Kairoi Residential, a vertically integrated multifamily investment, development, and property management company, recently promoted two of its leaders—Kari Warren to chief operating officer of property management and Tammy Freiling to chief financial officer of property management. Both Warren and Freiling joined the management company as vice presidents at its inception in 2017 and have helped spearhead Kairoi Management’s growth. Kairoi has16,000 multifamily units under management, including 60% owned by third parties.
Warren has over 20 years of experience, previously serving as head of operations for Anyone Home and as a lead executive in charge of strategic marketing, branding, and communications for BRE Properties and AvalonBay Communities. Freiling also has over 20 years of experience in investor reporting, debt compliance, monthly and quarterly statements, and audit and tax coordination. She is a CPA and previously held roles at USAA and Ernst & Young.
Multifamily Executive caught up with the executives to discuss the pivotal moments in their careers, how they are making a difference for Kairoi and the residents they serve, and their advice for the next generation of women in the industry.
MFE: How did you each get started in the multifamily industry?
Warren: After graduating from Texas A&M with a degree in political science, my father, a retired admiral in the U.S. Navy, highly suggested I go and find a “real job.” I’m sure what he really meant was to explore the world outside of Texas and experience life instead of heading right back into school. So, I had a great opportunity to begin my career with a student housing developer as a regional manager, and I received a two-bedroom apartment as part of my compensation, which really sealed the deal for me. Like many who enter this field, it was the unknown. However, I quickly realized it was this great opportunity to learn and experience all aspects of business—finance, accounting, marketing, sales, customer service, etc.
Freiling: I took the scenic route, which turned out to be the best route for me. After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin with my master’s in accounting, I worked in public accounting as a CPA with Ernst & Young. I spent the next phase of my career working in the financial services industry with USAA. The level of financial knowledge and sophistication that was needed to succeed in an organization with oversight from the Securities and Exchange Commission, insurance regulators, FINRA, etc. … prepared me for the reporting expectations of our current institutional clients and in a manner that was more rigorous and comprehensive than I would have received in the real estate industry alone. What drew me to multifamily is my entrepreneurial spirit. Working in this industry allowed me to be involved in so many aspects of the business, and that fired me up. Never a dull day in multifamily.
MFE: What have been pivotal moments in your careers?
Warren: Meeting and learning from numerous mentors in my life. First, being able to be at the conception of an amazing organization, AvalonBay, and learning from the very best of the best—too many to name, but they absolutely know who they are. Second, being recruited to work for Connie Moore, who was the only female CEO on the REIT side of the business. Being mentored by a woman CEO was instrumental in my career growth. And finally, when we started Kairoi four years ago, being able to look back at those 20-plus years and share all my knowledge with those just starting their journey in our industry.
Freiling: I took a risk and left the financial services industry to transition to multifamily, and the risk has paid off. One of the more pivotal moments in my career was having the opportunity to start a management company from the bottom up. Being able to build a team from scratch, define processes and procedures based upon the best you have seen in your career, and challenge your creativity and intellect on a daily basis is an opportunity many do not get. This opportunity occurred partially due to hard work, but also partially by having the right people believe in you at the right time.
MFE: How have you made a difference at Kairoi and for your residents?
Warren: The sophistication in marketing and branding and how it intersects with technology. Always ensuring we are proactive and not reactive to resident needs and desires. To do that, you have to create an agile platform, and that requires partners and agencies that are much smarter than me in this space. We have been able to set ourselves apart in this arena, and residents comment that they notice a significant difference from other communities that they have lived at in the past.
Freiling: The biggest difference came from hiring great people. The impact of investing in our associates and culture can be felt by our residents, our clients, and our Kairoi family. Ensuring that everyone is in the right seat in the boat (we prefer canoe) and paddling in the same direction is key, too. Additionally, I am passionate about improving processes. The automation and centralization of many tasks that have been traditionally completed by the on-site teams has freed up time to focus on what they do best … sales and service.
MFE: As female leaders, how have you seen the industry respond to creating diverse workplaces?
Warren: I don’t think it is just one area, and every year it gets better. I can remember early in my career that you would be around the table and be the only female, and that is where the “diversity” stopped. Now, we have women- and leadership-focused conferences. Panels that focus on diversity and inclusion at the national level. Roles are being created at the corporate level—ensuring that there is actually one person that is focused on this area.
Freiling: I can remember the first time I attended the National Multifamily Housing Council annual conference. It was a sea of men in blue suits. There were very few women and very few minorities present. I would certainly agree with Kari that it is improving every year, but we still have work to do. An important change I have seen in the industry is more diverse panels at conferences. It’s encouraging to those that are coming up in the ranks to see representation at the top levels.
MFE: How are you fostering and encouraging diversity on your teams?
Warren: We created the diversity and inclusion committee a year ago and hired a partner that specialized in this area—and not in the multifamily industry—working for large brands that are household names. I think the best ideas can come from outside our space. This partner surveyed our associates and found that we were already naturally diverse, which I think we already knew. But given our culture, we wanted to understand how we could be even better. Having a safe and honest conversation is key. You have no idea until you walk in someone else’s shoes what their experiences and view of the world are. The committee created new programs to help drive awareness and understanding as well as to spur healthy conversation and education. The important thing to note is that this is now a forever piece of who we are ... not a one and done to check a box.
MFE: What more would you like to see occur in the multifamily industry regarding diversity?
Warren: Honestly, that everyone is compensated at the same level, regardless of gender. I by no means think this is a multifamily-only challenge. It absolutely still exists; data shows it does. However, I believe it's getting better year after year. There is an opportunity to make sure we stay ahead of the curve and ensure that compensation is equal to experience and market data.
MFE: What’s a piece of advice you have for the next generation of women in multifamily?
Warren: This one is hard, as I feel like I have more than one. Being a ”working” mom for most of my career, I would say that it is hard to play all the roles in your life. What I mean by that is juggling being an executive, wife, mother, sister, friend, etc., and doing it all well. To give yourself “grace” that some days you will feel like you failed at definitely one or more. Being open and honest with those around you brings comfort and normally great support and advice. As a mentor once said to me as I was feeling guilty coming off my first maternity leave—“to focus on the quality of the time not the quantity.” She was absolutely right. My sons, now 18 and 14, respectively, would tell you the same. And I’m pretty sure whoever they end up marrying will be a person that has a passion for whatever they do and juggles it all because they love it.
Freiling: You cannot please everyone. You can try, but you will fall short. The pandemic was a perfect example. If you ask the team to wear masks, some will be unhappy. If you ask the team to stop wearing masks, some will be unhappy. As women, we are driven to please others, and it is hard to accept that sometimes we won’t. My best advice is be genuine, care about others, do things for the right reasons, and others will come alongside you.
MFE: What is one thing you learned about yourself during the pandemic?
Warren: That I took the importance of personal and physical interaction for granted. A handshake, hug, smile to name a few. Our industry is very “familial,” and it makes perfect sense when the core of what we do surrounds someone's “home”—nothing is more personal. For me, it felt like a loss not to be able to do the most natural things. To shake someone's hand as a hello, hug someone that is hurting, to smile and see someone smile back. Our head of talent development conducted a whole training on “how to smile with your eyes,” which definitely has stuck with me!
Freiling: Ditto. While the pandemic was (and is) hard, we learned a lot, too. We learned that there is more than one way to accomplish the same goal. We learned that people have very different comfort levels, and that is OK. And we were reminded of the importance and value of our family at home and our family at work.
