The
Commercial Real Estate Industry lost a lion this week. Bill Lee passed away peacefully
on April 5, 2021 surrounded by family. We are deeply saddened by our loss but
grateful that Bill suffers no more and is with the Lord. Many of you knew Bill,
transacted deals with him, and had great respect for his prowess. In honor of
the life Bill led and the impact he had on our business - I revived a column I
wrote in 2019 in his honor. Rest well my friend!
I
am penning this post from a palatial suite - not the font seat of my car, btw -
at the Aria in Las Vegas. It's early and I am one of the few that is witnessing
the sunrise at the BEGINNING of my day. My company, Lee & Associates,
journeys to Las Vegas each fall for our annual Summit. My thoughts drifted to a
Summit past - the last one Bill Lee attended.
At
that Summit - I re-connected with my old friend - Bill - hint, his name is on
the front door. It was so great to see Bill and spend some time with him. Bill,
unfortunately has been absent from recent Summits. I REALLY miss him. The cool
thing is, it felt as though we talk weekly. He watches
my TUESDAY Traffic Tips - my weekly video series - and complimented
my work. Bill is LEGENDARY. But, how did he become a legend?
Bill observed a problem. Bill was the
top guy at Grubb and Ellis before Nixon was a crook. He was/is the most
competitive guy I've ever met. But, Bill realized that intra-office competition
was wreaking havoc on the greater good of the office. Bill tells it like this.
"I had a 30,000 sf listing. A guy (competitor) in the cube next to me had
a 30,000 sf occupant requirement. I didn't tell him about my listing because I
didn't want him to get part of the fee. The culture of the office dictated that
approach." Bill later realized that the "company" suffered and
created a platform, that through profit sharing, rewards cooperation but
still encourages competition. This was heady stuff, folks. Talk about
disrupting the way in which commercial real estate is brokered. WOW!
Bill had the courage to change. Great, there
was a problem. Now, Bill had to convince some fellow brokers that CHANGE was
the key to their collective future. Getting brokers to change ANYTHING is
tantamount to separating conjoined twins. But, Bill, ever the persuader,
convinced a small band of brothers to follow him into the cooperative abyss.
John Matus, John Sullivan, Mel Koich, Larry O'Brien, John Vogt, Tom Casey,
Dennis Highland, Len Santoro, Bart Pitzer, and Bill's college friend, Al
Fabiano heeded the siren call and left the building.
Bill had a tireless vision. One of
the other old timers and I were marveling at how those eleven guys, in an
executive suite in El Toro, California, created a company that now boasts 65
global offices, close to 1200 agents, Billions in revenue, an International
presence, coast to coast visibility, and the BEST place in the world to
transact commercial real estate. Period! I asked Bill if he ever, in his
wildest dreams, believed the company would someday be this big. He looked at me
rather puzzled and said, "of course! Once we got your Orange, California
office opened, I knew we were on our way to becoming an international
company." Tireless vision!
Bill got out of the way. At a point, Bill
realized that for Lee & Associates to grow, he needed to step away
and let the eaglet fly. Knowing Bill, as I do, this was warranted but was the
toughest thing for him to accomplish.
Bill
along with Craig Coppola, a recent William J. Lee lifetime achievement winner,
have authored a book entitled Chasing Excellence, Real Life Stories from
the Streets. It is available on line and in book stores.
So,
want to become a LEGEND? Just do those four things. Simple, right?
Allen C. Buchanan,
SIOR, is a principal with Lee
& Associates Commercial Real Estate Services in Orange. He can be reached
at abuchanan@lee-associates.com or 714.564.7104. His website is allencbuchanan.blogspot.com.
