Muhammad Ali was well-known for his sage words and, reflecting on his passing, I thought I’d refer to the great man for some inspiration. I soon came across this very apt quote: “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life”.

This certainly resonated with my business experience here in Adelaide. Courage is exactly what we needed back in 2009 when my now business partners approached me about setting up a new real estate business. At the time, Andrew Zammit and John Savva were in secure, well-paid jobs and I was transitioning out of one.

Fear surrounding the global financial crisis had well and truly taken hold of the Adelaide real estate market and it took enormous courage for the three of us to say “let’s do this” when so many established businesses were falling over around us.

Starting with a “team” of one administration manager, we set out to provide a more customer-orientated service to the Adelaide commercial, industrial and retail real estate market. Our focus was on being something to someone and not everything to everyone. We believed we could add value to our clients given our previous roles as clients in the same market and it was obvious to us that there was a gap to be filled.

We started with sales and leasing along with development management and quickly grew to include property and asset management and project management. With growth came the opportunity to employ and the development of our team has proven to be one of the most rewarding elements of our business.

Leaders often say that people are the key to their success. In a professional services business, it is the team that creates a competitive advantage and this has driven us to invest heavily into the culture of our organisation.

Moving to new offices provided the opportunity to further grow our team culture through the design of the work space. An open plan office with an oversized kitchen and breakout area, pool table with soft tunes provide space for staff to collaborate, share ideas and relax, or play when time permits. Team mystery box challenges, pool tournaments and staff guest DJ’s keep people engaged.

Another recent initiative is Leedwellness where the company is providing staff with a fit-kit and the opportunity to enter sporting events together like Corporate Cup, Pilates, Boot Camp and other activities. Physical wellbeing aside, professional development and training is also essential.

South Australian Leaders helps companies to grow and innovate by providing access to knowledge and expertise, a strong local, national and international network, and access to capital and investment opportunities.

For more information please contact Natasha Malani 0411 450552.