Caroline Baker is head of the Manchester office of global property services firm, Cushman & Wakefield, overseeing over 100 employees – the first female to head one of the company’s 海角视频 offices.
She specialises in providing property market and development advice to public sector partners ranging in scale from site specific to sub-regional. Her passion is supporting regeneration projects aimed at transforming our North West towns and cities.
Caroline Baker is currently leading multi-disciplinary teams preparing strategic regeneration frameworks for Macclesfield town centre and Stockport town centre.
To what do you attribute your success?
Hard work. From an early age, I was always very diligent revising for exams and this has continued throughout my career. I want to do the best job that I can for my clients and this can involve long hours but most of the time the results are worth it.
What is the best piece of advice you have been given?
To respect everyone. My work involves meeting lots of people in a variety of environments and it’s important to listen to their views and try to see the world through their eyes.
This results in better outcomes but can help as it not always the people that you assume are the decision makers that actually make the decisions.
Most Read
It also important as a consultant, as often new clients can be people who have worked for me or with me in previous jobs. Given that I will have respected and supported them in their previous roles, that is usually remembered and means we start from a good place.
Who has inspired you most in your career?
I’ve been inspired by “What” rather than “who”! The reason I got into my career was to improve places.
The aspiration to work with local stakeholders to determine what needs to be done to make a place better across is what gets me out of bed.
Despite working for the same company for over 20 years and in the same field, every day I continue to learn new things and have to determine new solutions based on a different set of factors related to the economy, the market or politics. It makes life interesting.
What qualities make a good leader?
Someone who listens and has empathy. The best people I have worked for and with are those who collaborate.
Don’t miss
When I took over as the Head of the Manchester Office of Cushman & Wakefield, my first priority was to ask the office (graduates, partners, secretaries, new joiners and long serving team members) to share their views and ideas with me. I wanted to ensure everyone feels empowered that their ideas matter and are valued.
What has been your biggest challenge in business?
I’m an enthusiastic person and want to inspire people. I look for the best in people and try to be positive about most things. So when I come across people with different - especially negative mindsets – I’m challenged to try to motivate them.
What’s the number one attribute you seek in an employee?
Commitment. It’s what underpins successful teams and businesses and keeps clients happy.
If we are committed to doing the best job we can do together outcomes will be optimised. Being part of a great team that has each other’s back through good and bad times has always been really important to me and I have been very lucky to be part of some great teams throughout my career.
What impact have market disruptors/technology had on your business?
Innovation and how we apply technology is having a massive impact on our daily lives and its impact on the property market is changing the advice our clients need from us.
Lots of information that we used to have to spend hours analysing can now be accessed by clients by the click of a button.
The property sector needs to respond and we are. Our focus needs to be on adding value and insight. Answering the “so what”? So we can provide our clients with the best advice to put them in the best place to respond to the unknown.
To ensure they are open and flexible to the innovations that will continue to change how we live and work.
How do you maintain a work/life balance?
It is tricky but having children has certainly forced me to leave work to pick them up from school/ferry them to hockey/netball/rounders/football matches rather staying in the office to just finish something off. It has meant I have to switch off and change into “mum” mode.
Although at busy times it can mean having to return to my computer when everyone else has gone to bed.
It doesn’t leave a lot of time for “me” but that’s getting better as my daughters are growing up fast and becoming more independent.
However I do recognise that I am very lucky to be able to have had the opportunity to do both and for me, I believe that my quality of life is better for having to balance work and family rather than having to chose between one of them.
Want more business news straight to your inbox?
BusinessLive is your home for business news from around the country - and you can stay in touch with all the latest news through our email alerts.
You can sign up to receive morning news bulletins from every region we cover and to weekly email bulletins covering key economic sectors from manufacturing to technology and enterprise. And we'll send out breaking news alerts for any stories we think you can't miss.
Visit our email preference centre to sign up to all the latest news from BusinessLive.
What car do you drive?
Mercedes
What was the last book you read?
I have just finished reading The Milkman by Anna Burns. A really interesting take on growing up in North Ireland through the Troubles.
What is your favourite holiday destination?
My husband and I went to Japan for our honeymoon and I would love to return with our daughters one day to explore more of its amazing sights. However our go to destination, at least once a year, is Italy.
My sister and her family live there, so it holds lots of special memories – usually involving great food, wine and lots of laughter!
What’s your favourite restaurant and why?
My “go to” family favourites are The Met in Didsbury (especially on Christmas Eve) and Wagamama’s.
I recently attended a work lunch at Where the Light Gets In in Stockport and will definitely be returning with my husband soon.
How do you relax?
After a busy day it’s on the sofa for an hour watching a box set – Succession being the current favourite.
At weekends, it’s with friends and family combining a walk with some good food and hopefully squeezing in a short run in at some point if it’s not raining.