Robbie Baty, a decadeslong real estate executive, is starting out the new year as a partner at Texas commercial real estate firm HPI after leaving his leadership role at Cushman & Wakefield's Dallas office.
The decision to join Austin-based HPI came when Baty had been with Cushman & Wakefield for nearly two decades — he started at the brokerage out of college. He recently turned 42 and decided to tackle some personal ambitions that include having an ownership stake in the industry.
"I felt that now was the time," Baty told CoStar News in an exclusive interview. "It was time to step out on my own and bet on myself."
Baty started chatting with HPI executives, many of whom he already knew, and the stars seemed to align for Baty to join the firm known for fostering an entrepreneurial culture. With Baty on board, landlord-focused HPI is officially launching its Dallas tenant advisory group.
Hunter Lee, a partner at HPI, said the "time is right" to expand the firm's platform and Baty is the "right leader" for the role.
"He is deeply respected in the industry and embodies the competitive, client-first mindset we embrace at HPI," Lee added.
Colt McCoy, head of HPI's office in Fort Worth, Texas, and former NFL quarterback, said Baty's track record made him a good addition to the firm as it expands its North Texas presence.
HPI's decision to launch the Dallas tenant advisory group comes after several years of growth in the North Texas region. Lee said the firm was waiting for the "right moment and the right person" and they found that in Baty.
"Robbie is a leader who's hungry for this kind of opportunity," Lee added.
Prior to joining HPI, Baty led Cushman & Wakefield's office tenant representation team in Dallas. He has also received a number of industry awards, including NAIOP North Texas officer broker of the year.
In taking on this new leadership role at HPI in Dallas, Baty has already begun recruiting office and industrial tenant representation brokers. In all, he plans to hire upward of a dozen office tenant rep brokers and up to a dozen industrial tenant rep brokers, as well as a team leader for the industrial sector.
Baty said he also sees opportunity to add a data center tenant representation executive because of all the investment in this sector.
Like any sports team, Baty said, he wants to develop a bench of talent with different skill sets and experience. Finding the right cultural fit with HPI will be key in recruiting the right team, he said.
"My emphasis will be on building my office team and then finding a partner to build the industrial team," Baty said, adding he is looking for seasoned brokers to midlevel executives to newbies in the business.
So far, calls to would-be teammates and clients have gone well, Baty said.
"We are creating a new team and you have to have everyone," he added. "Every person is at a different point in their journey, and it's important we find people that want this kind of opportunity."
HPI has more than 200 employees across Texas in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio that serve about 900 clients spanning nearly 30 million square feet of office and industrial space.