People Who Perform - The Real Estate Careers Podcast
The real estate industry plays a major role in Canada's economy and offers some of the most interesting and rewarding careers paths available. Each episode, we bring you conversations from business leaders and up and coming stars in the real estate industry in Canada. Our guests share their unique career journeys, passions and advice on what it takes to be successful in this industry. If you’re passionate about real estate and want to learn more about what it takes to be successful, then this podcast is for you!
People Who Perform - The Real Estate Careers Podcast
Eric Sherman: Leading Operations at Scale
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Eric has spent over a decade at First Capital, building his career across leasing, portfolio management, and now national operations. In his current role, Head of National Operations, he oversees property management and operational delivery across one of Canada’s largest retail real estate platforms, 178 properties, more than 21 million square feet, and a team of over 130 people across 17 offices nationwide. With deep experience across multiple facets of the business, Eric brings a practical, inside-out perspective on what it takes to operate at scale.
In this conversation, we explore what it really means to lead a large, complex real estate platform and how to build the systems, culture, and teams required to deliver consistent performance across the country.
Key topics include:
Leading at scale – How leadership changes when you're responsible for a national platform, and the signals that indicate operations are truly working.
Building culture across regions – Strategies for maintaining alignment and consistency across teams spread coast to coast, and how values translate into day-to-day execution.
Systems vs. people – The balance between processes, reporting frameworks, and the human element and where systems can both enable and hinder performance.
Operational excellence in retail real estate – How the role of property management is evolving and what defines excellence in an increasingly complex, mixed-use environment.
Cross-functional alignment – Lessons on bringing together teams across leasing, development, marketing, and more to move in the same direction.
Leading change – What it takes to successfully implement operational, technological, and cultural change at scale and common pitfalls to avoid.
Eric’s career journey – The pivotal moments that shaped his path from leasing to national leadership, and the biggest shifts that come with senior responsibility.
Developing leaders – How to build strong teams, identify emerging talent, and develop the next generation of leaders.
The evolution of retail real estate – How the industry has transformed over the past decade and the trends shaping its future.
Advice for future leaders – What early-career professionals should focus on, and how to build a foundation for long-term success.
Tune in to hear Eric’s perspective on leading at scale, building high-performing teams, and what it takes to deliver operational excellence in one of Canada’s most dynamic real estate sectors.