Her Story
About Jennie
I have always been in commercial real estate, beginning my career in property management. My first year was in Charlotte, North Carolina, where I worked for Spectrum Companies, a boutique real estate firm, managing their office portfolio. I then moved back to Minneapolis and started with Piedmont Realty Trust, where I managed a downtown high-rise in the Minneapolis CBD before transitioning to their suburban portfolio of about 900,000 square feet of Class A properties. After about 6 years in property management for Piedmont, I transitioned into asset management, leveraging my property management skill set and understanding of how buildings operate to drive leasing performance. One of my proudest achievements is my building repositioning work, having renovated a total of 5 lobbies and amenity packages, ranging from fitness centers to conference rooms and lobbies. The largest was a $15 million renovation at the downtown asset, which really helped drive leads and success across the portfolio. I also spearheaded Piedmont's Spec Suite program in Minneapolis, building out several spec suites and achieving superior economics. Today, I work as a real estate advisor, helping both landlords and tenants with leasing their office space or finding office space. My typical day involves consistently meeting with clients, understanding their needs and objectives, and helping them execute. This includes leasing tours, responding to requests for proposals, helping tenants identify how their real estate fits into their business objectives, identifying properties that align with their needs, negotiating, and guiding them through the entire lease and construction process until they move into their space.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Jennie
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to hard work and having a very strong say-do ratio. If I say I'm going to do something, I always follow up and do it. That has enabled people to trust me, and also for me to earn more and more responsibility over time.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've received is to be curious and ask a lot of questions. I've learned to reach out to people that I admire and ask them what has helped them be successful, and then continue to keep in touch with them. Really not being afraid to be uncomfortable is also critical, because that's where a lot of the growth moments happen.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice to young women entering this industry is to not be afraid to ask questions. Put yourself out there and be uncomfortable. Really view it as an opportunity that you're different than the typical person in this industry, and leverage that in earning new business.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest challenges I've faced is that there have been several times where I'm the youngest in the room or the only female in the room, and so there's been skepticism at first as to why this person is in this role. I've had to push through that and earn their respect, and sometimes it came quickly, and other times it took several months or even a couple years to earn, but I just continued to show up and be a hard worker, and eventually that respect came. Another ongoing challenge is that the industry evolves very quickly, so I need to make sure that I am staying on top of the industry knowledge and connecting with the right people so I can give good guidance to ownership or tenant groups. I need to be really thoughtful on ensuring I'm taking the time each day to stay in the loop versus just simply crossing off the to-do list. As far as opportunities, I view being one of the few women in the industry as a tremendous opportunity. I have two wonderful partners that are males, and I'm able to give a different perspective and a different lens on things, which makes our team a lot stronger. Also, my experience in property management and asset management is very unique as a commercial broker, and I'm able to leverage that skill set to negotiate better for the client I'm working with because I have a firm understanding of how properties function, what things they need to be mindful of in their leases, and how to structure a lease that's most favorable for them.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
My family is very important to me, so ensuring that I'm a part of my kids' lives and setting aside time for them and my husband is a priority. Being kind to others and genuinely helpful is also central to how I operate. I believe in servant leadership and a servant work method, where I want to help people without having an expectation of receiving something back. I think this has served me really well, but also has helped me build authentic relationships. It has helped me enjoy the work that I'm doing, because I get to know people on an individual level, but also professionally.
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