2024 Women in CRE: Sheelagh Brady,
DiPrete Engineering

What challenges have you faced as a woman in commercial real estate?  For women in project management, especially in traditionally male-dominated fields like engineering, unique challenges arise. These include overcoming biases and proving technical competence in environments where leadership roles have often been held by men. Navigating these obstacles requires confidence, resilience, and a commitment to building strong professional relationships with both clients and team members.

What advice do you have for young women aspiring to enter commercial real estate? Young women starting out in project management should focus on building their technical expertise while also cultivating soft skills, like communication and collaboration. Seeking mentorship, staying proactive, and asserting their ideas in discussions will help them gain respect and grow into leadership roles. Success lies in persistence, adaptability, and forming solid, trust-based relationships within the industry.

What recent project, transaction, or accomplishment are you most proud of? In the architecture and engineering industries, credit and collections play a crucial role in ensuring the financial stability of long-term projects. Unlike industries with shorter timelines, these projects often involve complex payment schedules tied to milestones. Managing this requires strong relationships with clients, clear communication, and a collaborative approach to resolving issues before they impact progress. Success in this area comes from building trust and ensuring clients feel valued throughout the project lifecycle.

Why should this nominee be recognized in our Women in Commercial Real Estate Spotlight?
“Sheelagh Brady is an example of how relationship building, and client communication is critical to success. Her role as Credit and Collections Manager is one that could easily become contentious when client payments start to fall behind, but Sheelagh goes out of her way to avoid that by cultivating collaborative relationships with clients. Her friendly, patient demeanor makes for better results than someone who uses a sterner approach – this is illustrated by annual improvements in our collection cycle. She has decades of success in the real estate industry thanks to her professionalism, strong relationships, and open communication with clients.” - Chris Ready, Chief Financial Officer at DiPrete Engineering.