Jones Lang LaSalle and The Staubach Company Reach Agreement to Merge

Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated, a financial and professional services firm specializing in real estate, and The Staubach Company, a real estate services firm specializing in tenant representation in the United States, announced on 6/16/08 that they have reached a definitive agreement to combine operations. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter (subject to Hart-Scott-Rodino approval as well as other customary closing conditions).

The combined firm will operate under the Jones Lang LaSalle brand. The transaction does not include Staubach Retail Services or Cypress, Staubach’s investment development business, both of which will continue to operate under license agreements.

“The Staubach Company is recognized for exceptional tenant representation expertise and is a leading presence in markets throughout the United States. We are delighted that they have decided to join our company,” said Colin Dyer, chief executive officer of Jones Lang LaSalle. “Merging our businesses reinforces two of our global growth priorities, building our position in key U.S. local markets and strengthening our corporate services business by introducing Staubach clients to our global Corporate Solutions capabilities.”

Staubach leadership will hold key positions within the combined organization. Roger Staubach, who founded Staubach 31 years ago, will join the Jones Lang LaSalle Board of Directors and will serve in the new role of Executive Chairman, Americas. He will be actively involved in the firm, focusing on client relationships, new business development, and strategy. Greg O’Brien, currently Staubach’s CEO, will be the CEO of Brokerage, Americas, leading the newly created business that will set strategic direction in tenant representation and agency leasing. John Gates, currently Staubach’s President and COO, will serve as President of Brokerage, Americas. Both Greg O’Brien and John Gates will join the firm’s Americas Executive Committee, which is headed by Peter Roberts, Jones Lang LaSalle’s CEO, Americas.

“This merger is all about working to be the best. We want to bring the value of what we’ve built at The Staubach Company to the next level and have chosen to do this with Jones Lang LaSalle because of its global platform, commitment to service, and exceptional reputation,” said Roger Staubach, Executive Chairman of The Staubach Company. “In today’s global economy when so many of our clients want an international platform, this merger gives us the opportunity to provide those services seamlessly, as one team working together.”

The merger will leverage and strengthen Jones Lang LaSalle’s comprehensive global platform including its leading Corporate Solutions business, integrated technology platform and best practices, facility management services, and energy and sustainability services -- with Staubach’s powerful tenant representation platform and extensive reach into key U.S. markets. Combining the talent and resources of the two firms will secure a leadership position in public sector services; broaden the expertise in industrial brokerage, capital markets, and project and development services; and expand the resources focused on industry sectors such as law firms, health care, banking, logistics, life sciences, non-profits, data centers and contact centers.

“We expect this unique opportunity to bring together the complementary strengths and resources of two powerful organizations into one integrated global company will create enormous new value for our clients, our people and our shareholders,” said Peter Roberts, Jones Lang LaSalle’s CEO, Americas. “As the talented people in each company come together to share ideas, expertise and experience, they will benefit and our clients will benefit.”

The combined firm will have 33,700 employees around the world and 11,500 in the Americas with the addition of more than 1,000 Staubach employees. The transaction also will add 14 new corporate offices to Jones Lang LaSalle’s 54 in the Americas, bringing the total corporate offices in the Americas to 68 and globally to 184.

“It’s not about being bigger, it’s about being the best for our clients and our people,” said Greg O’Brien, The Staubach Company’s CEO. “By joining forces, we will gain increased scale in strategic areas such as industrial brokerage, facilities management and capital markets; we will be a dominant player in both tenant representation and agency leasing services across the Americas. Our team will have the resources to provide a higher level of service to our clients through in-depth delivery systems and service offerings.”

CFOs See Financial Benefits in Adopting Environmental Sustainability Practices and Metrics

In the first in depth study of its kind, CFOs and other senior finance executives overwhelmingly report that environmental sustainability is an increasingly important issue for their companies, and that a range of significant financial benefits are achievable for companies that can implement strategies that truly reduce their impact on the environment.

Conducted by CFO Research in collaboration with leading global commercial real estate and money management firm Jones Lang LaSalle, the study surveyed 175 corporate CFOs and senior finance executives.

Among the key findings of the report:

• More than half of finance executives believe their companies are “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to increase revenue, reduce operating costs, improve investor returns and shareholder value, and improve employee retention through sustainability. The most often cited benefits were reduced risk (“very” or “somewhat” likely to produce benefits at 78% of companies), enhanced brand and reputation (77%), customer retention (72%), and improved employee health and productivity (68%).
• The highest priority objectives in corporate sustainability are regulatory compliance (ranked as a high priority for 61% and a mid-level priority for 26% of respondents), improving energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions (a high priority for 47%, mid-level for 32%), and reducing the environmental impact of operations (45% and 32%).
• The greatest barriers to incorporating sustainability into financial strategy include the inability to measure the effects of sustainability on shareholder value (ranked among the top three challenges by 46% of respondents), inability to document the effects on financial performance (37%), and a lack of standard decision-making frameworks that consider environmental factors (36%). The least significant challenge was organization resistance, ranked among the top three barriers by just 20% of respondents.

Although most finance executives acknowledged that their own role in driving sustainability was limited, the survey results point to a tremendous opportunity for CFOs to guide their companies to sustainable strategies that bring financial success, according to Lauralee Martin, global chief operating and financial officer at Jones Lang LaSalle.

“Most CFOs believe sustainability can lead to cost savings, increased revenues, greater customer retention and a competitive advantage, so clearly this is an opportunity that can not be ignored,” Martin said. “The question each of us should ask is whether we are taking an aggressive enough position, given the rapidly approaching tipping point of this issue.”

Results of the study are detailed in “The Role of Finance in Environmental Sustainability Efforts.” To download a PDF of the study, click here.
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