Our very own Suzanne Rosnowski, Quinn & Co. partner and head of the real estate division, recently served as panel moderator for the first annual Real Estate Weekly’s Women’s Forum at the McGraw-Hill Conference Center in Manhattan.
Spanning a variety of experience levels and real estate sectors, the panel titled “Women Who Rule: CEOs and Founders Roundtable,” was comprised of Brooke Barrett, co-chief executive of Denihan Hospitality Group, Abigail Elbaum, principal of Ogden CAP Properties, LLC, Marilyn Kane, president of Iridium Capital and Michele Medaglia, president and CEO of ACC Construction. Leading the discussion, Suzanne uncovered these outstanding leaders’ secrets to success, including how they balance personal and professional responsibilities, how they got to where they are in real estate and what the decisions were that helped them achieve great things in the industry.
The first “secret” the panel dished was the importance of taking care of oneself in a world where women are constantly taking care of everyone else. Eating right, getting sleep and exercising are all ways to fine-tune your professional performance. All panelists agreed if you take care of yourself, you will create much more quality work.
The ladies also touched on putting emotions aside in a male-dominated industry. While it’s paramount to trust ones intuition, emotions and drama have no place in the professional realm.
Last, but definitely not least (as this is something we also hold dear at Quinn & Co.), the panelists talked about the importance of a team and a healthy work environment for that team. “Collaboration is so much more important than competition,” said Michele. Brooke agreed: “Don’t be afraid to surround yourself with smart people.” While it might be intimidating, these are teammates who will make you look good. All of the women, including Suzanne, know well how great leadership can propel a company into incredible success.
I personally enjoyed how professional, yet informal the panel was. To be quite honest, it was like watching a group of girlfriends chatting…while dispensing some invaluable advice! Congratulations to Suzanne and the panelists for a job well done!
Kate Ottavio, real estate publicist at Quinn & Co., is your typical Type A, social butterfly personality who enjoys consuming all things social media and PR at an unhealthy rate, writing all things exploratory on trends and news for this blog.
