Name: Rachel Gretencord, CFA
Title: Director of Real Estate
Company: Connecticut Economic Resource Center (CERC)
Location: Rocky Hill, Conn.
Birthplace: Indiana
Family: Married, one son
College: MA from Yale University (CT) and BA from Valparaiso University (IN)
First job outside of real estate: Director of an undergraduate study abroad program in Hangzhou, China
First job in real estate or allied field: Associate at a real estate development firm focusing on urban revitalization projects
What do you do now and what are you planning for the future: As director of real estate, I oversee CTSiteFinder.com which provides free commercial real estate and demographic data to help businesses analyze a potential investment. Our department also conducts business development activities to promote Connecticut as a top business location, and provides a critical connection between the state's real estate and economic development communities. Moving forward, we will look for ways to continue to improve and expand our real estate services. One such initiative involves collaborating with the CERC Research Department to offer more comprehensive analysis services for projects with a real estate component.
Hobbies: Biking, vegetable and herb gardening, Latin ballroom dance
Favorite author: Isabel Allende
Favorite radio show: "Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me" (NPR)
Keys to success: Keep the big picture, long-term goals always in the back of your mind; you don't need to focus on them 24/7, but make sure that the small things you do on a day-to-day basis are edging you toward these goals. And don't be distracted or flustered by smaller issues along the way..
If you were forced to choose another vocation, what would it be? Behavioral economist, or I would open an organic greenhouse.