CREW St. Louis and CREW KC recently co-hosted a virtual event organized by their diversity, equity and inclusion committees.
The featured speaker was Adrienne Bain, a commercial real estate executive with Citizens Bank and CREW Network director.
Bain offered her observations as a black female who has been in the commercial real estate industry for nearly 20 years. Bain was born and raised in a predominately white neighborhood in St. Louis where she was one of just a few black students in her class.
“I remember trick-or-treating on Halloween and knowing that there were certain houses that I had to avoid because the treats they gave the little black kids were very different from the treats that they gave the little white kids,” said Bain.
Bain recalled waking up one night to a cross burning on her family’s front yard.
“All that was years ago, but sometimes I wonder how much things have really changed,” she said.
After graduating college, Bain worked in retail sales management where she was one of just a few black store employees, then in retail advertising where she was the sole black employee in the department. In graduate school, she was one of only eight black students in her class of approximately 180, and one of just two black females.
When she subsequently began her career in commercial real estate, Bain said she realized that the commercial real estate industry really wasn’t any more diverse than her previous experiences.
CREW Network has conducted benchmark studies every five years commencing in 2005 to measure the progress of women in commercial real estate, but Bain said little data exists regarding race within the industry.
“Despite research that suggests that a diverse and inclusive workforce leads to higher productivity, higher creativity, higher profitability, employee morale, stronger brand, you name it . . . . 46% of respondents in a Deloitte 2021 commercial real estate outlook reported that they were focused on increasing the level of diversity in hiring, development and leadership. So that means that 54% were not focused on this,” said Bain.
Bain said it is difficult for her to look at the disparity between genders without also considering race.
“I would also say being both female and a person of color is a disadvantage in this industry,” said Bain.
Bain said that there exists a lack of awareness in the commercial real estate industry.
“And one of the reasons for that is because being a member of a minority population, actually you stand out. And you would think there would be more awareness because you stand out. But there’s not,” she said.
Bain said she notices this when she attends events, and she is used to being one of the few women or one of a few minorities in the room.
When Bain’s husband, who is white, attended with her the retirement party of the father of Bain’s friend, he did not know any guests other than Bain and her friend. He immediately noticed he was the only white person and was uncomfortable. Later that evening, he told Bain he now knows how she feels.
“It’s interesting when you are the minority and often times in environments where you’re one of a few or the only one, and there is an expectation of assimilation. I think it’s very different when you are a member of majority population but then find yourself as a minority in a particular event or occurrence. So yes, I hate to say it, but I actually had a little smile on my face that day when he said he understood what I felt like. I say all that to say lack of awareness is huge,” Bain said.
Bain said persons of color also have lack of access to sponsorship, mentorship and ally ship. This may explain why there are so few minorities in some of the upper echelons of the commercial real estate industry.
“People tend to sponsor and mentor and ally with folks who kind of look like them. And in fact in many structured mentorship programs, they often consider both gender and race when they’re selecting mentors and mentees. . . . And so while it may be comforting to be mentored or sponsored by someone who looks like you, if you’re both black and female, that may not always be possible. And it may not always be the way to get to that next job or next promotion,” Bain said.
