Q. Kindly give our readers an introduction to your business. Please include what your business is all about, in which city you are located and if you have offices in multiple locations/ cities.
Ans : Markland is a charming neighborhood with the amenities of a larger community. The 345-home residential community is located in St. Augustine Florida right next to I-95. Markland features a beautiful clubhouse, a zero-entry pool, two recreational lakes, play spaces for the kids and more.
Q. Kindly give us a brief description about yourself (it should include your brief educational or entrepreneurial background and list some of your major achievements).
Ans : I earned my BS in Civil Engineering from Cornell University and my Master of Management from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Business at Northwestern University. Since joining Hines in 1996, I have been responsible for the planning and execution of projects totaling over 3,000 acres of land and 1,000,000 square feet of commercial space.
Q. What three pieces of advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?
Ans : Be practical about your money, delight your customers when you have the opportunity, and hold yourself to your word.
Q. What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur?
Ans : I would say focus, determination and being able to sell. Focus to be able to take on many tasks at a time and stay organized. Determination to work hard and achieve your goals. Ability to sell- whether it’s selling your product, your services, your ideas, etc. to businesses and potential customers.
Q. What is the best way to achieve long-term success?
Ans : Focus on channeling your energy, money and time into an endeavor that will make you more successful and knowledgeable for the future. Don’t do it alone. Surround yourself by good people and form lasting relationships with the people you do business with.
Q. Where do you see yourself and your business in 5 – 10 years?
Ans : I see us improving our processes and workforce steadily and undertaking even bigger and more complex projects.
Q. How important have good employees been to your success?
Ans : Good employees drive our business. We couldn’t achieve the level of success we’ve had today without some great people working with us. Hiring quality people will give you quality results.
Q. How long do you stick with an idea before giving up?
Ans : If the idea is something that is practical and I feel will yield results, I will stick with it as long as possible. But if the idea is proving to be not profitable or takes too much time away from my work or personal life, I can recognize that it’s and move on.
Q. What motivates you?
Ans : What motivates me is, after all the hard work, seeing the look on clients’ faces when we deliver a fantastic final product.
Q. How do you generate new ideas?
Ans : New ideas come naturally. As the company grows and we gain experience with every endeavor, we take a look back at processes and projects
Q. How do you define success?
Ans : Success, to me, is when you put in the hard work necessary to achieve your business goals and can honestly say that you are content.
Q. How do you build a successful customer base?
Ans : Do quality work for each customer and you will see your customer base increase steadily. Word-of-mouth is one of the most successful forms of marketing- and it’s free.
Q. What kind of culture exists in your organization? How did you establish this tone and why did you institute this particular type of culture?
Ans : Our organization believes that you have to work hard to be successful, but you also need to enjoy your work and the people around you. There are times that we are all business, but we aren’t afraid to lighten it up and have a little fun, too.