A popular author, consultant, and speaker Alan Whitson has been pegged as the “Green Building Guru Who Paints a Profit-Making Picture.” He is one of the nation’s most charismatic, knowledgeable speakers on how to build the business case for high performance buildings. He is the seminar leader for the acclaimed Turning Green into Gold®” educational programs. More than 18,000 design, construction, engineering, facilities, and real estate professionals involved in over one billion square feet in projects have viewed these seminars in live formats and via the internet. He is chairman of the national task force that wrote the Model Green Lease, now the de facto standard for green leasing. Whitson’s books include 365 Important Questions to Ask about Green Buildings, Smart Moves Manual, 327 Questions to Ask Before You Sign a Lease, Building Operating Costs Guidebook, and Bottom Line Comparative Lease Analysis Software. He is a reviewer for BOMI’s Asset Management textbook. His column, Turning Green into Gold, appears regularly in OfficeInsight, a national online newsletter. He has written for a multitude of newspapers, magazines and trade journals including Buildings, Building Operating Management, Buildings Design & Construction, Business Xpansion, Colorado Real Estate Journal, Commercial Building Products, Crain’s, and Environment Design+ Construction. He also was a key contributor to two online training projects, Green Building Core & Shell and Sustainable Healthcare, for AIA, USGBC, and Institute for Market Transformation to Sustainability. Whitson’s experience encompasses over 40 million square feet of facilities around the world in the roles of Asset Manager, Corporate Facilities Manager, Construction Manager, Development Manager, and Commercial Real Estate Broker. The scope of Whitson’s 30+-year career gives him a keen insight into the real estate needs of today’s corporation, and a unique understanding of the architectural, construction and real estate industries. He has held positions with: The Muller Company, Newport Beach; Bank of America’s Corporate Real Estate Division; Storek & Storek Architecture, San Francisco; The Shorenstein Company, San Francisco; Environmental Design Engineering, Seattle, San Francisco and Honolulu. Whitson holds the professional designation of Real Property Administrator (RPA) from the Building Owners and Managers Institute and was a contributor to BOMA International’s handbook on preparing market condition reports. Also: He was an initial member of the organization that went on to become the International Facility Managers Association (IFMA). Healthcare Financial Managers Association (HFMA) member. New Buildings Institute's Technical Review Committee for Advanced Buildings: Energy Benchmark for High Performance Buildings a standard used in the LEED Rating system. The EEF-EPA Advisory Committee for Indoor Air Quality. Practicing Law Institute faculty member. Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Green Professionals. Samples of Whitson’s experience include: The architectural firm, CDFM2, retained Whitson to present high performance building concepts to their client, H&R Block, before designing a new headquarters. The presentation given to senior management including the CFO led to early client acceptance as Whitson substantiated the economic return that would be achieved by incorporating high performance features into the project. Now completed, the 500,000 square foot building is a model of energy efficiency in its design. Honda’s Corporate Real Estate Department had Whitson craft a presentation to senior management for a real estate plan that had been stalled for three years – the plan was approved five minutes into the 15-minute presentation. After taking over a troubled renovation of a 144,000 square foot historical building, he directed the redesign of the new HVAC system, when the bids were 19% over budget. This slashed the total system cost 35%. Yet, this new HVAC system increased the rentable and usable square footage of the building, reduced annual energy costs 23% and improved air quality. Conducted the financial and operational feasibility analysis that were the basis for the $660 million sale of Bank of America’s World Headquarters in San Francisco and the Bank’s decision to sell its 48% interest in the 2.4 million square foot Arco Plaza, Los Angeles. The result — almost a billion dollars flowed to Bank of America’s bottom line. As manager of planning and construction for Bank of America’s data processing facilities he was responsible for 2,000 construction projects and 1,000 relocations a year. Project volume increased 37% while average project delivery time was reduced by 5% with no increase in staff during Whitson’s tenure. His speaking engagements have encompassed regional and national events throughout the U.S. and Canada. He’s captivated audiences for the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Associated Builders & Contractors (ABC), Building Owners & Managers Association (BOMA), BOMEX Canada, CABA Energy Management Summit, Construction SuperConference, Women in Commercial Real Estate (CREW), Florida Educational Facilities Planners Association (FEFPA), IIDEX Canada, Industrial Asset Management Council (IAMC), International Facilities Management Association (IFMA), National Association of Industrial & Office Parks (NAIOP), NeoCon, and U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).