5 Minutes in Multifamily: Episode #1

Recorded on May 2 by Hyro

Introduction: 5 Minutes in Multifamily—a new video series featuring real estate and #proptech experts sharing their insights on key industry topics and trends, all under 5 minutes. Well, usually under 5 minutes.

For this episode, we were honored to welcome Layne Spencer, Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing at INTEREL, a leader in smart building infrastructure, to dish on topics such as:

• Top concerns for owners and property managers in 2022
• What it takes for a real estate company to be future-ready
• Layne’s list of must-read books

Our Key Takeaways:

• Owners and property management companies should be thinking about smart building infrastructure, connectivity, and anything that can help create efficiencies from a utility standpoint, operational standpoint, and beyond.
• It's hard to be future proof, so be as future-ready as you can.
• Keep your eyes out for trailblazers such as Dean Fung-a-Wing from Kairos.io, Alex Kazerani from OpenPath Security, and Cyrus Claffey from ButterflyMX to name a few.
• Read what Layne's reading: Gap Selling: Getting the Customer to Yes: How Problem-Centric Selling Increases Sales by Changing Everything You Know About Relationships, Overcoming Objections, Closing and Price 

About Layne:

With a background in Sales Leadership, Business Strategy and Development, Integrated Marketing, Multifamily Management and PropTech, Commercial and Residential Real Estate Brokerage, Software Training and Implementation, and Adult and Youth Education, Layne is putting his skillset to use leading a global sales, marketing, and business development team focused on delivering world class Smart Building infrastructure and tech solutions to distributors, partners, and clients across a variety of real estate verticals.

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CHECK OUT THE FULL ON-DEMAND RECORDING:

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FOR THE FULL TRANSCRIPT, KEEP SCROLLING:

Monica: Hi everyone, I’m thrilled to have Lane Spencer here today. He is an expert in the real estate industry, thrilled to hear his insights. I will hand it over to him to give a quick introduction of who he is, and how long he's been in this space. Thank you. 

‍Layne: Yeah, thank you, Monica and pleasure to be here. So, uh, Lane Spencer, Senior Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing at Interel. We are a provider of commercial grade IOT solutions. So, yeah, excited to be here. Been in this industry, multifamily and commercial real estate specifically for a little over 10 years now. It's kind of my third career, but,  love the industry and love having my finger on the pulse of what's going on. So yeah. Excited to talk with you.

Monica: Can't wait to hear what you have to share. 

What are the top three things that owners and property management companies should be thinking about for 2022? 

Layne: Well, not to be at all biased, but of course, number one for me would be a smart building infrastructure solution. So, absolutely. A big part of what conversations are right now. So, it is really important to put in that kind of infrastructure now. And then really related to that, connectivity. Connectivity infrastructure has become more important than ever for properties of all types, all asset classes in all different markets. So I think that would be the second. And then I think the third would be anything that can help to create efficiencies at your property from a utility standpoint to an operation standpoint and beyond. I think those would be the three most important buckets of, from my perspective, IOT, connectivity, and efficiency creating solutions.

Monica: Perfect. 

What are some risks for companies who are hesitant to adapt to today's digital demands and changes?

Layne: I think the risk of not going ahead and investing forward in your community is really being left behind, you know, not putting in the right type of infrastructure now, means it's much harder to adopt the forward facing technology moving forward. So, I'd put in that connectivity infrastructure, I'd go ahead and start looking at those investments. And many of them are newer, and this is an industry that's historically risk averse. But the benefits far outweigh the risks of going ahead and being that future forward owner, who's gonna put your property in your portfolio ahead of the curve.

Monica: Yeah. I've heard you say future ready? And I love it. Let's be future ready. 

‍Layne: Right. It's hard to be future proof. So be as future ready as you can. Right. Exactly. 

Monica: Awesome. 

What are you reading these days? 

Layne: Well, you know, leading a global sales team, it's always about making sure that we're solving for the pain of our clients and we're understanding and listening to our clients. So, at the recommendation of an industry colleague, I'm reading Gap Selling by Keenan.

Monica: That's one of my favorites too. 

Who do you think are some of the trailblazers in the industry, and how can we follow and learn from them?

Layne: Yeah, absolutely. So, you know, there are a few that just come to the top of mind right now, folks that I've spoken to in different ways and that I'm keeping my eye on. My short list would probably be Dean Fung-a-Wing from Kairos.io, a really forward-thinking solution he’s bringing to the market, Alex Kazerani from OpenPath Security, really innovative platform, Sam Yang from Xandar-Kardian and then of course, one of my favorites, Cyrus Claffey from ButterflyMX, all trailblazing leaders that I love to follow. 

Monica: I love it. So we've got a lot of folks that we can follow. Thank you so much for that.

What do you think is the next big trend in the multifamily industry?

Layne: I think we're seeing it happening right now, it's just more standardization and more interoperability across all different pieces of the proptech puzzle. It's all about creating as streamlined of an experience for property teams and residents alike. I think we're gonna continue to see increased standardization across platforms and just more of an openness to it. Cooperating together, right? Among all different solution providers, we're seeing it happening. It's gonna continue to happen and it's gonna be for the better of all of our clients.

Monica: Awesome. Well, thank you so much, Layne. It was so great to hear your answers to these five questions. Hopefully we've shared some insights with people. Now everyone's gonna wanna know how they can stay connected with you? How can they continue to learn from you and find you on social media?

Layne: I'd love to collaborate. So, I would welcome anybody to reach out to me, of course. Always happy to connect. 

Monica: Thank you so much lane. Truly appreciate it. 

Layne: Always a pleasure, Monica. Thank you for having me. 

Monica: You got it. Bye.

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Show Notes & Learn More:

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Connect with guest Layne Spencer:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claynespencer/

Email: LSpencer@interel.com

Read what he's reading: Gap Selling by Keenan

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Read more on INTEREL:

INTEREL creates intelligent sustainable environments and is on a mission to empower companies that create smart living experiences, to use their and the world’s resources more efficiently by connecting utilities, things, and people through the best technology ecosystem. INTEREL’s smart building ecosystem consists of a beautifully crafted hardware portfolio of smart thermostats and room control devices, powered by INTEREL OS, featuring the connectBsmart™ IoT connectivity framework, and the Home of Things and Hotel of Things™ integration platforms. Together these products and services provide customers and partners a solution to retrofit, merge and virtualize, what otherwise would be several difficult to manage, siloed CAPEX investments. With 500.000 devices installed, INTEREL solutions have created smarter and more sustainable buildings in over 45 countries across the world. To learn more, visit: www.interel.com or https://www.linkedin.com/company/interel/.

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