Get to know some of the ULI San Francisco members who work hard behind the scenes to develop the events and initiatives for which our District Council is known. These industry leaders come from a variety of real estate land use sectors and lend their expertise and time to drive the work of our committees. We’ve asked these committee co-chairs to answer questions around their involvement with ULI San Francisco.

Jay Sholl, Bay Area Programs Committee Co-Chair
Senior Vice President, CBRE | Global Advisory & Transaction Services

Q. How did you first get involved with ULI and your committee?
I have been actively involved with ULI at the national level for a long time. A couple of years ago, when I rolled off the board of the Randell Lewis Center for Sustainability in Real Estate,Natalie Sandoval invited me to volunteer with the San Francisco District Council. I said yes, and now I co-chair the Bay Area Programs Committee, serve on the DEI Committee, and am honored to also serve on the Management Committee.

Q. What’s a memorable connection you’ve made through ULI?
Serving on the board of the Center for Sustainability for four years introduced me to so many professionals dedicated to addressing environmental and social justice. I learned so much. I will always be grateful to Lynn Thurber, Billy Grayson, Marta Schantz and Michelle Malanca Frey who provided me opportunities through ULI that have enriched my professional experience and expanded my world view.

Q. What keeps you engaged with ULI SF and what are you most excited about in the near future?
I’m proud and excited to be part of the work our DEI committee is doing to provide opportunities for women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, which is long overdue. Three examples of how we are educating the next generation by expanding and diversifying our industries are our Summer Intern Placement Program with the Construction Industry Workforce Initiative (CIWI), our Diversity Membership Fund, and our Bay Area Developers of Color Cohort program.

Q. What do you hope to accomplish in the next year?
I want to continue to build on ULI SF’s reputation as The Leader in promoting positive transformative real estate policy and activity in the San Francisco Bay Area. By leveraging the incredible talent and experience of our diverse members and engaging new members, we will deliver “best in class” programs, training and presentations that will educate our members, improve our communities and reinforce to the public that ULI SF is the expert for creating sustainable thriving communities.

Q. What’s your leadership philosophy/style?
Understanding myself has been fundamentally important to how I manage relationships. You are the only person in the world with your personality; you should really invest in learning to understand it. I’m a big fan of the Enneagram’s nine personality profiles. We better understand how and why we can work together to achieve common goals by looking at each other’s personalities and traits. The Enneagram describes me as Type Eight “The Challenger”. To know more about me, click here.

Q. What’s front of mind for you right now?
Covid 19 has changed the ways we live, work and play. Top of mind for me is how do we transform, adapt and combine virtual and real world experiences that will continue to provide measurable value to our members and increase participation and engagement.

Q. Outside of work and ULI, what do you enjoy doing?
Spending time with family and friends over a meal prepared by me. Cooking allows me to be “in control” and “of service” simultaneously, a win-win for me and my guests. Living in the Bay Area we are blessed by the depth and diversity of the talent pool. Prior to the pandemic, I intentionally created a dinner party for 8 guests, all strangers once a month. It’s amazing to witness the bonding effect of a shared meal. The second half of this year I plan to restart these intentional collaborations including dinner.