CRE Leaders Say Sponsors Must Put Women in Revenue-Generating Roles
Commercial real estate leaders seeking to build stronger teams and a deeper leadership bench need to do more than mentor women. They need to put their influence behind them—opening doors to decision-makers, placing them in revenue-generating roles and giving them the autonomy to build careers of their own.
That was the central message from a panel at ICSC@Western, "How Male Champions Can Propel Careers, Open Doors and Build Leaders." The discussion focused on a practical distinction that matters in a relationship-driven business: mentorship can offer guidance, but sponsorship creates access to the rooms, relationships and opportunities where careers and deals advance.
Gerardo Flores, chief development officer at Marco's Franchising LLC, put the point plainly. Leaders need to use their influence to move women into visible roles where they can produce revenue and establish their value to the business.
"Money is a generator in this industry," Flores said.
For commercial real estate firms, that means advancement cannot rest on advice, networking events or broad statements of support alone. Panelists said companies must be intentional about who gets introduced to clients, assigned to high-profile work and trusted with the responsibility to grow business.
From Access To Independence
Moderator Vicky Hammond, managing principal of Coreland Companies, defined a champion as someone willing to "stick their neck out" for another person and push when that person cannot push for themselves.
McCall Huske, vice president of SRS Real Estate Partners, described that support as a progression from access to trust to independence. A champion does more than provide career advice, she said. They invite people into the spaces where opportunities take shape, then give them enough responsibility and confidence to operate independently.
That progression is especially relevant in commercial real estate, where relationships, market intelligence and credibility are central to winning assignments and building a client base. Getting an introduction may create an opening, but lasting advancement depends on earning trust and demonstrating the ability to deliver.
Huske urged younger professionals to make themselves useful early by understanding their markets, tracking which companies are expanding and coming to meetings with information that can move a conversation forward.
"Be relevant," she told the audience.
Sponsorship Must Be Intentional
Garrett Colburn, president of SRS Real Estate Partners, said those connections don't happen consistently without deliberate effort from company leadership. SRS has developed SOAR, a group intended to strengthen relationships among women across the firm's regional and national operations, he said.
Colburn also pointed to flexibility as an important issue for women navigating different stages of their careers and lives. The broader challenge, panelists suggested, is creating an environment where women can remain in the industry, build meaningful relationships and pursue leadership opportunities without having to fit a narrow traditional image of a commercial real estate professional.
Natalie Pebbles, principal with PULSE Real Estate Strategies, said the industry has made progress in allowing women to bring more of their authentic selves to work rather than conforming to that traditional image.
"It isn't a competition to beat the men," Pebbles said.
Instead, the conversation centered on expanding opportunity and building workplaces where emerging professionals feel welcome, supported and able to raise difficult issues. Pebbles said that includes creating space for open discussions about workplace safety and predatory behavior.
Visibility And Revenue Matter
Flores' comments brought the discussion back to the business mechanics of advancement. In a sector where revenue generation can determine influence, title and long-term opportunity, leaders must look beyond mentoring and provide women with access to assignments that build a track record.
That can mean exposure to clients, business-development opportunities and roles that allow professionals to demonstrate their ability to generate results. Without that access, mentorship risks becoming disconnected from the practical experience needed to advance.
Rhiana Lindsey, director of leasing at Primestor Development, also emphasized the value of workplaces where professionals can be themselves. As a woman of color, Lindsey said she has faced an additional layer of challenges, but she described being able to bring her full personality and perspective to Primestor as a benefit.
She encouraged professionals entering commercial real estate to use events such as ICSC@Western to introduce themselves, expand their networks and build their personal brands. Those individual efforts matter, but the panel made clear that organizations and senior leaders remain responsible for ensuring opportunity does not depend solely on who already has access to influential networks.
Leadership Is The Deciding Factor
Arturo Sneider, co-founder and CEO of Primestor Development, framed sponsorship as a leadership responsibility. Being a champion is a privilege, he said, and it requires leaders to think about colleagues even when they are not in the room.
That means considering how an assignment, introduction or new role could shape someone's career—and then deliberately making room for that person to participate.
Hammond said diverse perspectives can improve the industry's product, while noting that women continue to identify gender as a barrier to advancement, particularly in brokerage. The discussion at ICSC@WESTERN suggested that addressing that barrier requires more than goodwill. It requires leaders to make concrete decisions about who receives access, visibility, client exposure and the opportunity to build business.
For investors and owners, the message is also relevant to the firms they hire and partner with. The strongest organizations will be those that can develop talent broadly, retain it and turn that talent into business results. In commercial real estate, champions help do that by moving people from the edge of the room to the center of the transaction.
Check back with GlobeSt.com for more coverage from ICSC@WESTERN in San Diego.
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Source: GlobeSt/ALM