The inspiring career of Emily Sim

The subject is one of the most prolific women in Australian real estate, Emily Sim, CEO of Property Management for the country’s largest real estate group.

Interviewed by head of organisational development at the Ray White group Natalie Hortz, Emily is celebrating her 30th year in the real estate industry.

“It felt fitting that we interview someone who has been in almost every role possible within our industry! 40 minutes is simply not enough time to cover a career like Emily’s,” Natalie said.

Providing a snapshot of her lengthy career; Emily started as a humble property management assistant, moved her way into leadership roles, became an Elite-level selling principal of a top franchise, and became CEO of Ray White’s property management division.

“I applied for a property management assistant job in the newspaper in the last term of year 12 in Melbourne. I was really lucky and had great leadership and structure; and I worked really, really hard. I was taught hard work from a young age; but it was like nothing I had experienced at school. From age 18 to 28 I worked six days a week,” Emily said.

“I had signed up close to 100 new properties to our rent roll within one year; I did the figures and realised I needed a pay rise! I came out the other end of the conversation realising I deserved to be valued higher. I am always genuinely invested in my work, and my work needs to also genuinely be invested in me.”

The mecca of real estate in Sydney eventually drew Emily in, and she relocated her life.

“It took me a long time to feel settled in Sydney. I ended up at McGrath where I learnt a lot about customer experience. I was always learning and open to learning, even after 10 years in the industry. It was my first role in leadership and I made mistakes, but learnt from them.”

17 years ago now, Emily met Ben White who was the CEO of property management at Ray White. This marked her foray into the Ray White group.

“Ben was the first one to start real conversations about property management in the company. We were really working on one of the first technology offerings for property management and my job was building that business,” she said.

Whilst she was at Ray White corporate, the opportunity to buy Ray White Balmain came up. And in true Emily style, she really did take up every opportunity that was afforded to her.

“I realised how desperately I wanted my own business. I was frightened and it took me a really long time to make the decision. Opening the business was the greatest leap I ever made in my career,” she said.

“I had a very supportive business partner, and my dad was also my greatest mentor. He always knew I could open my own business, it just took me a bit longer to have that self belief.”

To become a successful agent, Emily did literally everything that her training and mentors taught her to do.

“It made me realise that property managers are actually highly skilled selling agents too; the skills are so transferable,” she said.