Hines Names Laura Hines-Pierce and Adam Hines Co-CEOs in Planned Leadership Transition

HOUSTON — Hines, the global real assets investment manager, announced Oct. 2 the next step in its planned leadership transition, naming Adam Hines as Co-Chief Executive Officer alongside Laura Hines-Pierce, effective Jan. 1, 2027. Laura Hines-Pierce has held the Co-CEO role for more than five years.

As part of the same announcement, David Steinbach will become Hines' first president, Alfonso Munk will become Global Chief Investment Officer (CIO), and Jeff Hines will become chairman. The changes take effect Jan. 1, 2027.

New Roles at Hines

Under the structure, Laura Hines-Pierce and Adam Hines will lead the firm together as Co-CEOs, setting its strategic direction and priorities and making major firmwide decisions. The firm said their leadership will build on the strategy and global real assets platform they have helped develop over the past five-plus years.

Steinbach will partner closely with the Co-CEOs and lead execution of the strategy across the business. The Global CIO, Global Head of Real Estate, chief financial officer and functional leaders will report to him. Munk will succeed Steinbach as Global CIO and will be accountable for investment strategy and performance across Hines' real assets platform.

Jeff Hines, as chairman, will step back from day-to-day management and focus primarily on advising the Co-CEOs.

Hines Global Income Trust Changes

Laura Hines-Pierce will also replace Jeff Hines as CEO and Chair of the Board of Hines Global Income Trust (HGIT). Adam Hines will join the HGIT board as a director.

External Advisory Board Planned

Hines will also establish an independent External Advisory Board to provide the Co-CEOs with outside perspectives and counsel. The advisory board will have no governance authority, and the Investment Committee's authority will remain unchanged.

Growth Under Hines-Pierce and Adam Hines

Hines said its discretionary business has grown at approximately 20% compound annual growth since 2018 under the leadership of Laura Hines-Pierce and Adam Hines. The firm also said Adam Hines' vision helped build and scale its Private Wealth business, which has doubled in size.

Hines reported approximately $91 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2026, including both the global Hines organization and RIA assets. The firm, founded in 1957, has 4,600 employees in 29 countries and invests across residential, logistics, office, data centers and infrastructure on behalf of institutional and private wealth clients.

The firm said the transition positions it for its next stage of growth as structural shifts in demographics, technology, infrastructure and capital reshape the built world. Hines said it is connecting its local operating expertise, investment capabilities and global intelligence at greater scale while preserving the ownership mindset and operator's edge that have defined the firm for nearly 70 years.

Executive Comments

"Hines has always been at its best when we look beyond the current cycle and build for what comes next," said Jeff Hines. "Laura has already been leading Hines as Co-CEO for five years, and Adam has helped shape important parts of our growth across Europe, private wealth and capital formation. Their leadership is already visible in the firm and platform we have built. This is the right moment for me to step back from day-to-day management and for Laura and Adam to lead Hines forward, supported by David, Alfonso and the depth of talent across the firm."

"We see an extraordinary opportunity for Hines," said Laura Hines-Pierce and Adam Hines. "The platform is already operating at scale, and the strategy we have been building is working. Capital, infrastructure and human activity are converging in new ways across the built world, expanding the opportunity set beyond traditional definitions of real estate. Our ambition is to apply nearly 70 years of local knowledge, operating experience and investment discipline to that broader opportunity and connect those strengths across one global platform."

"Scale creates advantage only when it improves execution," said David Steinbach. "Our opportunity is to connect what our teams know across markets, strategies and functions so local insight becomes shared intelligence and firmwide capabilities create more opportunity on the ground."

Market Backdrop

The leadership change comes as Hines positions itself as a global real assets platform rather than a traditional real estate investment and development company. The firm cited demographic change, technology, infrastructure investment and shifts in capital as forces reshaping the built environment.

Commercial real estate conditions in 2026 are improving unevenly across sectors. CBRE expects U.S. commercial real estate investment volume to rise 16% in 2026 to $562 billion, with cap rates compressing by approximately 5 to 15 basis points for most property types. CBRE also expects leasing activity to continue recovering from its 2024 low and to exceed 2019 levels in 2026.

Demand varies by property type. CBRE said 2026 data center leasing is expected to reach an all-time high, while power-delivery constraints limit new supply, and JLL forecasts global data center capacity to increase 19% in 2026. CBRE forecasts U.S. industrial leasing of approximately 1 billion square feet in 2026, and JLL expects global industrial and logistics deliveries in 2026 to be 42% below the 2023 peak. Office remains bifurcated: national office vacancy remains above 20% in one second-half 2026 outlook, while high-quality trophy towers have recorded eight consecutive quarters of positive net absorption. Those sectors — data centers, logistics, residential, office and infrastructure — match the asset classes Hines lists across its platform.

Outlook

The transition formalizes a leadership structure that has been developing for several years, with Laura Hines-Pierce already serving as Co-CEO and Adam Hines contributing to the firm's growth in Europe, private wealth and capital formation. The Co-CEOs will set strategy, Steinbach will oversee execution, and Munk will be responsible for investment performance when the changes take effect Jan. 1, 2027.

Sources

• Hines: Hines Announces Next Generation Leadership to Build on Global Real Assets Momentum