10A — November 18 - December 22, 2022 — Thriving Over 50 Spotlight — M id A tlantic Real Estate Journal
www.marej.com
T hriving O ver 50
Janet Bortz, Joni Sweetwood and Matt Weilheimer The Kislak Company, Inc. salutes leading executives in Commercial Real Estate Janet Bortz Senior VP Joni Sweetwood Executive VP Matt Weilheimer Executive VP
The Kislak Company, Inc. Years with company/firm: 22 Years in field: 24 Years in CRE industry: 24 Real estate organizations/
What is your greatest professional accomplishment? Selling the Pavilion a Mies van der Rohe building with 680 apartments plus 2 stores. I solely repre- sented both Seller and Buyer. How do you contribute to your company and / or the industry? I represent Sellers in a professional manner. My background is in business. I am a CPA with a Mas- ters in Finance. I bring this expertise to the table. Who or what has been the strongest influence in your career? Jay Kislak and Rob Holland have influenced me the most. They were great mentors. Jay taught how to work hard and not cut corners. Rob Holland taught the benefits of working hard/playing hard. Tell us how and when you began your career in the profession you are in, about your current position and why you choose the field/profession you are in today? I was working as a bank vice president managing REO. My job was moving and I wouldn’t so the then president of Kislak, Jeff Weiner, convinced me to come to Kislak. At first, I didn’t like the lack of structure but I soon began to love it. What challenges and or obstacles do you feel you needed to overcome to become as success- ful as you are today? When you start in this business, you are nobody. You have to prove you are somebody. What was the most defining moment for you? My consistent record every year as a top performer speaks for itself. What outside activities do you enjoy during your free time? I love working with people. I work hard and thor- oughly enjoy my clients. I play hard too. I’m lucky to have the best family and friends. What inspiring word of advice would you give to a young executive graduating from college today? If you like looking at buildings and enjoy people, this is a rewarding job that has both flexibility and high compensation; you just have to be persistent. MAREJ The Kislak Company, Inc. Years with company/firm: 26 Years in field: 26 Years in CRE industry: 26 Real estate organizations / affiliations: NJAA
The Kislak Company, Inc. Years with company/firm: 26
Years in CRE industry: 29 Real estate organizations / affiliations: NMHC, PAA, ICSC, NJAA
What is your greatest professional accomplishment? Maintained strong and consistent performance in my 20 plus years in investment real estate. Annually was a recipient of production awards for sales excellence in New York and New Jersey markets. What is your most notable project, deal or transaction? Sold over $100 million in closed multi family trans- actions in the Hudson Valley, NY. What impact has social media / networking had on your career? Excellent. The client reach is extensive and immedi- ate and facilitates all aspects of the transaction from listing to closing. The ability to use digital as well as conventional marketing serves my clients with a larger and qualified buyer pool Tell us how and when you began your career in the profession you are in, about your current position and why you choose the field/profession you are in today? 24 years ago I changed careers, moving from product marketing to real estate. After working two years in real estate development, I joined The Kislak Com- pany, Inc., a commercial real estate brokerage firm specializing in investment real estate. Investment brokerage allowed me greater independence and the ability for unlimited earning potential What were some of your early goals and did anything happen to change them? After receiving an MBA, my career objective was to work in product marketing with a national company. My entry began in sales and after a few years, I joined the Continental Group, working in marketing management. After ten years in the industry, I was looking for a more entrepreneurial career. Investment real estate was and remains a great fit for my skill set and personal objectives. What unique qualities and or personality do you feel makes you most successful in your profession? Organized, assertive, persistent, thorough and hard working. Enjoying people and having a sense of humor and a realistic and intuitive feel for what is required to make a deal. Time management is a must. What challenges and or obstacles do you feel you needed to overcome to become as successful as you are today? Learning to accept failure as part of growth and suc- cess. Need to persevere over adversity. Second is to welcome constructive criticism to facilitate personal and career growth. What inspiring word of advice would you give to a young executive graduating from college today? Whatever field you work in, remember your human relations skills and critical thinking are a founda- tion to success. Technical abilities can be easily reproduced but managing, delegating, negotiating, working well with others, communicating and LIS- TENING are not easily replaced. MAREJ affiliations: NJAA, NJ Professional Real Estate Women and EWGA (Executive Women Golf Association
What is your greatest professional accomplishment? To see my clients succeed greatly from real estate and be able to call them my friends, who have now grown to the 2nd or 3rd generation. What is your most notable project, deal, or transaction? Over the past 27 years there have been many memo- rable transactions, but the most memorable is always my first: 35 apartments in Bellmawr, NJ. How do you contribute to your company and / or the industry? I have mentored many of the top performing sales- people at Kislak over the past 25 years and continue to be a support to veteran and new salespeople. I have also sat on the Zoning board of Adjustment for the past 14 years in the municipality that I reside in. What impact has social media / networking had on your career? When I started there was no social media, it helps you to stay relevant, but there is no better way than to be successful than in person networking. Tell us how and when you began your career in the profession you are in, about your current position and why you choose the field/profes - sion you are in today? I was working on the accounting side for a national brokerage company commuting to NY and quickly realized that I wanted a life outside of work. An op- portunity at Kislak came my way and I am not sure if I chose the profession, or if it chose me. What were some of your early goals and did anything happen to change them? The ultimate goal was to be successful which means different things to different people. Having twins made me get laser focused much more quickly. What unique qualities and or personality do you feel makes you most successful in your profession? First, I always felt more like an engineer, the ability to think on my feet and outside the box. Secondly, the ability to put myself in another’s persons shoes and see their perspective. What challenges and or obstacles do you feel you needed to overcome to become as success- ful as you are today? Mental preparedness. To be able to game plan and anticipate the questions your clients will ask and provide them with the answers that will lead to their next set of questions and so on. Always try to be one step ahead. What was the most defining moment for you? When you realize that you have achieved your first financial goal. Who do you feel was most influential in your life when choosing this profession? When real estate became the profession of choice, without a doubt it would be my father. I was lucky enough to cross paths with many of his colleagues. He has been retired for many years now and there’s
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