Getting to Know 2025 Chair Alex Thomson

I invite our 21,000-plus members to join me in the goal of making NAIOP the premier organization for the commercial real estate industry. As a unified association, I am confident we can provide leadership and share best practices that advance our industry and the communities we serve.

I’m excited to lead NAIOP in 2025. To help you get to know me, Development magazine asked me to share my thoughts on our industry and association.

You are the first NAIOP chair from outside the U.S. What does that mean for our association and particularly for our Canadian chapters?

As an organization, NAIOP is open to new voices and fresh perspectives. Chairs have traditionally been from all sectors that represent our members — various primary property types, roles in the industry, markets and chapter sizes. Our four Canadian chapters are an important part of our organization. Heightening our voices in leadership roles demonstrates that NAIOP recognizes that our contributions are valuable and will benefit our organization as it grows and adapts.

What are your goals as 2025 chair?

I hope to build upon the open lines of communication between our chapters, visiting many and helping them share their experiences and deep knowledge. That kind of knowledge transfer can have a tremendous catalytic effect. For example, our Canadian chapters have followed the collective efforts of other chapters to coalesce on legislative issues affecting all of us, and we launched our federal advocacy efforts in 2023.

Why should NAIOP members be engaged legislatively?

Despite providing the critical spaces where people work, live and play, our industry is continually in the crosshairs for all manner of initiatives. We must be vigilant and advocate for issues that advance commercial real estate and the communities we serve.

We need to stay active and vocal, from the local level through the state/provincial levels and onto the federal levels in both the U.S. and Canada. As former NAIOP CEO Thomas Bisacquino used to quip, “If you aren’t at the table, you are on the menu!”

What do you see as NAIOP’s biggest benefits?

NAIOP membership provides a place to immediately connect, no matter the market you’re in. Our chapter network allows you to meet local players and get to know the market. It also offers access to education and local advocacy.

Chapters provide information about market issues and are responsive to members locally, while NAIOP Corporate can turn that intel into knowledge that is disseminated through our research and content. An event like our annual Chapter Leadership and Legislative Retreat enables volunteers and staff to share local concerns and gain insights into how other chapters have handled similar challenges.

NAIOP has been integral in helping me remain current on what is “best in class” around the continent. Through our Research Foundation, webinars and podcasts, I stay informed on opportunities and trending topics. I’ve been able to demonstrate leadership, support change and share my passion for what we do with those joining the industry. Each time I attend a NAIOP conference, I leave knowing I have added new relationships and gained fresh insights.   

Alex Thomson, Founder, Prevail Consultants
2025 NAIOP Chair

Let’s Get Personal Education: University of the West of Scotland studying land economics. That degree got me my skilled worker status in Canada and my first work visa, so it truly opened doors and borders.   Years in the industry: More than 20, including the first two in Scotland and the remaining in Canada. Business: I launched Prevail Consultants in 2024, so it has been a busy year. I am still at the startup stage, which is very engaging. Family: I’m the proud father of Micah, who is 19 and finishing up a gap year. He’ll start university in the fall. The rest of my family lives in Scotland, so my closest friends in Canada are like an extra family to me. Favorite out-of-the-office activity: I love the outdoors and try to get away to the mountains as often as possible to hike, bike and camp. Best words of wisdom you ever received: When considering a project, I frequently quote my former colleague Guy Scott’s line: “It starts with a calculator.” It’s easy to get carried away with a development process, but if it cannot perform, you’d better know that on day one.

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