Written by: Theresa Wears
Theresa Wears works with the Office and Industrial Services Groups at Colliers | Columbus. She has transitioned her role from focusing solely on the transaction processes of one broker to working with a large group of Office brokers. She continues to apply her knowledge to streamline the team’s processes, with the end goal of making the team better and more efficient. Keep reading to get Theresa’s take on transitioning roles in a time of uncertainty.
Professionally, the year 2020 forced change upon us all. Very few people managed to ride out the change and simply get through it. Some resisted and didn’t fare so well, while others adapted and grew as a result of those changes. This is my story about change and how it helped me grow.
I began 2020 as a team transaction manager, focused primarily on making sure my team’s lease process went as smoothly as possible from the first showing through the lease signing. When COVID hit, there were suddenly very few showings and deals to manage. In other words, very few transactions meant not much call for a team transaction manager. I was on shaky ground.
As fate would have it, our marketing team was undergoing a transition of its own at that time. There was an opening for a marketing specialist to work with six office brokers. The role focused more on marketing the brokers and their properties, with less focus on their transactions. I started my career at Colliers with a marketing focus, but that had been years ago. The tools of the trade changed by leaps and bounds since that time. The marketing role would also mean a transition from working with one single broker to six office brokers plus an industrial broker who heard I was back in the marketing pool and requested to work with me. This transition could be viewed as a challenge. Challenge accepted!
I knew I would need to call upon my love of organization and learning in order to hit the ground running as I transitioned back into marketing. I had some time before the transition took effect. I took advantage of that time to learn as much as I could and practice with the marketing tools that I either hadn’t used in years, or hadn’t been in use the last time I did marketing (360° camera, anyone?). I also developed questions for each of the brokers I would soon be working with. Each broker had a different focus, and each focus required a different marketing approach.
This prep work was worth the effort! I was able to sit down with each broker or team and find out what was working for them, what wasn’t working for them, and suggest some ideas that we could put in place that they hadn’t even thought of trying. I was able to introduce project management tools to my new teams and help them put my knowledge and experience in transaction management to good use.
The end result was amazing. I pushed myself to learn and grow as a marketer again, and I continued to use the transaction skills that I enjoy. I’m feeling incredibly valued by and valuable to my new teams. I’m here to say that not all change is bad, even if it feels painful at first. Keeping my mind open to change helped not only myself, but the brokers I’m lucky enough to be working with today.