Monika Rais of Platinum Commercial: 5 Questions

At the beginning of the year, Platinum Commercial, the commercial real estate division of Platinum Properties, hired Monika Rais as its head of operations. Not only does Rais bring nearly 20 years of real estate industry experience to her new role, but she is also the firm’s first female executive. 

At the start of her career in real estate, Rais was on the brokerage side of the equation, making sales. But after a while she became drawn to the behind-the-scenes aspect of the industry and pivoted to operations, a career that would allow her to give brokers and their firms the support they need to scale, grow and be successful. 

Commercial Observer caught up with the Hungary-born Rais, 55, in February for a discussion about her career, her plans for the future, and why her hiring is a meaningful milestone for Platinum. 

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Commercial Observer: You started your real estate career in 2009 as a salesperson. How did you end up on the operation side of the industry?

Monika Rais: Operations can be the ugly stepchild of the real estate industry. Usually, marketing is the star all the time, so I am absolutely thrilled to talk about it. I have spent almost 17 years in brokerage businesses. I started as an agent, so I have that firsthand, front-line knowledge. I know how the deals go through, I know the stages, I know what agents need to stay consistent. Over time, I became interested in what was happening behind the scenes. So I spent the last 11 years in operations.

I specifically wanted to know why some really successful teams were succeeding and scaling naturally, and why some of them, even though they had all the talented people, just failed or struggled. So along the way, I realized that I’m a builder. 

I really love building structures that allow brokerages to perform their best on a daily basis. So that’s how I felt. It was a very natural transition for me. I think in hindsight, for me to come from the front line to the back end, it was just all curiosity.

What drew you to your role at Platinum?

The first thing that I noticed when I was interviewing with them, was there is this really awesome balance between ambition and discipline. It was really wonderful to see for me as an operations person, because the vision was there, and they also knew that they needed to have somebody to help them to grow and to have that infrastructure down. 

Right now, Platinum Commercial is in an interesting stage. It’s a 21-year-old company. It’s not a new company. Platinum Residential and Platinum Properties actually had commercial deals from the start. So we are not a new company. And it is very important to to note that, because this also gives us a little challenge and because we are kind of operating as a startup, but we are also honoring that 20-year-old tradition.

So there is a very clear vision of where Platinum Commercial is headed, but there’s also a very strong awareness that growth has to be supported by the right infrastructure. So that’s where I come in.

The firm is thoughtfully building this brand. There’s long-term credibility, there’s relationships, reputations, executions, rather than just growing for growth’s sake. So from the operational point of view, that’s for someone like me. That’s a really ideal moment to just step in and shape the next phase. 

What are your goals in this role?

My primary goal, because we are now a separate brokerage, is to create an environment where everyone — the brokers — have everything they need: clarity, reliable information and support. Those are the three most important pillars for every real estate agent. So all that has to be executed at the highest level.

My goal is also to support the natural growth of the platform. That means strategically to align everybody — align agents, align teams, align support functions — around very clear expectations and accountability. And then it involves clarifying all those core processes that were already built. Make them better, fine-tune them for all of the growth that is upcoming, and just improve the visibility of performance and workflow.

What is Platinum Commercial’s main focus?

Right now there are two areas. We are absolutely planning this year to grow our sales division — specifically focusing on multifamily and working with a lot of investors — and we are also growing our landlord representations. We are representing 30 Wall Street and 295 Madison Avenue, and we would like to expand on that. We are a one-stop shop. We are a boutique firm specialized on really hands-on execution.

What are your feelings regarding being the first female executive higher at Platinum?

I don’t mind. To be honest, I think that is why they chose me. It is definitely a meaningful milestone, and I acknowledge that. I’m glad people notice, but my focus right now is very practical. The company is scaling fast, and they need somebody who’s laser-focused on execution, and that’s me. But look, if my hiring signals an evolution in the leadership across the commercial real estate industry, then I find it very positive.

Amanda Schiavo can be reached at aschiavo@commercialobserver.com.