WPT CAPITAL ADVISORS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Controller
- Corporate Controller
- Managing Director
Bridget is a Managing Director and Controller at WPT Capital Advisors. In her role, she oversees the firm's accounting, financial planning and analysis, treasury, payroll, investor reporting and tax. Prior to joining WPT, Bridget was a Director and Head of Managed Locations & Client Accounting for WeWork. Prior to that, she was a Controller in CBRE's real estate accounting services practice where she oversaw a team of 50 client facing finance and accounting professionals managing over 100 institutional investment clients, including public REITs and private equity funds.
Bridget earned her Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from the College of Saint Benedict. Bridget also volunteers in a variety of capacities at the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director
- Managing Director - Legal
As Managing Director - Legal, Emily oversees the firm's legal affairs and operations, including matters relating to corporate governance, acquisitions, dispositions, development, financings, leasing and insurance.
During her more than 10-year tenure with the WPT organization, Emily has been directly involved in the structuring and negotiation of hundreds of M&A, leasing and capital formation transactions.
Emily received her bachelor's degree in Real Estate Studies from the University of Saint Thomas, Opus College of Business, and her Juris Doctorate from Drake University Law School.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Managing Director of Investments for the West Region of the U.S
As Managing Director of Investments for the West Region of the U.S., Mr. Chodosh helps establish the firm's regional investment strategies and is responsible for overseeing the sourcing and execution of investment transactions throughout Southern California and the Western Regions of the United States. Mr. Chodosh has spent his entire career focused in the industrial sector, having previously held capital deployment roles at First Industrial Realty Trust and Rexford Industrial.
He is a graduate of Claremont McKenna College where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Partner, Capital Markets
Mr. Gilats is a Partner and oversees the firm's capital markets functions. In his role, Mr. Gilats focuses on financing strategy and other capital-raising initiatives. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer of WPT Capital Advisors with additional responsibilities for tax structuring, accounting, reporting, and other financial operations, along with IT and HR. Prior to its sale, Mr. Gilats served as Chief Financial Officer of WPT Industrial REIT (TSX: WIR.U), overseeing all financial operations and joint venture / public company reporting. In addition to his role at WPT, Mr. Gilats serves on the board of The Sanneh Foundation.
Prior to joining WPT, Mr. Gilats was Chief Financial Officer for U.S. Assets and Dislocated Industries at Castlelake, L.P., a global investment firm based in Minneapolis, MN. Before Castlelake, Mr. Gilats held various corporate finance and capital markets roles with Ares Management, Wrightwood Capital, Chiron Corporation and Deloitte & Touche LLP, where he earned his CPA designation. Mr. Gilats received his BBA in accounting from the University of Wisconsin - Madison and his MBA from the Hass School of Business at the University of California - Berkeley.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Co - Founder
- Managing Partner
Mr. Cimino is a co-founder of WPT Capital and serves as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner. He is responsible for overseeing the firm's operational activity, capital formation and strategic initiatives. Prior to co-founding WPT Capital, Mr. Cimino served as Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel of WPT Industrial REIT (TSX: WIR.U), where he helped lead the company through a successful IPO in 2013, implemented and oversaw the company's private capital business, and led the company through the structuring and negotiation of a privatization transaction in 2021.
Mr. Cimino has spent most of his career focused on the U.S. industrial sector, having been involved in over $6 billion in industrial transactions. He first joined WPT's predecessor organization in 2007, prior to which he served as external legal counsel to the company, with a legal practice focused in the areas of real estate and environmental law. Mr. Cimino is a frequent speaker and panelist on commercial real estate and corporate governance matters and is a past Chair of the NAIOP General Counsel National Forum. He received a Juris Doctor degree from Creighton University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science degree from Montana State University.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Asset Management
Paige Bauernfeind is Senior Director - Asset Management for the firm. She is responsible for strategic property and portfolio management, leasing, capital improvement projects, asset valuation, oversight of property management functions, and tenant relations.
Prior to WPT, Paige most recently served as Vice President - Asset Management with Biynah Industrial Partners, where she was responsible for the property performance, property management oversight, and acquisitions of a growing national portfolio of industrial properties. Paige started her real estate career with Colliers International, where she managed over 25 million square feet of industrial property.
Paige is a graduate of the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Leadership.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director - Construction and Development
As Managing Director - Construction and Development, Mr. Qualley oversees the firm's construction and development activity. Prior to WPT, Mr. Qualley was with Opus Design Build, LLC, where he was responsible for leading design and construction teams from entitlement through construction completion. Mr. Qualley has over 28 years of real estate and construction experience, which includes involvement in industrial, office, retail, medical, and multi-family projects.
Job Titles:
- Civil Engineer
- Senior Director - Development and Construction
As Senior Director-Development and Construction, Mr. Fenton oversees the firm's regional development and construction throughout Southern California and the Western Regions of the United States. Prior to WPT, Mr. Fenton served in senior development positions for CapRock Partners, Transwestern Development Company, and Stream Realty Partners, where he was responsible for leading consultants and construction teams across all facets of the development process.
Mr. Fenton is a licensed Civil Engineer. He is a graduate of the California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and received his MBA with a real estate emphasis from University of California-Irvine. Mr. Fenton served as a Captain in the US Army and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his actions in Afghanistan in 2012.
Ryan Doyle - CEO, Chief Investment Officer, Founder
Job Titles:
- Chief Investment Officer
- Co - Founder
- Managing Partner
Mr. Doyle is a co-founder of WPT Capital Advisors and serves as Chief Investment Officer and Managing Partner. He is responsible for overseeing the firm's investment strategy and capital deployment. Prior to co-founding WPT Capital, Mr. Doyle served as Chief Investment Officer of WPT Industrial REIT (TSX: WIR.U), where he set the company's overall investment strategy and oversaw acquisition, development and disposition activity across all U.S. markets.
Mr. Doyle has spent his entire career focused on the U.S. industrial sector, having been involved in over $6 billion in industrial transactions. He first joined WPT's predecessor organization in 2000, starting as an industrial sales/leasing broker and then moving into an investment role, which ultimately led to his promotion to firm's executive leadership team in 2013. Mr. Doyle is actively involved in NAIOP, where he is a current member of National Forums Program for Industrial Acquisitions and was a past member of the National Forums Program for Ecommerce. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Real Estate Finance from St Cloud State University.
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Partner
Prior to joining WPT, Mr. Schulzetenberg was Co-head of Global Operations for AB CarVal, a global investment firm based in Minneapolis. During this time, Ryan focused on strategic development, operational oversight, and management of investment operations, treasury, fund level financing and accounting. Prior to AB CarVal, Ryan was a manager at KPMG within their investment services practice where he earned his CPA designation. Ryan earned his B.A. degree in Accounting from Saint John's University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties
- Partner, Asset Management
Mr. Haugen brings 30 years of real estate experience to his role as Partner - Asset Management for WPT Capital Advisors. In his current role, Mr. Haugen is responsible for strategic property and portfolio planning, development project execution, leasing decisions, insurance, asset valuation and oversight of property management functions.
Prior to WPT, Mr. Haugen was most recently with Founders Properties, LLC, where he was responsible for leading the asset management team in providing services for private real estate partnerships that included industrial, office, multi-family and retail/mixed use projects. Mr. Haugen also worked at Welltower (NYSE: WELL) spending two years overseeing the management of a national portfolio of approximately 200 medical office properties. Starting his real estate career at RBC Wealth Management, Mr. Haugen worked initially in their investment real estate subsidiary as an analyst, and eventually led their corporate real estate department.
Mr. Haugen is also a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP) where he has actively served for the past 5 years. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, and a Master's in Business Administration from the University of St. Thomas.
Job Titles:
- Partner, Asset Management & Sustainability
Mr. Gerberding is Partner - Asset Management & Sustainability for the firm. In his role, he is responsible for strategic property and portfolio management, development project execution, leasing decisions and oversight of property management functions. He also oversees the firm's sustainability initiatives and serves as chair of the WPT ESG Committee.
Mr. Gerberding has more than 20 years of real estate experience and during his 14-year tenure with the WPT organization has been actively involved in the firm's investment management, development, construction, financing, acquisition, and disposition activity.
Outside WPT, Spencer has served on the Board of Directors for Open Book and The Sanneh Foundation. He is also a member of the global commercial real estate network of Certified Commercial Investment Members (CCIM) and is a LEED certified professional.
A graduate of Lehigh University, Spencer holds a Bachelor of Science degree in finance & economics, where he also earned Patriot League honors as a student athlete.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Partner - Investments for the East Region of the U.S. in
Based in New Jersey, Mr. Bassett is Partner - Investments for the East Region of the U.S. In his role, Mr. Bassett helps set the firm's regional investment strategies and oversees the sourcing and execution of acquisition and development investments.
Mr. Bassett has more than a decade of real estate experience. Prior to WPT, Mr. Bassett led acquisitions and development at Indus Realty Trust (Nasdaq: INDT), helping the company expand its portfolio and enter several new markets. Mr. Bassett was also formerly a member of the Transactions team at PGIM Real Estate, where he underwrote equity investment opportunities for industrial, retail, multifamily, and office assets for PGIM's various fund strategies.
Mr. Bassett received a B.A. from Fordham University and an M.B.A. from The University of Tennessee's Haslam College of Business.