By Pamela Little, PE, LEED AP, Associate, POND
Few business events are more exciting to me than CREW Network Convention. I had the privilege of attending the convention held in New York City this year, and I am not ashamed to admit that I had entered the convention dates in my calendar over a year before it actually took place. I had only attended one previous CREW Network Convention in 2014 in Miami, but I knew that I wanted to attend each national convention that I could from that point forward.
CREW Network Convention is different from most of the other national conferences and conventions that I have attended. The organizers truly promote an atmosphere for connecting with other real estate professionals, while providing amazing keynote speakers and insightful educational events.
Typically, the kick-off event for most attendees is the trade show component, called The Marketplace. The Marketplace includes some great door prizes, as well as cocktails and hors d’oeuvres; all packed into a short two and a half hours. It’s perfect for making quick connections to follow up with more in-depth networking over the following two days. This year, CREW Atlanta also hosted an amazing wine-tasting event at the New York Vintners in Tribeca on Wednesday, the opening night of the convention, giving Atlanta chapter members a chance to catch up with each other and with members from nearby chapters. We learned about the wines being offered and had the opportunity to enjoy an amazing dinner.
The first full day of the convention, Thursday, was kicked off with a presentation by Amy Cuddy, known for her TED Talk on body language and the author of the book, Presence. If you haven’t read it yet, go out and buy it or download it now! One of her many memorable quotes from the event was, “When we feel powerful we act… on behalf of ourselves and on the behalf of others.” At lunchtime, we were treated to a panel discussion with Mary Ann Tighe with CBRE, Inc., MaryAnne Gilmartin with Forest City Ratner Companies, and Ric Campo, who all talked about professional growth in the industry and the impacts of company culture on success and productivity. The day concluded with Putting on the Ritz – A “Gail-a” Farewell and Dinner Celebration, with everyone getting dressed up to have a little fun prior to the CREW Network Foundation event party hosted by Steelcase.
Friday morning’s General Session included an inspirational talk by Salle Krawcheck, the current CEO and Co-Founder of Ellevest, and former CEO of Merrill Lunch Wealth Management. She discussed the power of diversity and gave advice on how we can all foster the growth of under-represented individuals in our industry, as well as the power of investing. The last formal session of the convention was held on Friday and included a talk with Adm. William H. McRaven (Ret.), former commander of the US Special Operations Command. Adm. McRaven’s message was focused on teamwork, leadership, and decision-making, including the advice that, “You can become stronger through failure.”
I spent the rest of my time attending learning sessions on trends in industrial development, the “high line” effect, public-private partnerships, doing business in a global environment (including advice from CREW Atlanta’s own Lynne O’Brien), and attending excursions. I attended the program on the Hudson Yards District at Manhattan West to learn about the innovative strategies being used to develop this large private development in the heart of Manhattan the day before the convention officially started. I also joined the Taste the Trend tour on Friday afternoon to not only learn about the role of dining in urban redevelopment projects, but also to sample some delicious foods at Chelsea Market, Le District, and Eataly.
While having all these amazing experiences, I also had time to get to know my fellow CREW Atlanta members better and to meet members from other chapters around the US and Canada. I strongly encourage you to plan to attend the CREW Convention next October in Houston and to renew your CREW membership for 2017 if you haven’t already – I don’t know of another organization that provides the opportunities or experiences that CREW does.
Pamela Little has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Columbia University and a master’s degree in construction engineering and management from Georgia Tech. She has over 17 years of experience in designing, permitting, and providing owner’s representative services for commercial, residential and industrial development in both the private and public sectors. Ms. Little spent the early years of her career in construction management and more recently has focused on civil site design.
Ms. Little is an Associate within the Civil Engineering department at Pond. Pond is a full-service engineering, architecture, planning, and construction management firm providing professional solutions to government, corporate and private sector clients throughout the US and globally. Pond’s staff of 400+ professionals provides a deep bench of experience and the capabilities to offer personalized solutions to help clients manage projects from concept to completion – and everything in between – with confidence and clarity.
Ms. Little is the 2016 Chapter Champion for CREW Atlanta, the Nominations and Awards Chair for Women in Transportation Systems, and a Past-President of the Atlanta Post of the Society of American Military Engineers. She also frequently volunteers at the 10,000 Villages Store in the Virginia Highlands, educating the public and helping to sell fairly traded artisan handmade goods.
National awards include the Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Network 2014 Impact Award for Career Advancement for Women and the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) 2014 Tudor Medal for engineering leadership by a civilian young member.
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