People on the move at Compass, MoxiWorks, Coldwell Banker and Douglas Elliman 

Editor's note: As an industry with millions of agents and over 100,000 brokerage companies, new leaders rise to the top every day. Here we highlight executives and other notable leaders who've recently taken on roles that influence the residential real estate landscape. 

Wendy Forsythe named Compass president for 3 states

Wendy Forsythe is the new Compass president for California, Nevada and Hawaii, where she will lead all aspects of company operations.

Forsythe brings three decades of residential real estate experience to her new position. She previously was chief strategy officer at Fathom Holdings. Before that, Forsythe had senior leadership positions at HomeSmart International and Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate. 

"Wendy brings strong leadership experience coupled with a deep understanding of the residential real estate industry," said Compass founder and CEO Robert Reffkin. "California, Nevada and Hawaii represent our largest market, and we are thrilled to have Wendy onboard to lead our teams and agent entrepreneurs in this key market."

Michael Messig tapped as MoxiWorks CTO

Michael Messig is the new chief technology officer at MoxiWorks after serving as vice president of product engineering, the company announced. 

Messig previously was CTO at ActivePipe, an email marketing platform for the real estate industry. He joined MoxiWorks in 2022 during its acquisition of the ActivePipe. 

Messig's career focus has been on building scalable web products and leading engineering teams. He holds a doctoral degree in service oriented architecture from Deakin University. 

Messig replaces Mark Carlson, who retired from MoxiWorks after 12 years leading technology and engineering at the company. Carlson will serve in an advisory role at MoxiWorks for the first half of 2023, the company said. 

Brett Matsuura named VP at Coldwell Banker

Brett Matsuura has been named the new vice president of learning and development at Coldwell Banker. In his new role, Matsuura will oversee professional trainers who support Coldwell Banker's network of 100,000 affiliated agents.

Matsuura previously worked at Anywhere for six years, serving in various roles at the company's brands. Most recently, he worked at Sotheby's International Realty as a senior trainer on the client success team. 

His other roles at Anywhere included franchise sales representative for Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, and director of recruiting and agent development at a Century 21 affiliate. 

"I'm looking forward to utilizing my skills and experience to help develop and implement innovative learning programs that will benefit the entire organization," Matsuura said. "In addition, I am excited to be part of a company that values diversity and inclusion and actively works to make a positive impact in the communities it serves." 

Deva Roberts promoted to general counsel at Douglas Elliman Realty

Deva Roberts has been appointed executive vice president and general counsel at Douglas Elliman Realty. She replaces Kenneth Haber, who was executive vice president and general counsel since 2004. Haber will continue as senior managing director, an advisory role, the company said. 

Before joining Douglas Elliman, Roberts was a litigator at Kasowitz Benson Torres, a post she held for more than 10 years. Her background includes representing corporations, partnerships, finance institutions and real estate companies in the areas of compliance, contract disputes, intellectual property and investigations. 

"I can think of no one better qualified than Deva to succeed Ken Haber," said Scott Durkin, chief executive officer at Douglas Elliman. "I'm very much looking forward to working with her in this new capacity and delighted that Ken will remain part of the Elliman community."