Eileen Byrne joined the Board of Hunt Companies, Inc. in 2012, having previously served on the board of its investment management subsidiary. She chairs the Compensation Committee and serves on the Audit Committee. She retired from BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) in 2008 as Global Head of Real Estate Account Management, responsible for business strategy, product development, business development, and, as Principal for Real Estate, regulatory compliance. Following her retirement, she served as a strategic advisor to BlackRock.

Ms. Byrne serves on the New York State Retirement System (NYSTRS) Real Estate Advisory Committee, the external investment committee for its $30 billion in real estate and infrastructure equity and debt investments and commitments. She has previously served on the Board of Directors of The Colorado Health Foundation, its Governance Committee and Investment Committee for its $2.5 billion portfolio; and on the Advisory Board of Park Madison Partners, a boutique real estate capital placement and advisory firm.

Prior to joining BlackRock, Ms. Byrne was a Principal of The Townsend Group, the dominant real estate advisory firm to pensions, endowments and foundations, following the merger with Townsend of the advisory firm she founded and led for 10 years. Previously she served in various capacities in commercial real estate finance, development and asset management in both the public and private sectors.

She received her BA from Marymount College, Tarrytown, NY, and MS from Florida State University.