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Access, Insight, and Community: The Corporate Benefits of IAMC Membership · Industrial Advisors

• 0:00
  Tell how you, uh, ended up joining IAMC and why and kind of what you
• 0:04
  get out of it as being a corporate.
• 0:06
  Yeah, so I think a lot of corporate occupier teams run pretty lean, and so
• 0:10
  it's nice to build those relationships, and this is a great opportunity to do
• 0:14
  so because some of the conferences you go to, they're not as an even playing
• 0:18
  field with, you know, maybe the, the brokerage teams or the different
• 0:22
  client services teams, and this one really puts an incredible focus on the
• 0:26
  occupier and the corporate tenants.
• 0:28
  And so being a part of that group and getting to kind of network and talk
• 0:31
  to them and understand what challenges they're going through that are similar to
• 0:34
  yours and build those relationships that you can then take beyond the conference is
• 0:39
  really something I found extreme value in.
• 0:56
  Welcome to our Industrial Advisors podcast.
• 0:59
  We are live in Little Rock at IAMC, and we have Amanda Sevilla with
• 1:04
  Expeditors joining us today, one of our favorite people in the entire industry.
• 1:08
  Absolutely.
• 1:08
  We're gonna talk a little bit about IAMC as we're on the final day of it.
• 1:12
  So how's the conference been for you so far, and what do you think of Arkansas?
• 1:15
  The conference has been fantastic.
• 1:17
  Arkansas is a unique state.
• 1:19
  It is.
• 1:19
  I'm glad I'm seeing it.
• 1:20
  No, it's fantastic.
• 1:21
  IAMC is a conference and a group of people that offers so much opportunity.
• 1:26
  I really think it's about the team and the relationships and the
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  community that you make here as opposed to just being a conference.
• 1:32
  Obviously have made some really great relationship and even now
• 1:34
  friendship beyond the conference.
• 1:36
  So really happy to be here.
• 1:37
  I'm sad it's almost over, but we always kinda leave with this excitement and
• 1:41
  continued conversation amongst people, and then look forward to the next one.
• 1:45
  It's nice they do them twi- they do two a year.
• 1:46
  Yes, yes.
• 1:47
  Right?
• 1:47
  'Cause then you can carry that momentum forward- Yes ... and not
• 1:49
  have to wait an entire year to do it.
• 1:51
  Exactly, yeah.
• 1:52
  Tell us how you, uh, ended up joining IAMC and why and kinda what you
• 1:56
  get out of it as being a corporate.
• 1:58
  Yeah, so I think a lot of corporate occupier teams run pretty lean, and so
• 2:02
  it's nice to build those relationships, and this is a great opportunity to do
• 2:07
  so because some of the conferences you go to, they're not as an even playing
• 2:11
  field with, you know, maybe the, the brokerage teams or the different
• 2:14
  client services teams, and this one really puts an incredible focus on the
• 2:18
  occupier and the corporate tenants.
• 2:20
  And so being a part of that group and getting to kinda network and talk to them
• 2:24
  and understand what challenges they're going through that are similar to yours
• 2:27
  and build those relationships that you can then take beyond the conference is
• 2:31
  really something I found extreme value in.
• 2:33
  Somebody actually brought it up to me about five or six years ago, and
• 2:37
  the timing wasn't right with the way that the conference schedules were
• 2:40
  working, and so I kind of always kept it on my radar, and I was able
• 2:43
  to go to my first one in Greenville.
• 2:45
  I think it was about three or four years ago.
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  That was a great one.
• 2:47
  That was a good one.
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  It was a great conference.
• 2:48
  Yeah, yes.
• 2:49
  And I got so lucky to make some introductions and form
• 2:52
  those great relationships.
• 2:54
  Somehow got onto, like, a early morning schedule with some teams and met some
• 2:58
  different people through that, and I think those kinda offshoot moments are also
• 3:02
  where you build those great relationships and really lucky and, and fortunate
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  enough to have been part of that.
• 3:06
  So that's kind of the history of how I found it.
• 3:08
  Awesome.
• 3:08
  And here we have obviously corporate-only sessions where you're
• 3:12
  with other real estate directors.
• 3:13
  We've got the general sessions, which I love, with the, you know, keynotes-
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  And then you got the breakouts.
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  What's your favorite?
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  Tell us about that.
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  Yeah, I really do appreciate those breakouts.
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  I feel like you get at these, the tables are packed, first of all.
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  There's not an empty seat in there, and people are just very honest.
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  Yeah.
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  And so you're able to really share some of those tough examples of what you're
• 3:31
  going through and hear how somebody maybe has worked through that scenario,
• 3:34
  or you kind of sidebar and talk about how you might be able to support them.
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  And that is extremely helpful to see that you're not the only
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  one who's going through it.
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  And some teams are really large.
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  They might have 30 to 50 people, and how they navigate that
• 3:46
  in their real estate team.
• 3:47
  Mm-hmm.
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  And then some teams are much smaller.
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  And so you're able to really ask them questions and get truly
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  honest feedback in those sessions.
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  So I love those.
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  And then I, of course, love the larger sessions, too.
• 3:57
  I mean, some of the speakers are so uplifting- Yeah ... and really moving,
• 4:00
  both on a professional and personal level.
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  Yesterday's was awesome.
• 4:03
  Yeah, he was incredible.
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  That was incredible.
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  It was very inspiring.
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  John O'Leary, I mean, as we were watching the sun rise this morning,
• 4:07
  it was all I could think about.
• 4:08
  Yes, exactly, yes.
• 4:09
  Yeah.
• 4:09
  Yeah, he was lovely.
• 4:10
  You know, you've been doing it a couple years now.
• 4:12
  What's been your favorite location of IMC that- Yeah, I think, I mean, I feel like
• 4:16
  Greenville was definitely my favorite.
• 4:18
  Yeah.
• 4:18
  Yes.
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  I think it was not only my first, but the novelty of it and, like, realizing
• 4:22
  that this entire community was out there.
• 4:23
  Was here, yeah.
• 4:25
  Again, I just, like, keep going back to that community aspect because it really
• 4:28
  does follow through throughout the year.
• 4:30
  I mean, I've had coffee with different friends that I've made here, and
• 4:34
  everybody's able to kind of connect.
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  The small little group of 500 people, you know, it, it does seem
• 4:39
  like you know the same people.
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  You're sitting at the tables.
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  You keep running into the same people.
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  And the industry, it seems so big, but it's really tiny at the end of the day.
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  And so I feel like that was one of my first moments was being in that experience
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  and realizing that this community was out there and could really help.
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  each other.
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  So- Yeah ... that's been fantastic to lean on that group.
• 4:58
  Yeah, the sharing of best practices is probably super advantageous.
• 5:02
  In the corporate-only sessions that they don't let us go into.
• 5:04
  With, yeah, that's right.
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  Yeah, the brokers go into.
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  Although I've tried.
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  Yeah.
• 5:07
  Uh, and then you've also, I mean, you do other conferences.
• 5:10
  For example, you come to our Colliers National Conference, and you've been
• 5:13
  on a panel and done excellent on that.
• 5:16
  What other conferences do you get benefits out of going to?
• 5:19
  The other ones are kind of the landlord run customer advisory councils- Sure
• 5:22
  ... are really great because you get to get direct feedback and that direct one-on-one
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  time with their C-suite, and really share kind of the struggles with them
• 5:29
  as an institutional landlord that, you know, as they come in and some of the
• 5:32
  smaller mom-and-pop shops are gone, you know, you have a different experience
• 5:36
  when you're going to potentially renew or move within that market that might
• 5:40
  be very different to that local market.
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  I mean, I think of, like, El Paso.
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  There's been a lot of turnover in that market.
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  And so being able to kind of go one-on-one with the CEO, the CFO, and, and learn how
• 5:51
  they're investing in their teams and in their markets and how they kind of run
• 5:54
  and source their company is really helpful to kind of have that direct feedback.
• 5:58
  But I mean, you could be at a conference every single week if you wanted to.
• 6:01
  Totally.
• 6:01
  For sure.
• 6:01
  So you certainly have to pick and choose- Yes, you do ... the
• 6:03
  important and key ones.
• 6:04
  And this is definitely a highlight you guys put on, a fantastic one,
• 6:07
  so I feel really lucky to have been able to participate in those.
• 6:10
  Next up, we've got Columbus, uh- Yeah ... in the fall.
• 6:13
  I'll be there.
• 6:14
  Yes.
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  Have you been there before?
• 6:15
  I haven't, but we have some great buildings there and
• 6:17
  a lot going on in Columbus.
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  I'm excited to get there.
• 6:19
  That's one thing I love about IMC, is you go to non-traditional
• 6:23
  cities for the most part.
• 6:24
  Yeah.
• 6:24
  Not always, but you know, you just never get a, a chance to see them, so.
• 6:28
  I'm okay going back to Fort Lauderdale when that happens.
• 6:30
  Yes, yes.
• 6:31
  That was really fun.
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  Yeah.
• 6:32
  But, well, thank you for joining us.
• 6:34
  Well, thank you.
• 6:34
  Thanks a lot.
• 6:34
  Thank you for having me.
• 6:35
  Yeah.
• 6:35
  This was great.
• 6:36
  Thank you.
• 6:36
  I appreciate it.