Damla Gerhart is a Principal and the Managing Director of Avison Young’s Chicago and Rosemont offices. She also serves on the U.S. Executive Committee and provides leadership for the Central Region. Her role entails providing strategic direction to teams of real estate professionals who serve a variety of clients to provide brokerage services across Retail/Office/Industrial/Hospitality sectors and expertise across Capital Markets, Investment Sales, Real Estate Development, Construction Project Management and Commercial Property Management services. She also leads Chicago's growth efforts including talent development, recruitment and strategic acquisitions.

Damla has 17+ years of experience in commercial real estate. Prior to Avison Young, she served as Senior Managing Director at CBRE where she led the brokerage Occupier teams for the downtown and suburban offices. Prior to that role, she was the Americas Lead for the Workplace Strategy & Design advisory business where she focused on business development, team expansion, revenue growth and thought leadership. Before CBRE, she was a Vice President at JLL in their national Strategic Consulting group. She worked closely with global clients to develop and implement innovative workplace and change management solutions. Earlier in her career, she had stints as an auditor at EY and an HR generalist at Kimberly-Clark Corp.

Damla is actively involved in civic organizations including Leadership Greater Chicago and serves on the Communications Committee for the International Women's Forum. She is involved in the Chicago chapters of various industry groups including: CoreNet Global, NAIOP, and CREW. She is a Board Member for the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce and an Advisory Board Member for Roosevelt University Marshall Bennett Institute of Real Estate. Damla is also a member of The Executives’ Club of Chicago and was recognized in 2020 as GlobeSt Real Estate Forum's Women of Influence.

Affiliations et certifications

Purdue University, Bachelor of Science in Accounting
Purdue University, Masters of Business Administration (MBA)
Purdue University, Masters of Science in Human Resources Management

Illinois Real Estate Brokers License 
CoreNet Global – Masters of Corporate Real Estate Certification
LEED Green Associate
Six Sigma Green Belt