Colliers International president Joe Harbert decamps for Avison Young

Colliers International president Joe Harbert has left the firm and joined rival brokerage Avison Young in a leadership position.

Harbert, whose first day was Monday, is working as a principal and director of operations for Avison Young’s Northeast region, according to Commercial Observer. He previously worked as COO of Cushman & Wakefield.

He and Avison Young president Mitti Liebersohn will work together to manage the firm and grow its business in New York City. The two also worked together while they were at Cushman.

Harbert got started in the industry when he became deputy director of real estate for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority more than 30 years ago and has also worked at Edward S. Gordon Company, CBRE and Insignia/ESG. He moved over to Cushman in 2004 and left for Colliers in 2012.

Avison Young is based in Toronto but has recently focused on growing its presence in the U.S., expanding its New York office from 80 to 130 people in three years. Earlier this year, it hired former Cushman vice chair James Nelson as principal and head of its New York metro area investment sales team and also lined up a $250 million investment from Canadian pension fund manager Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. [CO] – Eddie Small