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.

Angela Biggs, NEXT Committee Co-Chair
Senior Vice President, Grosvenor | Investment

Q. How did you first get involved with ULI and your committee?
I was a ‘late bloomer’ for ULI, initially joining when I was an Assistant Vice President in my early 30’s. I dove in headfirst, joining the inaugural YLG Development 360 program, followed by the mentor program. The NEXT Cohort was a natural next step, which coincided with entering parenthood. Eric Hansen from Shorenstein recruited me into the NEXT steering committee, where I now serve as Co-Chair with Andy Slaton from Northmarq.

Q. What’s a memorable connection you’ve made through ULI?
One of my most memorable events was WLI After Dark with Amy Price, BentallGreenOak and Heather Meyerdirk of DivcoWest. Amy and Heather provided a candid conversation around a multitude of topics, including the rise of mega-funds within real estate and the path to mentorship for women. It was one of the first post-pandemic in-person events, which was memorable in its own right.

Q. What keeps you engaged with ULI SF and what are you most excited about in the near future?
In developing the 2022-2024 strategic plan, I shared that ULI has allowed me to be “in the room where it happens.” Many aspects of my role as Senior Vice President of Acquisitions at Grosvenor involve understanding the moving pieces of the chessboard. I have developed invaluable relationships across ULI to navigate the changing landscape, ranging from regulation to cap rates and construction costs.

Q. What do you hope to accomplish in the next year?
What differentiates ULI SF is its authentic commitment to diversity and inclusion. As a woman of color that serves at my company’s senior management, I feel the need and challenges of raising future leaders who can build equity and drive change. In the next year, I am excited for the collaboration between the ULI NEXT and WLI Connects Cohort programs.

Q. What’s your leadership philosophy/style?
In order for diverse teams to succeed, extensive studies by Harvard Business School have shown that teams must have psychological safety – a shared belief that team members will not be rejected or embarrassed for speaking up with their ideas, questions, or concerns. In addition to building psychological safety, I enjoy using the Socratic method, which is actively utilized when volunteering for ULI Urban Plan.

Q. What’s front of mind for you right now?
The results of the SFUSD lottery were announced today. The Kindergarten application process has been a paradox of choice. I hope that we consider amending our system to one that prioritizes community building and keeping families in San Francisco.

Q. What has been your most unusual role, to date?
My grandmother was the president of the LPGA for Taiwan. In the seventh grade, I carried the flag of Taiwan in the Junior PGA ceremony of flags, resulting in a featured photo in the Taipei Times.