Fund analyst Alison Heine works in our Denver office. Alison worked as an administrative assistant and then property manager before leaving the company to pursue a graduate degree. Now, she is back in a new role. Here is her story.
PLD Comms: Let’s start with your background—education, credentials, accreditations, special skill sets.
Alison: I went to Tulane University, where I graduated magna cum laude with departmental honors in Business and received a Bachelor of Science in Management with majors in Marketing and Management. More recently, I earned an MBA from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado. My MBA degree has a focus on finance and real estate. Also, I’m a licensed real estate broker in both Illinois and Colorado.
PLD Comms: You are a great example of how people can shape and grow their careers at Prologis. Tell us more.
Alison: I started at Prologis in 2013 as an administrative assistant in the Acquisitions & Dispositions and Global Customer Solutions teams. The following year, I worked with my managers to create a training plan where I would shadow the various operational departments in the Chicago office. I shadowed Property Management and Leasing, and ultimately felt that my background in management, sales and customer service would be a better fit for property management. Luckily, they had an assistant property manager position open. By January 2015, I was managing 33 properties comprising 1.3 million square feet leased to 60 customers.
After about a year in this role, I decided to pursue my MBA. This involved a pivot toward real estate finance and corporate investment strategies. My professors loved to talk about Prologis—which made me almost homesick for my former employer! My degree complete, I checked back in at Prologis, where a fund analyst position was open. I applied and gratefully got the opportunity to return.
PLD Comms: Why Prologis?
Alison: Firstly, the people. It is a pleasure to come to work every day knowing that you are surrounded by smart, engaging and passionate individuals. And, I have always felt connected to my colleagues, who have been willing to go above and beyond to help me on my career path. That is what makes Prologis so special—you not only have the necessary tools to grow in your career, but if you make the effort to establish relationships and ask questions, you will have a strong support system.
The company’s commitment to ESG is another draw. I am so impressed with the Community Workforce Initiative, especially having been a property manager. Prologis is not just a landlord; it uses its business model to merge profit generation, customer service and ESG—increasingly important to investors, customers and employees.
PLD Comms: How does your career trajectory at Prologis reflect the company’s commitment to embracing change?
Alison: I really do think my story exemplifies Prologis’ focus on embracing change. I had the freedom to ask about moving into a new department and career within the company. Employees here have the encouragement and autonomy to make decisions and speak up—key components of embracing change.
PLD Comms: What makes your work day especially exciting?
Alison: Working with colleagues in every time zone. I wake up to emails from China, Skype with colleagues in Europe and of course work side by side with colleagues here in the U.S. I enjoy seeing the different dynamics of teams and offices; we can learn from each other!
PLD Comms: As a former property manager, you must have some great stories about Prologis’ commitment to exemplary customer service. Do any stand out?
Alison: One frigid Chicago weekend, I got a call about a fire at one of the properties I managed. I raced to the scene, but thankfully, because Prologis has internal maintenance techs who live close to our buildings, my maintenance tech was already onsite working with the fire department and ensuring our customer that all would be OK. Within minutes, we were calling our fire alarm vendor, our fire sprinkler vendor, our dock door vendor, our roofing/skylight vendor and our disaster restoration vendor. Because Prologis has developed such close and trusted relationships, I was able to get every single vendor I needed onsite right away—on a Sunday morning, no less! We had the building secured by noon, with restoration scheduled to start the next morning, and our customer was back up and running within a few days.
