Saluting CRE's Veterans

On Veterans Day, we're taking a moment to thank those of you who have served in our military. We spoke to a few of you about the lessons learned in service to our country and how you bring it with you to the office. Organization: that was the biggest lesson PM Realty Group development manager Chad Suitonu learned during his time in the Army. He managed construction projects from building roads to base camps, and barracks projects in Iraq, Afghanistan, and South Korea. He was recruited by West Point to play football (class of '98) and spent 10 years in the Army as part of the Corps of Engineers. He managed both people and schedules, he tells us. He learned to make a project work with limited resources, but more importantly he has embraced the concept of operating ethically and fairly, he says.

Persistance. It's a quality that Lee & Associates' Scott Alexander felt was critical to his success in becoming a Navy SEAL. A stress fracture caused him to be removed from training during his first attempt at Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training in 2001; but he returned two years later to successfully complete the program. Quitting should never be an option; even when a goal seems unattainable, it's important to always keep sight of what you're after, he says. He earned his college degree while on active duty and when he left the Navy earlier this year, he jumped into commercial real estate. The competitive environment and self-driven nature of the job appealed to him. He brings another skill he learned from the military: stress management. He appreciates the challenges of his new job; but his experience from multiple overseas deployments has helped him to keep perspective.