How Former NFL QB Tackles CRE Challenges

ATLANTA—Steve Dils, principal and managing director of Avison Young's Atlanta office, faced plenty of challenges as an NFL quarterback—almost every week. So how does he handle challenges in commercial real estate?

The 25-year commercial real estate veteran oversees Avison's day-to-day operations and the company's expansion across the Southeast US. We caught up with him to discuss his biggest challenges, how he has overcome them and more in part two of this exclusive interview. You can still read part one: Ex-NFL Player Shares How He Entered Commercial Real Estate.

GlobeSt.com: What was the biggest challenge you've had to navigate in the commercial real estate industry? 

Dils: Leading an office through the Great Recession and then starting the Avison Young office from scratch were both challenging. They were challenging for different reasons, but starting and growing the Avison Young office in 2010 was a positive challenge and has been the most rewarding experience I have had in my business career.

GlobeSt.com: How did you get through that challenge? 

Dils: Leading an office through the recession was about not letting inertia take control and finding ways to give people something positive to hold onto. I always reminded them that when there is chaos, there is opportunity and throughout the downturn I encouraged them to look for those opportunities. 

Starting and growing the Avison Young office was about introducing our company to Atlanta and the US overcoming a lack of name recognition and sharing our vision with brokers and company owners and showing them how they could be a part of building something special. 

GlobeSt.com: What are your goals moving forward? 

Dils: I want to continue to grow the Avison Young office and brand in Atlanta and the Southeast. In just five years, in Atlanta, we have grown from one employee to more than 100. As a company we have grown from 300 people to over 2,100.