Coleman’s Movers and Shakers

May 13, 2015

By Bob Coleman
Editor, Coleman’s Movers and Shakers

Bank United Names Hakim Kassam as National Sales Manager

“Hakim is an authoritative expert on small business financing, who will lead and grow BankUnited’s small business finance department. We are pleased to welcome him to our BankUnited team,” says Bankunited Chairman, President and CEO John Kanas.
Kassam, who joins BankUnited from Wells Fargo Bank in Fort Lauderdale, will be responsible for leading a nationwide team of SBF business development officers. A top producer of SBA loans, Kassam has previously been recognized by the SBA as a Financial Services Champion of the Year for Florida and the southeast region of the U.S. He has worked in the banking industry for more than 24 years, much of which was spent leading teams of small business loan officers across the southern and eastern regions of the United States.

Leigh Ann Henderson Joins Partner ESI as Construction Lending Expert

“Construction lending is risky, and in this market it is critical that lenders take a proactive approach to managing those construction risks. Leigh Ann will be a fantastic advocate for more proactive, cost-effective tools that will enable construction lenders to better manage risks while taking advantage of today’s favorable market conditions.” says Joe Derhake, CEO of Partner.

“Henderson is one of the industry’s pioneering supporters of construction risk management services as a proactive alternative to construction bonds. Her efforts have been instrumental in creating a better risk management culture across the construction lending industry, and we’re excited to have her continue this work with Partner” adds Derhake.

Leigh Ann has emphasized that improving construction risk management practices is a matter of education. “In joining Partner, I am very happy to be a part of a company and a community that prioritizes thought leadership and industry education.”

Leveraging close to 20 years of experience in the construction risk management industry, Henderson boasts an impressive resume. Her past experience includes developing a strong base of regional and national bank and credit union clients, providing full-scope construction funds management and inspections services. As one of the industry’s leading experts on the subject, Henderson has been a speaker on Construction Risk for various lender industry conferences, including the Houston Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders (HAGGL), Central Texas Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders (CTAGGL) and Mid-America Lenders conferences.

AEI Consultants Expands Its Construction Services Division With the Appointments of Peter Millar and Scott Cameron

Peter F. Millar (P.E., J.D.) has been appointed executive vice president of AEI’s construction consulting services division, and will be based out of AEI’s New York area office. A highly experienced business executive with more than 17 years’ experience in the commercial real-estate consulting field, Millar has technically assessed real-estate assets valued in excess of $60 billion throughout the United States, Caribbean, and Western Europe. He has an extensive track record of hands-on experience in operations, strategic and financial planning, vendor and contractor management, business development, and project implementation and management.

Scott A. Cameron (R.A., A.I.A.) also joins today as director within the same division. He will lead a team responsible for site assessments and reports on a wide variety of major construction projects. Over the course of two decades, Cameron has performed more than 3,200 Property Condition Assessments (PCA) for retail, multi-family, office, warehouse, R&D/flex, congregate care, and hospitality asset types; along with more than 2,200 third-party or quality reviews of other PCAs.

“Peter, Scott and their team of engineers will serve as a significant resource to our clients and help us expand our construction services business,” says AEI Consultants President Holly Neber. “Our goal is to provide the full suite of services to help our clients with all of their commercial real estate assessment needs, and the addition of this team is perfectly aligned with our mission. In addition, we believe these professionals will be a great fit for our company culture of employee-owners who provide creative solutions to our clients.”

Paragon Bank Small Business Capital Group Gives Back with Habitat for Humanity

“Our team was honored to be a part of this special day, and we hope the work and time invested leaves a lasting impact,” says Robert Shaw, Chief Executive Officer at Paragon Bank. “Giving back to the communities in which we work, while building relationships with the people in them, is what Paragon is all about.”

The team spent the day helping clean and fix up the exterior of a local woman’s home.

The woman living in the home is unable to move throughout her house without assistance, so she spends most of her time in a recliner, while people come by each morning and evening to drop off food for her. Because of her inability to get around, she asked for help improving the look of the exterior of her home.

The Paragon team stepped in and granted this request, as they spent the day working on large and small repairs. Some of the work included painting the front porch posts, as well as fixing and painting the wheelchair ramp and gate. In addition, the team completed an extensive amount of yard work, helping to transform the appearance of the entire property.