WoI Speaker: The Evolution of the Property Management Industry

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New York, NY—Linda Aronson is a managing director and serves as JLL’s regional manager for property management for the New York Tri-State market. She is also a speaker at our inaugural Women of Influence event being held next month. GlobeSt.com caught up with Aronson to get her perspective on what is changing in property management. And indeed, she is the person to ask, given her extensive background in the sector.

Responsible for providing senior-level oversight of all property teams, ensuring compliance with client strategies and objectives, as well as business development and client relations, Aronson has been with JLL for approximately 37 years.

“I started out in property accounting and learned all about property management because I had no idea what commercial real estate was all about. Managing a building is like managing a business and everything has to be spot-on,” Aronson says. “I learned a lot and I also learned that I didn’t want to be an accountant forever and so I raised my hand when an opening came up in building operations.”

Aronson kept raising her hand for various job positions, got the offers and ended up moving from New York to Cincinnati, Washington, DC and Atlanta before landing back in the New York area, all while staying with JLL.

“As I relocated time after time and moved up the proverbial ladder, I learned a lot of lessons. One lesson was that I had to adapt to my new environment and to a new pace. Just because I was the new leader didn’t mean that an entire team had to adapt to me, I also had to adapt to them plus understand and respect how they worked and their pace of work. I was coming from New York City, after all, where business was conducted at a faster pace than some of the other cities in which I worked,” explained Aronson.

As a female executive who initially worked in a male-dominated field, Aronson recalls two separate instances where she was negotiating the deal and was ready to execute the agreement when both men commented that they were sure she had to go back to her boss to get the contract approved and signed.

“I was initially astonished, took a deep breath and responded that I had the authority to sign the document. Both men were taken aback but didn’t appear to be embarrassed,” reminisces Aronson. “This was back when the property management field was a male dominated field.”

As the commercial real estate industry has evolved over time, property management is also transforming. Tenants are seeking buildings that offer more experiences and they have different expectations than they did in the past, Aronson says.

“Some of the big focuses include leveraging technology, experiential property management and generally bringing much more creativity. Buildings are now competing differently than they have before and as a result, when I look for talent, I am looking for people who have an operational and experiential balance,” says Aronson.

Aronson also serves as the national chair for JLL’s Women’s Business Network. The network empowers a culture of gender partnership to attract, develop and retain the best women in the marketplace. Additionally, she represents JLL on the National Association of Female Executives (NAFE) Roundtable.

“I get so excited about the Women’s Business Network! I love paying it forward and advising women on how to raise their hand when seeking an opportunity. As a female leader, I am sought out by other women for career advice and it is my pleasure to advise and mentor.”

“All in all, I love the field of property management,” says Aronson. “In this business, every building has a personality which changes with the tenant mix and even with new owners. Within a span of one hour, you could be talking to the day porter about keeping the sidewalks clean and then the next minute, you are on the phone with the company CEO of one of your tenants.”