My Hero - Carrie Bobb
I remember the morning vividly - April 2021- I was scrolling through Linked In posts and stopped to read one by Carrie Bobb. Carrie had already popped into my orbit. I had read about her being a Woman Founder of a Brokerage - Carrie Bobb & Co. I had done a deep dive so I could learn about her and gleem tips and bits of Wisdom, Insight, and Best Practices from a Woman Business Owner. There are not a ton of Women Brokers, we make up about 29% of US Brokers. But the number of women Founding and Operating Brokerages is so very small. CREW Network did a small research project for me : Out of 12,000 Members, there are 122 that list themselves in Brokerage and Owner. That means 1/10 of 1% of CREW Members.
So, imagine my delight when I discover women founders like myself - I want to learn from them and make sure I support them - however, I can.
On the morning of April 2021 I found her post that rattled me to my core. The post has a link to a story in Bisnow titled “CRE Exec's Sexual Assault Inspires National 'Carrie's Law' Campaign For Survivors”
I read and I may have paused for an hour or 3 hours to piece together my many many thoughts.
#1 - I love this person. She is my Hero.
#2 - What the What? What kind of man goes to all this crazy PREMEDIATED EFFORT to do this? And then to the company doesn’t quickly Do The Right Thing?
#3 - This is Horse Shit and I am pissed.
#4 - I’ve got to go create a place that is safe for Women in Commercial Real Estate Brokerage. Not only in my Company Policy & Employee/Contractor Agreements but boots on the ground. I need to hire women, seek them out, give them a safe place at Beck-Reit. Safe from that horse shit. Women have enough to deal with keeping themselves safe from strangers/predators, they shouldn’t have to worry about it coming from their bosses. I can’t save all the women, but I can take it one “Woman Hire At a Time”.
I knew I had to thank Carrie that morning, so I sent her a simple “Comment” on Linked In :
“You are an incredible inspiration. What a Bone-Crushing experience you had to go through. But, to pivot and take that terrible experience and turn it into a campaign to save others ... that is awe-inspiring. May the fortitude in you grow every day as you continue fighting for #carrieslaw. I pray we all join you in this fight.
Since April I have shared this story in circles of men and women at least 50 times. I have forwarded the link to the story a 100 times. I want everyone to BEWARE. And every time I share the story I get more pumped to make a difference.
So now in Q4 of 2021, as we blaze into a new year I am excited to announce 2 Women that have joined my brokerage - AND I AM INTERVIEWING MORE! Big welcome to Kelly Cloud and Kate Rhodes. This is more than adding Brokers to my Company Roster - this is me putting my money where my mouth is.
Since day one of Beck-Reit Commercial and my CRE Career, I have given preferential treatment to Women. I am a member of several Women Networking groups for Commercial Real Estate and Women in Business. I also give Women Business Owners and Women Commercial Property Buyers preferential treatment. My client roster is more than 50% Women. Statistically, there is no way that Women make up 50% of Businesses Buying, Selling, & Leasing Commercial Buildings for their companies and investments. My Rolodex of Professional Vendors, Subcontractors, and Professional Services (Attornies, CPAs, Architects, Engineers) is heavy with women. So I have been working consciously for almost 10 years to support women in an Industry where they are often disregarded. But I never put it CONSCIOUSLY into my hiring practices. Until Now. There is a simple saying “ you don’t know until you know, but then you can not - Not Know It”…. In the last 8 months, Carrie Bobb has become a personal friend. She has changed my life and the way I think. She has changed the trajectory of Beck-Reit Commercial and the trajectory of all our Employees and Agents/Brokers. And I couldn’t be more tickled!
