CBRE digital chief set to leave for German start-up

Dr Thomas Herr, EMEA head of digital innovation for CBRE, will join Evana as chief executive from 1 May, to steer the firm’s international expansion.

He will succeed founder Peter Moog, who will remain on the board with responsibility for the long-term development and vision of the company.

Herr commented: “Evana is one of the most exciting proptech companies in Germany. In recent years it has successfully established itself in the market, producing innovative solutions. I would like to thank the supervisory board for its confidence and look forward to shaping Evana’s further growth and international expansion, together with the team, the clients and investors.”

Herr founded Valteq, a technical real estate consulting firm in Germany, in 2002 and sold it to CBRE in 2014.

Evana, based in Frankfurt am Main and Saarbrucken, has developed a platform that sorts data for companies to anaylse their performance and improve decision-making. The firm says its software is “autodidactic” and “is capable of individual modular adaptation and can be linked to any existing corporate software.” The company was founded in 2015 and employs 90 people and has received multiple awards for its technological solutions. Clients include Patrizia, HIH and Clifford Chance.

Sascha Donner, also a founder of Evana, will be responsible for the product strategy and will take charge of the further growth of the company. Dirk Becker, who was appointed to the board of Evana at the beginning of the year, acts as chief technology officer.

Mark Lins, chairman of the supervisory board of Evana, said: “In Thomas Herr, we are gaining one of the best-known and most respected digitisation experts in the European real estate industry. His decision to join EVANA is a milestone in our corporate history and will considerably boost our forthcoming international development.”

Peter Moog said: “I am very pleased that Thomas has accepted our invitation and is to take my place as CEO. He is our preferred candidate and the ideal person to fulfil our expansion strategy. Thomas combines, in an exceptional way, an extensive knowledge of the international real estate and technology environment with the ability to build successful companies and teams.”

At CBRE, Dr Susanne Hügel becomes the new head of digital innovation and business acceleration for continental Europe. She will focus on supporting CBRE’s business lines in integrating innovative and digital approaches and pool innovation activities in Europe. Hügel joined CBRE in 2018 from EBS Business School in Wiesbaden outside Frankfurt. She remains a research fellow and lecturer at EBS.