Listen & learn from those who have come before
you-from those who have established themselves as industry leaders
& are recognized for their proven track record of
success.
This is exactly what attendees at the NAIOP Massachusetts Annual
Meeting did on the morning of December 15. We had the pleasure of
listening to an expert panel of Cabot, Cabot & Forbes alumni,
including the legendary Gerald Blakeley himself, reflect on their
time at CC&F and the truth about what was in the Kool-Aid that
made the company grow to become such a visionary.
The panel at NAIOP's Icons of Boston Real Estate
event was moderated by the President and Principal of McCall & Almy, Bill
McCall. In addition to Blakeley, the panel featured real estate
gurus, Don Chiofaro, President, The Chiofaro
Companies, Ferdinand "Moose" Colloredo-Mansfield, Senior
Advisor, Cabot Properties,
Inc., Terry Considine, CEO, AIMCO, and Arturo Gutierrez,
Chairman, The Gutierrez
Companies. Each of these men paid very special tribute to
Blakeley, describing him as "the Steve Jobs of real estate," "a
visionary," "the greatest salesman" and "fearless," to name a
few.
You asked, what was in the Kool-Aid at Cabot, Cabot, &
Forbes? Accordingly to Blakeley, the magic formula consisted of
acquiring employees that exemplified three essential
characteristics: brilliance, originality
and most importantly, drive. He believed in
surrounding himself with very intelligent people who were not
afraid to express "crazy" ideas. Blakeley encouraged his team when
thinking "out of the box" and would then depend on them to execute.
While leading CC&F, he lived and breathed by the motto,
"no handcuffs on employees." As Considine noted,
"Gerry would give people an opportunity, and celebrate their
success."
Real estate is an industry that will forever go through waves of
profitability and drought. That being said, Blakeley's other advice
was to take risks. His fearlessness gave him the freedom to "think
big thoughts, be instinctually noble and delegate." Gerry was able
to think about the future and see a vision for what it could
entail.
While the panel at NAIOP's Annual Meeting was partly geared
toward young professionals looking for ways to take their career to
the next level, I am confident that every person in the room
benefitted from listening to Blakeley. He reminded us of the same
core business ethics he impressed upon everyone at CC&F:
integrity and drive. Now 50 years later, the same principles still
apply. Gerry Blakeley made a notorious name for himself not just
because he revolutionized suburban office and industrial parks, but
also because of the quality of talent he attracted and the
unwavering code of ethics that he passed on to them.
By: Allyson Quinby, Account Executive at Solomon McCown &
Company