However, Slone knows that of the 2,000 SIOR members worldwide, fewer than 100--5%--are women, And Slone specializes in industrial sales, an area she concedes has few other women practioners. "There's always been more office brokers than industrial brokers," says Slone, a director for Rosemont, IL-based Cushman & Wakefield. "I'm in industrial and I'm one of 12 women in Chicago."

However, those numbers will grow, Slone predicts. "Several senior brokers have assistants, and their assistants are women," she says.

Lori G. Brown, manager of Binswanger Advisory Group's Midwest operations, agrees with Slone's assessment that outright discrimination is virtually absent from the field. "From a women's perspective, I don't see any negative issues whatsoever," Brown says. "The industry is great. There are plenty of opportunities for minorities and women. But I don't think the industry has been attracting the influx of young people other industries have."

Brown sees a talent shortage exacerbated by, until recently, hirings of dot-coms and tech companies. Meanwhile, Brown sees statistics showing a decline in senior-level top performers in the 35-44 age group, which only means more opportunities for women and minorities at higher levels.

Although Brown agrees the number of women in the office and industrial sectors remains low, "I never considered (bias) an issue." It's helped her, she says, that she deals with other women in serving many of her clients, which include Charles Schwab, Freddie Mac and the Hartford.Stereotypes take long to disappear, though. "I still go through this--a lot of people wouldn't think I'd know about things like power in the building," Slone says. "It's kind of a non-feminine thing. Once women get past that, though, we're at the top, because we've had to work harder."

Slone says Chicago is an easier market for women to enter than others she has heard about. "Male brokers have treated us equally, and wonderfully," she says. "But that's not everywhere. I've heard about men not letting women into SIOR chapters. But in Chicago, we're truly accepted."

Before Cushman & Wakefield, Slone worked at the Podolsky/NorthStar, Paine Wetzel and Arthur J. Rogers brokerages. Despite her industrial specialization, she received the largest single office transaction lease and most inter-chapter transactions awards from the CCIM Illinois Chapter in 1994. In 1999, she received the Northern Illinois Commercial Association of Realtors industrial transaction of the year award.

Brown helped Mesirow Stein develop into one of Chicago's top real estate firms before joining Binswanger. She was selected for the Real Estate Forum's Superstar Brokers in 1996 and 1997. Brown was a finalist for the Chicago Sun-Times' Broker of the Year award from 1992-94 and named one of the 10 Hottest Brokers by Commercial Property News in 1995.

Instant Insights /

Top Women Brokers Say Bias Is No Barrier in Office, Industrial Sectors

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