UPS Information Technology Vice President of Human Resources Regina Hartley was the keynote speaker at the 18th annual United Way Commercial Real Estate Network Legacy Luncheon, which brought together 450 leading industry executives to support United Way’s work in the region. — All photos courtesy: Jennifer Brown/United Way of Northern New Jersey.
By Joshua Burd
A human resources executive with UPS on Friday urged many of the state’s top developers and industry professionals to consider the “scrapper” when making hiring decisions, citing their self-reliance, perseverance and ability to solve problems.
The executive, Regina Hartley, offered her philosophy on talent management as she spoke during the United Way of Northern New Jersey’s annual Commercial Real Estate Network Legacy Luncheon. She said executives in real estate and other sectors often have to choose between those with impressive credentials and someone who appears less accomplished, but noted that hiring managers have an “opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life in a different way” by hiring the latter.
Whether it’s a rough childhood, personal trauma or some other form of adversity, she said, that person likely “had to fight against tremendous odds to get to that point.”
“They embrace their trauma and hardship as key elements of who they’ve become,” said Hartley, vice president of human resources for UPS Information Technology. “You know what? Scrappers know that without those experiences, they might not have developed the muscle and grit required to become successful.”
Hartley delivered her message to some 450 professionals who turned out for the 18th annual luncheon, one the industry’s most popular events every year. Those attendees and sponsors helped raise around $200,000 for the United Way’s work to improve the lives of individuals known as ALICE, or those who are asset-limited, income-constrained and employed.
Hartley’s keynote address was followed by the presentation of the United Way of Northern New Jersey’s annual Impact Award, which went to the deal that is bringing Allergan to a new headquarters at 5 Giralda Farms in Madison. The pharmaceutical giant’s 432,000-square-foot lease, one of the largest of 2016, will result in the retention of 1,000 jobs in the state and the creation of 300 new full-time jobs.
The winning team includes the Allergan; landlord Lincoln Equities Group LLC; broker Newmark Grubb Knight Frank; tenant representative JLL; architects HLW International and Gensler; law firms Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC and Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland & Perretti LLP; project manager VVA Project Managers & Consultants; engineer Robert Derector Associates; contractor Structure Tone; furniture manufacturer Teknion; furniture dealer GOI; security and IT TM Technology Partners Inc.; AV and acoustics Cerami & Associates; and other consultants — Structure Studio, Jacobs Doland Beer and Kimley-Horn and Associates.
“United Way is proud of its longstanding partnership with this industry which recognizes that giving back to local communities is an integral part of doing business,” United Way Senior Vice President for Resource Development Theresa Leamy said. “In addition, United Way congratulates the Allergan building team for its commitment to retaining jobs, providing a competitive workplace environment and helping to boost the regional economy.”
The two other finalists for the award were 56 Livingston Avenue in Roseland and Daiichi Sankyo’s U.S. headquarters in Basking Ridge. Robert Kossar of JLL, who moderated the event, said each project offered an example of the vision and problem-solving ability of commercial real estate professionals, which he said are attributes that can be helpful when raising money for organizations such as the United Way.
To date, he said the state’s commercial real estate industry has raised more than $2.5 million for United Way’s work in the region.
“In my mind, the industry is uniquely positioned to build on this partnership with the United Way, because we are the ones who put forward bold ideas,” said Kossar, an executive managing director with JLL and its top executive in New Jersey. “We sketch them out and then literally see to it that what is envisioned first in our minds and then on screens eventually materializes from the ground up.”
