Michael Phillips.
Michael Phillips
President and principal at Jamestown
How much longer can this go on?
We are no longer in triage mode — and we haven’t been for some time. There will never be a clear line between the now and the after. We’ve normalized continuous adaptation. That’s where we are and that’s the default moving forward.
What does normal look like?
Normal is not having to sacrifice quality or experience for safety, and we largely have the tools to do that at this point. For the past 20 months, everyone has been talking about pivoting and innovating. The future normal is applying the best of those innovations — and panning everything that reduced quality or detracted from the experience.
If you could go back in time to March of 2020, what’s the first thing you would do?
Early on, we created an information dashboard and relief fund to help our tenants adapt and evolve their operations. Had I known then what I know now — that the pandemic would go on longer and cut deeper than was originally projected — I would have more aggressively stressed the need for our tenants to engage those resources and adopt digital strategies.
What do you do now that you never did before 2020?
The pandemic has been a reminder of what’s important. I have established a work/life integration that — unlike the widely-referenced ‘work/life balance’ — does not put life at odds with work.
What’s the biggest threat to the return to normal?
The biggest threat to our return to normal is the misrepresentation and politicization of facts. We can’t move forward with diametrically opposed realities.
Is now the time to buy or sell?
Both.
Lightning round
Eric Adams or Curtis Sliwa?
Eric Adams.
Last time you got on an airplane, what was your destination?
My travel footprint didn’t change during the pandemic.
What vax did you get?
Pfizer + booster.
Your go-to takeout?
Ayada Thai.
Where does your patience wear thinnest — evictions or anti-vaxxers?
Both.
