2016 Women in Real Estate: Kirsten Beck

Kirsten Beck, Avison Young

Name: Kirsten Beck

Title: Vice President, Project Management

Email: [email protected]

Years in real estate: 19

Company Name: Avison Young

Year Founded: 1978 

URL: www.avisonyoung.com

Telephone: 212.729.7140

Twitter @AvisonYoung

How did you get your start in real estate?

As the office manager in a small office back in 1997, I was the jack-of-all-trades; HR, office supplies, furniture, and, of course, construction. Our office was growing and, when I took over the job, already under construction. Over the next two years, we expanded a second time and then took a larger 30,000 SF suite. This new move allowed me to take on a new interiors project and I ran the design and construction. From that point on, my role and future jobs revolved around real estate leasing and construction.

What real estate associations or organizations are you a member of?

IFMA

What recent honor, achievement or recognition has meant the most to you and why?

In 2015, I was awarded the Clarisa Award by St. Francis Food Pantries and Shelters. This was an incredible honor and a milestone in my career. In my life and at work, I try to find ways to give back to my community and to the less fortunate. Being selected to participate in this event and to help raise money for St. Francis enabled me to continue those efforts on a larger platform. Being selected by a committee of my peers in this industry meant, to me, that I had “made it” on a certain level.

What have been some of the benefits of being a mentor or having a mentor?

I have had the good fortune to be a mentor to many young women in this industry. I am happy to share my insights and experience to help other women achieve their goals and to recognize success in their lives. The greatest ‘benefit’ is seeing the women I have mentored flourish and become successful in their own rights. I remind them all that they might be my boss one day!

What time management strategies do you find to be the most effective for you?

I am a slave to Outlook. It has a lot of tools that can be utilized to keep on schedule and up to speed. I rarely send an email that doesn’t have a reminder date & time set and isn’t “pre-filed” into its correct folder. This helps me in two ways – 1) I don’t spend unnecessary time looking for emails. If I sent or received an email regarding XYZ project, it is in that folder and 2) If I send an email requiring or requesting a response, I preset a reasonable reminder time (1-2 days for simple things, a week or even more for longer lead tasks). I am then reminded of my email at the set time and can either check for the response in my inbox or follow up with the individual. Furthermore, my Outlook calendar is practically scheduled to the minute. Meetings, events, appointments (work & personal), including travel time so I don’t get jammed up with back-to-back appointments and no time to get from point A to point B.