10C — October 24 - November 13, 2014 — Executive Women in Business — Mid Atlantic Real Estate Journal
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Executive Women in Business
Alexandrea Merrell, President & CEO, Orndee Omnimedia Everyone fails; get up, dust yourself off, and stand up for the next round
estate developers who were focused on sustainability and I added promoting these amaz- ing people and their work to my firm’s offerings. I was asked to become a partner of the Green Building Center, which is a non-profit that promotes sus- tainability through education and advocacy last December. What was your most no- table project, deal or trans- action in 2014? I have put some of my clients together with a publishing partner to publish “High Per- formance Buildings” a book by William Amann of M&E Engineers, with contributions from some of the most influ- ential sustainability and real
estate experts in the country. The book focuses on changing the sustainability conversation from one that is climate change and idealism focused to one that is end user and financial bottom line focused. The book should be in book stores Mid- November. How do you contribute to your company and/or the industry? Engineers, real estate devel- opers, architects, etc are often focused on the uniqueness of their part of a project. I help them to see big picture and talk a language that will resonate with the end user. No matter how great a project, if it doesn’t appeal to an investor or a pur-
continued on page 16C I am good at what I do, be- cause I know “Betty.” There is an old saying, “If you want to sell what Betty buys, you’d bet- ter see things through Betty’s eyes.” Many companies struggle with understanding how their brand or services or offerings are viewed by the consumer and so they waste their adver- tising or promotional dollar by spending to send the message that they want to send, as opposed to the message that “Betty” needs to receive. I fix that. I am also pretty tenacious. Do you feel there are any differences in the way that men and women develop business relationships? There can be. Men are often chaser, it will fail to meet its potential. I also donate a great deal of time to philanthropic works and education, particularly in support of green housing, sustainability, and community improvement. Who or what has been the strongest influence on your career? I spent much of my career helping people transition through crisis. Some crisis are of people’s own making, through poor personal choices or as a byproduct of being a celebrity or a politician. Others are external crisis, disasters, business failures, law suits, etc. I am always humbled by some people’s ability to get up, dust themselves off, and move forward, even in the most dire of situations. Being able to assist people to plan, execute, and make those transitions has been incredibly important to me and influences the way that I deal with all clients. I look at the worst case scenarios and factor that into all promotion and brand development. What impact has social media/networking had on your business? Social media has had an incredible impact on my own business and that of my clients. Being able to expand your business base, interact with potential clients far afield and collaborate with people around the global has allowed my clients to grow and develop in ways that would not have been previously possible. What unique qualities and/ or personality traits do you feel makes you most successful in your profes- sion?
Alexandrea Merrell, President/CEO Orndee Omnimedia & Managing Partner, Green Building Center Years with company: 5 Years in field: 25 Real estate organizations/affiliations: USGBC-NJ, Urban Green, REBNY
ell us how and when you began your ca- reer… I started my career in real es- tate at a luxury residential firm in NYC, but gradually moved into marketing and branding, T
ultimately opening my own public relations firm, special- izing in crisis management and transitioning careers for ce- lebrities and politicians. After Sandy, I met some remarkable engineers, architects, and real
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