal counsel.
3. Each person who is an Association member or who is employed by a member of the Association and who participates in the Association activities has a responsibility to his employers, to himself, and to the Association to avoid any improper conduct from an antitrust standpoint. The following guidelines will assist in meeting this responsibility:
   1. The Association meetings and discussions are, in general, to be industry-promotion, industry-issue, industry-development or technically oriented. Subject to the above and the advice of Association legal counsel in attendance at Association meetings, discussions may generally cover industry product developments on a generic basis, advancing "technical know-how," improving productivity and efficiency, historical market data on a general (i.e. non-specific company) basis and regulatory or legal industry-wide issues, policies of federal and state law enforcement bodies, and federal or state laws or pending legislation important to the industry.
   2. In view of antitrust considerations (both civil and criminal) and to avoid any possible restraints on competition, the following legally-sensitive subjects as to a given company or its competitors must be avoided during any discussion between competitors.
      1. Future marketing plans of individual competitors should not be discussed between competitors;
      2. Any complaints or business plans relating to specific customers, specific suppliers, specific geographic markets or specific products, should not be discussed between competitors;
      3. Purchasing plans or bidding plans should not be discussed (except privately between two parties with a vertical commercial relationship such as supplier or customer);
      4. Current and future price information and pricing plans, bidding plans, refund or rebate plans, discount plans, credit plans, specific product costs, profit margin information and terms of sale should not be discussed between competitors. All of the above are elements of competition.
      5. Any question regarding the legality of a discussion topic or business practice should be brought to the attention of the Association's legal counsel or a company's individual legal counsel for legal advice.

Forum chairs create and maintain a confidential, productive environment where members will be stimulated and can grow professionally. Committed and organized forum leadership makes all the difference in fostering a sense of group cohesion and creating meetings that are of high value and that are well attended.

Chairs take the lead in the general planning for group meetings, develop meeting agendas, and coordinate between NAIOP staff and group members in the recruitment of new members. Vice chairs support chairs in efforts to plan for meetings and on a group by group basis, may be assigned specific tasks such as timekeeping and note taking at meetings and selecting the location of the group’s dinners.

Typically, chairs and vice chairs serve one-year terms respectively. Groups are free to decide how long terms should be. It is, however, recommended that there be a rotation of leaders to give everyone one in the group a chance to serve. New leadership brings with it a different perspective and renewed energy that is beneficial to group dynamics.

At the start of a new forum, members interested in serving as a chair, or vice chair, volunteer and a vote is held within the group. The person with the most votes becomes the chair and the runner up becomes the vice chair. At the conclusion of a vice chair’s one-year term, they move up in to the chair position and a new vice chair is elected.

Please let NAIOP Forum staff know when there are changes to the leadership in your group as this information must be updated in our database an in our online Forum listing.

NAIOP staff is available to assist leaders with such things as planning for forum meetings, developing agendas and identifying speakers to speak at meetings. We can also develop a customized recruitment strategy for your forum, during or in between our biannual recruitment periods.

Please see the Leadership Resources section for more information about resources available to leadership.

Please contact Bennett Gray, vice president, National Forums, should you need to discuss any concerns or issues you many have with your group, or specific member interactions.

For the most current listing of members in your group, please use NAIOP’s online Membership Directory. You can generate a current Forum roster from NAIOP's online search engine by using Committee Equals field to perform a search by Forum name.

You may also contact Susan Bornt for a roster of your group’s membership. (Please keep in mind that member contact information often changes and that a static list will become outdated quickly. It is best to use the listing found in the Membership Directory for the latest member information). 

Your individual Forum’s listserv is the best way to reach your members at one time. Please contact Susan Bornt should you need the listserv address for your group.

Please refer to the List Serve Instructions for directions as to how to use this effective communications tool.

NAIOP has two official annual recruitment periods each year. The first period begins at the end of May for the Forum meetings at the Commercial Real Estate Conference in the fall. The second period begins at the beginning of November in advance of the meetings at the National Forums Symposium the following spring.

Please let Susan Bornt know. We will make note of this and will be mindful of your recruitment goals as we go through our next recruitment cycle.

NAIOP staff would be happy to contact anyone interested in joining a forum with information about the program. If they are not a NAIOP member, we would also be happy to guide them through the application process.

The agenda is usually created by the chair and vice chair with input from the members of the Forum. The completed agenda is then circulated to Forum members via the Forums listservs. Members are expected to volunteer to lead discussions and present on areas of their expertise.

Please contact NAIOP Forums staff should you have questions about developing your agenda, or if you would like assistance in scheduling a planning call with your group.

Please contact Susan Bornt for past and sample agendas.

Identifying volunteers within your group to present a case, or lead a discussion, well in advance of meetings will help to engage your members. Leadership is encouraged to complete and distribute meeting agendas at least a month prior to meetings so members plan to attend forum meetings and make travel plans early.

Forums have two options as to how the location of their dinner is planned – 1) NAIOP can select the location, or 2) the group can request a particular restaurant.

Before each meeting, Susan Bornt contacts each Forum chair regarding preferences for the location of the dinner at the next meeting. Because certain restaurants will be particularly popular, we highly recommend that you get your choices back to us by the stated deadline. We will make every effort to get your top choice, however, in some instances, we will have to look at second and third choices.

We will also try our best to accommodate Forums that request private dining rooms, but we may not be able to do so in every instance.

Forums can plan their own dinners. NAIOP will reimburse at a set amount for each member who actually attends the dinner. Please contact Susan Bornt if you are interested in making arrangements for your own dinner and for reimbursement details. 

Forums may arrange for project tours as a group. It is recommended that members select from one of the project tours offered by NAIOP as part of its program offering at the National Forums Symposium and the Commercial Real Estate Conference.

If your group is planning to attend a tour together, please let Susan Bornt know so that we can make sure that all members of your Forum are made aware of it. Please also let us know if there any special requests you may have.

Forums are welcome to have their meetings offsite. We are available to assist with such logistical matters as transportation for the group and arranging for lunch during your meeting day.

At some events, we are not able to provide all groups with meeting space at the conference hotel. We ask that some groups meet offsite. Many Forums enjoy the chance to see a different part of the city we are meeting in and property in the market. Members in your group from the local market may be able to arrange for space for your group.

Please let Susan Bornt know if you plan to, or are interested in, meeting offsite at your next meeting.

You are welcome to invite an outside speaker to present to your group. NAIOP is not able to provide an honoraria or cover travel expenses for speakers. You are welcome to invite a speaker to have lunch with your group during your meeting day at no cost.

Please let Susan Bornt know if you plan to make separate arrangements to have an outside speaker present to your group so we are able to direct the speaker to your meeting room at the event.

Yes, you can arrange to have extra meeting time with your group at the next event. Space is limited so please contact Susan Bornt as soon as you know that your group will be needing space.

Please contact Susan Bornt for logistical issues involving forum meetings and the application process.

Please contact Bennett Gray should you wish to discuss future forum recruitment efforts and any issues involving group dynamics, member interaction, or matters involving the National Forums confidentiality guidelines.