Gotthelf of Catcove Corp. details her career influences

Name: Dede Gotthelf Title: Exec Vice President Company/firm: Catcove Corp. Years with Company: 23 Years in field: 33 Years in real estate industry: 33 Address: 120 West 120 St., New York, NY 10027 Telephone: (917) 747-6345 Email: [email protected] URL: www.southamptoninn.com Real estate organizations/affiliations: YMREA; REBNY; FRNCA; Hamptons visitor council During the last 10 years of your career, which professional accomplishment, honor or achievement was most meaningful to you and why? The Certificate of Appreciation from a community group on Long Island. Catcove has been involved in public private partnerships for over 25 years, listening to the local participants, and creating programs that incorporate community dreams with economic and engineering feasibility. It is a joy to provide our expertise and wisdom to help shape their dreams into reality (or sometimes, not!) Which project, deal or transaction was the 'game changer' in the advancement of your career during the last 10 years? Purchasing the Southampton Inn certainly changed my career from finance and capital structure to innkeeper. I never envisioned being a wedding planner for over 40 couples a year! How do you contribute to your company and / or the industry? I am not only the "conductor" of the company but also play several instruments. My years of experience help to teach, guide, and assist dozens of employees to grow with our companies or launch into entreprenurial careers of their own. I hope that our ideas, creativity, and integrity contribute to the industry... What advice would you give to women just starting out in commercial real estate? Commercial real estate encompasses land use, zoning and laws, design and structure, financing, marketing, and management (and a myriad of other disciplines). I recommend that all women begin with finance.... If you can think it, can you also obtain the funds, make it profitable, and understand how to structure the underwriting? (my banking beginning at Chase Manhattan contributed enormously to my ability to "do deals".) How do you manage the work/life balance? Badly!!! No matter how much we want to "do it all", it is very challenging to be a good mother, wife, president of companies, and.... Keep up with friends, piano, museums, and walking on the beach. I suppose the secret is triage.... What really must be done asap (like needs of children of course) and what can be put into the "tomorrow" pile? Also a team of help from housekeeping (yes, we ladies do need to purchase the ketchup and milk when they run out), accountants, personal assistants, and fantastic staff. (and in my case, an amazing supportive husband too!) Who or what has been the strongest influence on your career and why? Developers were the glamorous "top of the chain" in the real estate industry when I was a fledgling banker in the global credit training program at Chase Bank. They were the ones with the drive, creativity, money (or so we thought), ambition, who truly made changes to the skylines. Listening to Larry Silverstein at the Real Estate Institute at NYU who not only built (well) but also taught and inspired us students (well), was a major influence. How are you using social media to promote yourself, your products and / or your firm? Badly!!! I don't have the time to link in or facebook or tweeterere, or other social media. I do have some staff people who are assigned to handle social media and, I am afraid it may be generational, but I believe that word of mouth, print ads, good public relations, and mostly good product are more important than facebook friends (for work). Where would you like to be 10 years from today? Retired?