This award focuses on your overall approach to and implementation of sustainability.

Your entry should focus on how the different facets of your sustainable policy, such as environmental impact, green building ambitions, energy efficiency, use of natural resources, net zero emissions strategy and social impact are grouped and driven by your overall general sustainable approach in your real estate portfolio.

For the Innovation award, the judges will look for clear evidence and outline of an initiative, investment strategy, concept, development or other factor within your real estate investment portfolio that is innovative, impactful, novel, influential and potentially industry-leading or changing.

Diversity and inclusion are increasingly important priorities, and many institutional investors are now developing policies and strategies to address them both internally and externally.

For this award, the judges are looking for evidence of at least one of the following:

• A clear commitment to advancing diversity and inclusion within your own organisation

• Demonstrable achievements in promoting diversity and inclusion across pensions, asset management, and financial services more broadly

• Leadership and progress in embedding diversity and inclusion within corporate governance practices

• Meaningful contributions at the industry level to raise awareness of diversity and inclusion issues

Your entry should focus on at least one key area of diversity and inclusion, such as:

• Ethnicity

• Gender equality

• Age

• Sexual orientation

• Disability and accessibility

The strongest entries in this category clearly outline your overall approach to advising clients, supported by at least three case studies from the past 12–18 months.

You may wish to include:

• Why the client needed or sought a particular course of investment
• How you analysed their needs and then the market accordingly
• How your advice led to a structured solution
• The outcomes achieved as a result, including how success was measured
• The cost-effectiveness of your input
• The overall value you added

This award recognises entries that present a holistic view of your real estate portfolios — how they are constructed in line with long-term objectives and the desired risk-return profile. Many institutional investors adopt a range of strategies within their real assets portfolios to diversify and balance risk.

You may wish to cover:

• Your overall real estate risk budget
• How you implement different strategies
• How you develop partnerships
• How the different strategies and investment approaches interact and balance each other out at both portfolio and overall levels
• How you construct your mandates within certain regulations and restrictions
• Your approach to researching and evaluating new sectors or investments
• How you measure the overall success of your real estate portfolios

This award is designed to recognise the commitment and leadership shown by younger professionals in the institutional real estate investment sector.

Key drivers for this award are:

• They must be under 35
• They must be working at an institutional investor organisation, such as a pension fund. Roles such as trustees are also eligible
• They must be working on or contribute/have contributed to a recent concept, development, innovation, initiative, strategy etc that would qualify their nomination

This award recognises the growing importance of specialist markets and niche sectors, such as student housing and care homes. We invite you to demonstrate how investing in these asset classes supports your long-term objectives and aligns with your risk–return profile.

When preparing your submission, please address as many of the following areas as possible:

Investment Strategy

• Benefits of including alternative or niche sectors within your portfolio

• Any restrictions at institutional or regulatory level

• Preferred asset types and sectors, including any minimum or maximum investment thresholds

• Typical routes of exposure

Portfolio Evidence

• Illustrative examples from your portfolio, highlighting significant deals and recent activity

• Details of who manages your investments, both financially and operationally

Risk & Governance

• How you identify, monitor, and manage the risks associated with direct investments

Performance & Outcomes

• How you measure outcomes and define success

• Data or figures that demonstrate progress towards, or achievement of, your stated objectives

This category invites entries that clearly set out the features of your core and, where applicable, core+ real estate investment strategies.

Core vs. Core+ Strategies

• Core strategies focus on stable, income-producing properties and markets. They are attractive to institutional investors seeking safe, reliable returns and diversification for long-term, risk-adjusted performance. Your entry should begin by explaining why you invest in core properties and their role in your overall strategy.

• Core+ strategies target similar secure assets but with additional value potential — for example, opportunities to increase net operating income by renegotiating lease terms or enhancing tenancy agreements.

What to Include in Your Submission 

• How your core+ strategy differs from your core strategy (if you operate both)

• The composition of your strategy and its objectives, including time horizons

• How the strategy is implemented and who manages the mandates

• The measures you use to judge success

• Supporting figures and data that demonstrate outcomes to date

What the Judges Will Look For 

• Credit-quality tenants

• Long-term leases

• Stable and well-established locations

• Exposure to both primary and secondary markets

• Secure and reliable return characteristics

• Diversification benefits

Although direct real estate investment is conceptually straightforward, judges will want to understand how you research, select, and manage target assets—both financially and operationally.

You should:

• Clearly document the benefits of running a direct portfolio.

• Outline any institutional or regulatory restrictions.

• Provide examples from your portfolio, highlighting notable deals and activity.

• Specify any minimum or maximum investment values.

• Describe the types of assets and sectors you prefer.

• Explain how you source opportunities and build relationships with partners.

• Demonstrate how your direct strategy supports long-term objectives.

• Outline how you identify and manage the risks associated with direct investments

An indirect strategy refers to gaining exposure to real estate through unlisted funds and other pooled or mutual investment vehicles. Your entry should provide full details of your indirect strategy, including how you construct mandates and who manages them.

The judges will be particularly interested in:

• Your rationale for investing indirectly.

• Any institutional or regulatory restrictions.

• Examples from your portfolio, especially recent deals and activity.

• The types of assets and sectors you prefer.

• Any minimum or maximum investment values.

• How your indirect strategy supports your long-term objectives.

• How you identify and manage the risks associated with indirect investments.

Europe presents institutional investors with a wide range of opportunities across diverse sectors and markets at varying stages of the economic cycle.

This category recognises how effectively you optimise European portfolios in the context of your global investments, and how these contribute to your long-term value objectives and risk–return profile.

Submissions should include specific deal examples and address the following:

• Benefits of investing in Europe

• Institutional or regulatory restrictions

• Portfolio examples, highlighting recent deals and activity

• Preferred sectors and investment types

• Mandates and vehicles used for exposure

• Key risks of European investments and how you manage them

Like Europe, Canada and the US present a wealth of opportunities across diverse sectors and markets at varying stages of the economic cycle.

This category recognises how effectively you optimise North American portfolios in the context of your global investments, and how these contribute to your long-term value objectives and risk–return profile.

Submissions should include specific deal examples and address the following:

• Benefits of investing in North America

• Institutional or regulatory restrictions

• Portfolio examples, highlighting recent deals and activity

• Preferred sectors and investment types

• Mandates and vehicles used for exposure

• Key risks of North American investments and how you manage them

This award focuses on your strategies to set and measure social impact objectives alongside financial returns, such as through investing in affordable housing and supporting local communities.

The real estate sector plays a significant role in biodiversity outcomes — through resource use, land impact, and emissions from construction and building operations. Protecting and enhancing biodiversity is therefore an increasingly important consideration in institutional real estate investment strategies, closely linked to both climate risk management and long-term value creation.

For this award, the judges will be looking for entries that demonstrate a clear and proactive approach to biodiversity. In preparing your submission, please consider addressing the following areas:

Strategy & Mandates

• How biodiversity is factored into your real estate investment decisions

• Any specific mandates or frameworks dedicated to protecting and restoring biodiversity, including how these are designed and managed

Integration & Outcomes

• How biodiversity complements and enhances your sustainable real estate policy and overall investment strategy

• The contribution of biodiversity considerations to achieving your net zero goals

Risk & Compliance

• The risks and opportunities associated with integrating biodiversity into your real estate strategy

• How your approach supports nature-based initiatives

• Alignment with national and international biodiversity regulations and guidelines

Institutional investors are playing an increasingly important role in providing finance, and real estate is a key asset class where long-term projects and developments can be backed in line with investors’ risk–reward expectations and liabilities.

For this award, we invite you to explain the role of debt within your overall investment strategy — including the risks it carries and how you manage them.

Types of Debt

Debt takes many forms in real estate. Please outline the types of debt you invest in, such as:

• Mortgages

• Loans to finance development and/or renovation projects

• Mezzanine debt

• Senior debt

Explain why you focus on these particular types and how they support your long-term objectives.

Mandates & Governance

• How your relevant mandates are constructed

• Who manages them, both financially and operationally

Restrictions

Any institutional or regulatory restrictions that apply to your real estate debt investments

Your entry for this category should address the energy efficiency of the buildings you invest in and own, including your net-zero strategy, carbon-emission reductions, retrofitting initiatives, sustainable construction practices, and climate risk management.

It should also cover broader environmental considerations such as resource management (e.g., water use), pollution control, and approaches to enhancing biodiversity.

Asia Pacific is widely regarded as a region of significant growth for real estate investors, particularly in markets such as China and Australia. This award will be judged on how your investments in the region complement your global portfolio and support your long-term value objectives.

You should include:

• The benefits of investing in Asia Pacific.

• Any institutional or regulatory restrictions.

• Examples from your portfolio, with emphasis on recent deals and activity.

• The types of assets and sectors you prefer.

• Your vision for Asia Pacific’s future role within your strategy.

• The mandates and investment vehicles you use to gain exposure.

• The risks associated with investing in Asia Pacific and how you manage them.

This category recognises how effectively you optimise Nordic region portfolios in the context of your global investments, and how these contribute to your long-term value objectives and risk–return profile.

Submissions should include specific deal examples and address the following:

• Benefits of investing in the Nordic region

• Institutional or regulatory restrictions

• Portfolio examples, highlighting recent deals and activity

• Preferred sectors and investment types

• Mandates and vehicles used for exposure

• Key risks of Nordic investments and how you manage them

Exposure to real estate via a listed strategy typically involves purchasing shares in property companies or investment vehicles such as Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). These are traded on public stock exchanges, providing liquidity and transparency compared with direct ownership.

As with direct and indirect strategies, you should first explain why you have developed a listed strategy as part of your real estate portfolio, and how it supports your overall long-term objectives and risk–return profile. Your entry should also describe how mandates are constructed and who is responsible for managing them.

Specifically, you should include:

• The rationale for the level of your commitment

• Any institutional or regulatory restrictions

• Examples of your portfolio, highlighting recent deals and activity

• Preferred investment types and sectors

• Costs associated with investing in and managing listed mandates

• The mandates and vehicles used to gain exposure

• The risks associated with listed investments and how you mitigate them

Your entry in this category may focus on your Value-Add strategy, your Opportunistic strategy, or a combination of both. You can present them separately or explain how they complement your core investment approach.

Value-Add

A value-add approach typically involves acquiring properties at favorable prices and increasing their value through redevelopment, restoration, or improved management.

Your entry should show how this strategy aligns with your long-term objectives and risk–return profile, particularly in enhancing the value of properties with high vacancy rates or those requiring upgrades—while ensuring risks remain controlled.

Consider including:

• Benefits of pursuing a value-add strategy

• How you identify, research, and select potential assets

• Who manages assets (financially and operationally)

• Any institutional or regulatory restrictions

• Examples from your portfolio, especially recent deals or activity

• Preferred property types and sectors

• Costs of investing in and running value-add mandates

• The mandates and investment vehicles used

• Risks associated with value-add strategies and how you mitigate them

Opportunistic 

An opportunistic strategy focuses on short-term buying and selling to capitalize on undervalued, distressed, or under-managed properties.

Your entry should explain how this approach complements your long-term objectives and risk–return profile, and describe how mandates are structured and managed.

Consider including:

• Reasons for your chosen level of commitment

• Any institutional or regulatory restrictions

• Examples from your portfolio, especially recent deals or activity

• Preferred property types and sectors

• Costs of investing in and running opportunistic mandates

• The mandates and investment vehicles used

• Risks associated with opportunistic strategies and how you manage them