CRE's Best Bosses 2018: The Good Guys
Be it through their dedication to their employees, the broader CRE community or general social causes, these leaders’ efforts go toward making the world—and the industry—a better place.
Be it through their dedication to their employees, the broader CRE community or general social causes, these leaders’ efforts go toward making the world—and the industry—a better place.
Eric Hinkelman, The Giver
As CEO of Voit Real Estate Services, Eric Hinkelman is in charge of a real estate firm that has completed more than 46,000 deals since it launched in 1971. But that doesn’t stop him from regularly connecting with Voit employees and brokers. He takes the time to get to know his people, their motivations and what is important to them. He spends as much time as necessary to listen to each question, hear any grievance or absorb any recommendation.
Despite being the top official in the firm, he’s known for being extremely accessible to anyone that requests his attention. In short, he gives—of his time, his respect and his knowledge and experience—to his colleagues, employees and clients alike. As a result, his team feels heard, valued and understood, which goes a long was in terms of engagement and motivation. Ask Hinkleman yourself, and he’ll say he simply lives by the golden rule: treat others as you would like to be treated.
His approach to giving has inspired others in the company. The staff celebrates each other’s successes, both professionally and personally—a priority that comes straight from the top. On employee shares,, “Just like any other CRE organization, we survive and thrive on ‘the next big deal’. However, knowing that you’re not just another number and that the person leading your organization puts just as much stock in his employees’ happiness as he does the top deal of the week or quarter or year, results in people striving to do an exceptional job.”
Says another: “Eric not only goes above and beyond to bring out the best in people, but he’s created an environment where people are comfortable with express their opinions in a collaborative environment.”
According to Voit EVP and partner Frank Geraci, “in 35 years of business, I have never heard anyone say anything negative about Eric.” And perhaps the most enthusiastic comment we received came from one senior manager: It’s like the heavens opened up and brought down the perfect leader. I left a company with poor leadership and didn’t know what good leadership was until I came to work for Eric.
Kevin Maggiacomo, The Activist
Kevin Maggiacomo, president and CEO of SVN International Corp., experienced a wake-up call in 2012 when he was on stage at a national conference. “I realized I was speaking to a sea of people who looked just like me. Nearly all were men and nearly all were white,” he said in TEDx Orange Coast speech ‘Awakening the American Dream’, which he gave a year later.
With that realization, Maggiacomo set about to change his corner of the world. In 2015 he testified in front of the Massachusetts legislature on behalf of a Women in Boards Bill, which went on to be passed. That same year he also led the rebranding of SVN to create a Shared Value Network of openness, inclusiveness and innovation, whose goals included bringing intentionality to recruiting and empowering women, millennials and minorities. Just one year later the company’s board was gender-balanced.
But even before this milestone was reached, Maggiacomo had been running a company with zero tolerance for the type of behavior that sparked the #MeToo movement, says one member of the company’s C-suite. “For our women to be able to work in an environment where there are no distractions or energy wasted on dealing with biased work cultures and for young men and women to see this example of inclusiveness and empowerment for all, is unique and simp-ly the best.”
In many respects 2017 was another breakout year for the company’s efforts in promoting diversity. In an effort to work more closely within the communities in which SVN’s offices are located, the firm launched SVN | Outreach, a campaign to highlight the current topics and issues affecting communities, such as smart cities, sustainability, redevelopment, renewable energy and affordable housing. As part of that initiative, Maggiacomo launched the SVN Communities Grant Fund in which qualifying SVN firms are awarded grants and the services of a citizen crowdfunding platform for community improvement projects. The goal is to help franchise offices solidify their engagement with their local communities.
Ask any staffer and the first thing most would say is that Maggiacomo has truly redefined and reshaped the company’s culture, and serves as an embodiment of its mission and values. Jerry Anderson, an SVN executive managing director, has watched Maggiacomo grow into the CEO role over the past 15 years. “He is a masterful leader,” he shares. “He’s taken the brand to a level beyond the founders’ highest exceptions. Kevin has the respect of every single advisor at SVN and beyond.”
Jonathan Morgan, The Nurturer
Jonathan Morgan’s father started Morgan Properties in 1985, the same year Jonathan was born. He grew up in the family business and at a young age was taught the ins and outs of running a successful company. He knew everyone at the firm, from the painters and maintenance staff to the facilities and operations employees and with the succeeding years, his passion for the business just grew.
By 2011, Morgan became president and founder of Morgan Properties JV, an affiliate of Morgan Properties that handles the company’s properties owned in joint-venture partnerships. Under Morgan’s leadership, the firm has made more than $3 billion in multifamily investments, acquiring 23,000 units over the past five years—more than doubling the size of Morgan Properties’ existing portfolio. The company is currently the 22nd largest apartment owner in the country, and the largest owner and operator in the states of Maryland and New Jersey.
But Morgan has done more than just nurture the portfolio; he also makes a point of nurturing the staff by serving a mentor to up-and-coming employees throughout the company and ensuring that employees have the training they need to advance. An executive at the company says that Morgan “is the type of leader that places the emphasis on the team and outlines what is needed to reach the goals of the company.” Says another: “He treats everyone the same—from the porters to the CFO. He is kind and he gives back to the community. We truly work for a family man, one who treats us like we’re part of a big family.” In fact, nearly every employee who weighed in on our poll expressed the exact same sentiment, in large part due to the way Jonathan Morgan treats his team.
Among his formal initiatives, Morgan helped to spearhead the creation of the Morgan University in 2014 to provide professional growth and training opportunities, even offering tuition reimbursement for these courses.
As one senior manager puts it, “Morgan Properties is a company that provides not only an incredible professional opportunity, but also creates a work environment that people can thrive in. There’s a reason why the average tenure is long at Morgan.”
Maureen Waters, The Advocate
As chief commercial officer of Ten-X Commercial, Maureen Waters co-leads the CRE business and is focused on marketing, data and analytics for the company. She joined Ten-X in August 2016 as the chief marketing and strategy officer. Prior to joining Ten-X Commercial, she ran real estate asset management at Bill Gates Investments where she developed a portfolio strategy, infrastructure, and the asset management team.
Prior to BGI and while at Cushman & Wakefield, Waters launched the first marketing organization in the CRE space that was focused on business development and strategy. She also developed the first strategic plan for Cushman & Wakefield that eventually contributed to the sale of the business.
In all of her history in this industry, she’s advocated for women, especially women in real estate, and she supports mentorship programs and opportunities for women. One of those key organizations is Girls Inc., where she has been a national board member for the past seven years. Girls Inc. is a distinguished organization that delivers life-changing programs and experiences that equip girls to overcome serious barriers to grow up strong, smart and bold.
In addition to Girls Inc., Waters has been a part of the executive committee for Women in Real Estate while at C&W. While living in New York, she was involved with WX, New York Women Executives in Real Estate. The invitation-only organization promotes the advancement of women in CRE, enhances the public perception of the role of women within the industry and promotes the highest standards of professionalism, ethics and integrity in the field.
At Ten-X Commercial, Waters looks for opportunities to mentor and advocate for the young women across the organization. She’s established an organization for women in CRE/Tech to help further the careers of women in the CRE technology space. She continually advocates for her team and helps them in accomplishing their career goals.
In addition to being an advocate for women, Waters is a big believer in the power of collaboration and motivational leadership. She knows that employee engagement will be imperative to the success of Ten-X Commercial’s digital transformation.