Pay It Forward: 'We Have More Nerve Endings In Our Stomach Than Our Brain. Always Listen To Your Gut.'
Creating relevancy within a large market within the largest asset class in the world was something I never planned on doing.
John Gilbert, Prescriptive Data, New York
Job title: Executive Chairman.
Company website: www.prescriptivedata.io
Areas of expertise or focus: PropTech, NYC real estate landscape, ESG, NY sustainability, Entrepreneurship.
What has been your biggest challenge in your particular role/? How have you overcome those obstacles? Before Prescriptive Data, my background encompassed government work and, most recently, being the Chief Operating Officer for Rudin Management for 30 years. Leaping into the startup world was a big obstacle and I was constantly answering questions from family and peers like “Why would you jump into startups?”. I helped create a product from scratch, which was another obstacle, but creating relevancy within a large market within the largest asset class in the world was something I never planned on doing, let alone bringing to fruition.
Constant curiosity, picking up every rock and seeing what’s underneath, and the ongoing reminder of why we’re doing what we’re doing have helped me overcome those obstacles. At Prescriptive Data, we are reducing the world’s carbon footprint by using data while enhancing the tenant and occupant experience.
What about your current role/position at the company are you most happy with? Prescriptive Data’s mission and our team. Our mission is saving the planet – if you believe that decreasing carbon in the environment is essential, Prescriptive Data is at the forefront of doing that within the largest asset class in the world. I love meeting and working with people that I have no idea what they’re doing – like coding. I’m constantly learning from my team. Together, we’re identifying a problem that presents a solution and creating a narrative that convinces people our mission is the right thing to do.
What is the best piece of advice you have received that has helped you succeed in your industry? Also, do you have any advice specifically for the next generation? The best pieces of advice I’ve received happened to come from the same family, the Rudins. Jack Rudin instilled in me that we have more nerve endings in our stomach than our brain; therefore, always listen to your gut and follow your instincts. Follow those non-quantitative tools that we’ve been given and listen very carefully.
The second piece of advice comes from Lou Rudin – when it’s good, it’s never as good as you think, and when it’s bad, it’s never as bad as you think. Always ride that middle lane and realize you’re never in despair and be prepared for dips even when you think everything is good.
Would you advise a younger person to begin a career in CRE? If yes, what advice would you give? I would absolutely advise young people to get into commercial real estate – it combines everything. For those looking to get a foothold in the industry, ask yourself these questions: What do you like to do? What’s your passion? CRE has opportunities for everyone, depending on their interests. You can be on the construction side if you like steel, glass, and cement. You can be on the operations side if you like, figuring out how a machine works and how fans, pumps, and motors interact with running buildings. If you’re a deal junkie, you can go into brokerage or leasing.
In my career, there wasn’t anyone telling me what I should be doing, I’ve been blessed with opportunities put in front of me, and I had the guts to say yes. When I started, I received advice: if you don’t know the answer, admit it. Don’t fake your way out of situations because, at the end of the day, all you have is your word and reputation which takes a lifetime to create but a millisecond to destroy. While working for former Mayor Koch, I would take hours to prepare for a meeting and still get asked questions I didn’t know how to answer. He taught me how to think.
I advise younger people looking to get started to always to be curious and never stop learning. Lifelong learning keeps us young, vibrant, and caring about what we should do in the world to make it a better place.
Please share with us an initiative that you are working on that you are most proud of. Nantum OS, Prescriptive Data’s flagship product, is the initiative I’m most proud of. Gene Boniberger, SVP of Operations at Rudin and co-inventor of Nantum OS, and I started looking at data from our buildings at Rudin back in 2003 – 2006 and seeing point solutions that we liked from different utilities. I’m a big believer in anticipating what happens after what happens next. With this in mind, Gene and I realized we were gettingall of these different point solutions from various utilities on separate platforms, which were inefficient and disorganized.
In August 2008, Rudin was asked to be part of ConEd’s market demonstration project. ConEd was presenting data from the grid after what happened during the August 2003 power outage that left more than 50 million people without power. They posed an interesting question “We at ConEd got a 45-second warning that something bad was going to happen on that fateful day in August 2023. We want to give you, Rudin, and your competitors, 30 seconds of that early warning – do you want it?” Immediately, we said yes, and we would program our elevators to ensure people were safe, lights would still go out, but people wouldn’t be stuck. We walked out of that meeting and discussed what we would do with those 30 seconds. And then, it clicked after looking at my iPhone.This small device has an operating system – why don’t buildings have operating systems? Thus, Nantum OS was born. We’ve never been more convinced than today that that was the right decision. The product has only evolved and grown since and is the centerpiece of some of the world’s most important initiatives: ESG strategies.
In your opinion, what takeaways did we learn from the COVID crisis? It goes back to Lou Rudin’s advice: “When it’s bad, it’s never as bad as you think, and when it’s good, it’s never as good as you think.” In this case, it wasn’t as bad because we did so much work in preparation and created reroutes, all sorts of communication to practice social distancing – and then nobody showed up. So, the big lesson is there is no such thing as too much planning; communication is so important, and ultimately, being transparent to your customers and letting them know exactly what you’re doing and preparing in their spaces for when they come back after a pandemic.
What three words, phrases, statements, or mantras would you use to describe your work mindset? Creative impatience – things aren’t ever fast enough, but if you can be creative through the process and take that burn and unwillingness to settle and turn it into creativity – that’s me for better or for worse. I would also add, the truth will set you free and trust your gut.
