As A.I. transforms commercial real estate, true value lies in how leaders combine technology with human creativity, strategy and judgment. Unsplash+
Artificial Intelligence is now embedded into the fabric of our lives and workplaces, and commercial real estate is no exception. From automating routine lease abstraction to predicting tenant leasing demand, A.I. is transforming how the industry operates. But the true differentiator will not be who has access to the latest models—soon, everyone will. It will be how organizations harness these tools alongside human judgment, creativity and strategic vision.
This is the essence of people-powered A.I.: a model in which technology amplifies—rather than replaces—human capability. In commercial real estate and data-heavy industries, projects that once required millions of dollars and months of work can now be completed in substantially shorter periods of time. That shift creates opportunity for the members of the workforce to do more creative, higher-value work and deliver increased value to customers.
The human differentiator
Businesses have always been powered by people. Even if technology accelerates work, people still set the direction—strategy, mindset, culture and client impact remain deeply human at their core. The real challenge is enabling teams to strengthen customer connections while sharpening leaders’ ability to evolve, solve the next problem and deliver greater value.
In commercial real estate, the ability to analyze vast swaths of data, such as comparable rents, building performance metrics and demographic trends, has always been central in decision-making and saving company money on its bottom line. A.I. makes this data analysis instantaneous, allowing brokers and advisors to sharpen their focus on delivering deeper insights and more strategic guidance to clients. The edge lies in interpreting the data, recognizing patterns that machines cannot, and connecting those insights to what clients truly value. A recent survey by LinkedIn found that 64 percent of people still value advice from humans more than what A.I. has to say. In other words, A.I. handles the “what.” Humans still drive the “why” and “how.”
The productivity imperative
Job postings citing generative A.I. skills grew 1,848 percent in 2023, according to Newmark Consulting, rising from just 519 listings to over 10,000. Lightcast data reinforces this surge, noting that generative A.I. job postings overall jumped 1,185 percent from 2022 to 2023making A.I. fluency one of the fastest-growing skill requirements across industries. This is a clear signal that fluency with these tools is quickly becoming a baseline skill. Leaders now face a new performance metric: How adeptly they integrate A.I. into their workflows.
The best use cases allow people to spend less time on the mundane and more time on the meaningful. Lease comparisons, contract reviews and basic transaction modeling—all of which are equally critical and also time-intensive tasks—can be expedited. What remains is the work that requires deeper expertise: connecting with decision makers, crafting strategies, deepening client relationships and solving complex problems that require judgment, creativity, people skills and persuasion.
Newmark, for instance, is leveraging A.I. to accelerate research and transaction analysis. The ultimate goal is to free people up to deliver better, more customized client service, optimizing both experience and outcome. That’s the kind of productivity uplift that matters and will drive business results.
The office, rehumanized
There’s another angle to productivity: Where it happens. A.I. will be central to the future of work, and the workplace itself will remain equally essential as a hub for collaboration, innovation and cultural connection. Offices are evolving, taking on new roles that reflect changing workstyles and business priorities. The companies winning the war for talent are designing spaces that inspire productivity and creativity. High ceilings, abundant natural light, healthy food options, even biophilic design with plants and green space—all these elements underscore that human output is profoundly shaped by environmental factors as well as cognitive processes. In the age of A.I., there’s something especially—well, human—about the office that workers are seeking out.
For employers, starting now and into the foreseeable future, this will be non-negotiable. Consider this: Today’s 22-year-olds entering the workforce were four or five years old when the iPhone was introduced in 2007. They are digital natives, accustomed to having technology as a constant aid. For them, A.I. will feel like a natural extension of work, rather than a foreign tool—almost like a coworker. In this context, workplaces must be places where human and machine collaboration feels seamless.
Leadership in an A.I. world
Leaders have long embraced change as the only constant. The shift to A.I.-enabled work demands a leadership mindset that accepts that the pace of change is increasing. We are leaders of human talent, and likely soon, agentic talent. Just as throughout time, travel from New York to California shrank from months to weeks to hours, A.I. is collapsing cycles of work. The role of leadership is to lean into progress, not resist it.
That does not mean blindly trusting agents. In fact, the opposite is true. Left unchecked, A.I. can amplify errors or reflect biases in its training. A recent RAND Corporation study found that A.I. systems failed outright in nearly 40 percent of evaluated applications, underscoring why human oversight remains indispensable.
The best leaders will cultivate environments where A.I. is seen as a partner, not as a threat. Some research suggests that when people use A.I. as a collaborator, they are more productive, more satisfied and more engaged. McKinsey projected that corporate use cases could yield $4.4 trillion in gains. That means training employees to see A.I. as a collaboration tool rather than a delegation tool, one that amplifies their superpower of being human.
Building people-powered A.I. teams
So how can organizations future-proof their teams in an A.I.-driven economy? A few practical steps stand out:
- Prioritize A.I. fluency across roles. Just as Excel proficiency became table stakes a generation ago, A.I. literacy will be non-negotiable. Invest in training programs and your own development that make A.I. accessible to everyone, not just specialists.
- Redefine performance metrics. Productivity in the age of A.I. isn’t just about output; it’s about using tools wisely. Reward employees who combine technical proficiency with critical thinking, creativity and client connection.
- Foster purpose and belonging. A.I. can omit mundane tasks, freeing people to seek greater meaning in their work. Leaders must emphasize how technology enables employees to solve bigger, more exciting problems.
- Design human-centric workplaces. Offices must evolve into spaces that enhance productivity and well-being. Inspiring environments send a powerful signal: humans still matter most.
- Balance speed with oversight. A.I. accelerates workflows while strategic human oversight ensures accuracy and minimizes errors. Organizations must embed checkpoints where people validate and contextualize machine output.
- Embed Responsible A.I. practices. Ensure A.I. use is aligned with values and ethics—protecting fairness, transparency and human oversight—so that innovation drives trust as well as performance. Research from EMBER shows that organizations that clearly define responsible A.I. principles see higher employee trust and adoption, with over 70 percent of workers saying that ethical guardrails make them more confident in using A.I. tools.
The human edge
A.I. is here to stay, and the pace of change will only accelerate. History shows that progress does not erase the human role—it redefines it. In commercial real estate and beyond, the businesses that thrive will be those that see technology not as a replacement for people, but as a force multiplier. The human edge lies in what machines cannot replicate: strategic vision, creativity, judgment and the ability to connect with clients on a deeply human level, creating new opportunities for people to add value in evolving ways. While A.I. may change how we work, it doesn’t change why we work. The search for purpose and achievement remains distinctly human, and that will continue to be the ultimate differentiator.
