Honor Recognizes 2020-21 Global Chair of 1,000-Member Organization

Chicago, IL – May 2, 2022 – The Counselors of Real Estate, a global organization of commercial property advisors, has established The Michel Couillard Award For Leadership to honor its 2020-21 Global Chair for his vision, commitment, generosity of spirit, and stewardship of the organization through the first two years of the Covid 19 pandemic. The award will be bestowed upon the first recipient at the CRE® Annual Convention in Boston this fall.

“Michel, in the first quarter of his term as Chair of The Counselors of Real Estate, suddenly found himself leading an organization without a compass, road map, or precedent,” said Marilee Utter, CRE, 2022 Chair. “Yet he managed to not only stabilize and reassure the organization and its membership during an era of intense disruption, but he also inspired us to excel in ways that exceeded even the most optimistic imaginations.”

Most notably, Mr. Couillard harnessed the capacity and reach of technology by building bold, innovative, and inclusive programming and discussion forums for the benefit of not only The Counselors’ 1,000 members, but for the commercial real estate industry in general. His leadership sustained the organization during a precarious era and preserved and enhanced the unique “Counselor culture.”

“It is said that the final test of a leader is one who leaves behind in others the conviction and will to carry on,” said Utter. “Michel Couillard is such a leader, and The Counselors of Real Estate is the beneficiary of his talent. It is these traits we recognize by creating and bestowing The Michel Couillard Award for Leadership.”