Entry-Level Positions for Aspiring Vice Presidents
Sean, a VP at Catalyst Commercial Real Estate, suggests a controversial but insightful approach: aspiring investment professionals should start in property management or brokerage, rather than directly in investment. This allows one to understand property operations, learn from experienced brokers, and gain diverse perspectives on deals, ultimately creating a "hodgepodge of all of their experiences" that can be brought into an investment role.
Commercial Real Estate, Property Management, Brokerage, Investment, Entry-Level Positions
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Sean Willett
Vice President
Catalyst Commercial Real Estate
San Diego State University
Business Management & Admin, Marketing
Real Estate
Business Strategy
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. To get into the investment side of commercial real estate, consider starting in property management or brokerage to understand the fundamentals and gain diverse perspectives.
2. Property management experience provides insight into tenant-level operations, which is crucial for monitoring property managers effectively on the investment asset management side.
3. Working as a broker involves high repetition and volume, teaching you to work hard and exposing you to numerous deals and experienced individuals' opinions, offering valuable insights from a buyer's perspective.
Transcript
What entry-level positions are there in this field that an undergraduate or graduate student might consider?
This is debatable, and I think I have a controversial take on this. If you want to get into the investment side of the business, you shouldn't start there. You should start as either a property manager or a broker.
This might seem controversial because you're not going into the field you want to end up in. But understanding the fundamentals of property management, how a property operates on a tenant level, is extremely important. It helps you monitor your property managers when you're on the investment asset management side.
Without that insight, it can be confusing trying to determine if your property managers are doing a good job. For example, on the brokerage side, it's high repetition and high volume. You learn to work extremely hard for delayed gratification and hear from experienced individuals in the industry.
You'll also look at countless deals, which is helpful to see from a buyer's perspective. When you're calling buyers and offering deals, you hear their opinions, which is more helpful than being on the investment side with only the perspectives of a few people at your firm.
That's my opinion. Once you learn from multiple different people, you can combine their experiences into your own role at an investment firm. You can then implement the best strategies learned from other investors.