by G. Sax, Head of Communications, RESO
This week’s interview is with Marinda Neumann, the principal and managing attorney at Neumann & Associates, which provides legal services with a focus in business law, contract, licensing, copyright and trademark, as well as transactional and policy counsel for MLSs and associations. We talked about the value of RESO conferences, being your own boss, dits and dots. Enjoy!
Q1: We don’t get a lot of lawyers at RESO conferences. Why do you find it worthwhile to stay abreast of RESO happenings?
Marinda: I have an extensive background in technology. When I got into real estate and realized how technological it was, I was specifically drawn to RESO because of its focus on tech, the structure of MLS data and general tech throughout the industry.
I started attending RESO conferences in order to get to know people, find out who the key players were and build personal connections. The Transport Workgroup was one of the first group meetings I went to, and I have to admit that it was way over my head. But the Broker Advisory sessions, R&D and other front-of-house conversations were immensely enjoyable, and I still feel like I can add something useful there and to anything about data licensing.
Today, RESO conferences provide me ample opportunities for meeting clients in person, and after nine or ten years of attendance, it’s also become about visiting with industry friends, which should not be overlooked as a determining factor.
Q2: You went from working for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to Accenture to a law firm to, “nah, I’m good, I’ll do it myself from now on.” You’ve been your own boss for about 10 years now. What can you say about going from what had to be a hyper-structured environment to managing your own time. Does that discipline and structure stay with you, or do you allow your hair down, so to speak?
Marinda: In some ways, you have to be even more disciplined. You have other folks relying on you, and you are the expert. It’s a combination of both personality and being the owner of a small shop. You have to be organized and disciplined to meet client requirements and business requirements.
Real estate is a business of relationships, so you get an opportunity to socialize, and that is a nice way to break out of the disciplinarian box. Also, what I appreciate about the real estate industry is that it’s filled with highly driven people. Some may argue that the industry is slow to change, but I think the drive and determination of the people within it makes the whole of it more conducive to innovation and great leaps forward, particularly in tech.
Since I have a tech background, and since I work with MLSs and tech companies, we speak the same language, and I get to help them navigate around and avoid potholes.
I’m more on the business side and not litigation, but there is still an element of business strategy by virtue of creating contracts. Like any negotiation, what is your bottom line? Finding that middle ground as you go means less negotiation going forward, and I enjoy that kind of work.
Q3: You were a Cryptologic Technician with the U.S. Navy for more than six years, and you were once categorized as Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI), which is an extremely high-level security clearance for U.S. government employees. Was that as exciting as it sounds, or are MLS data standards way more exciting?
Marinda: I don’t know if it’s as exciting as it sounds. It did present some great opportunities, and that’s how I got involved in tech.
We were called CTs, and my rating was just one amongst them.
Our LRU [Lowest Replaceable Unit] was an IC [integrated chip] or a diode on a motherboard. It involved soldering and everything. The trick was to not burn the board. That work progressed into software, which got me more involved on the communications side of technology.
And that’s what led me to the DOD and some really great experiences in faraway places like Australia, the UK, Japan and Korea. It was exciting…but data standards are exciting, too! I like the dits and dots of it all. I’m a lawyer.
RESO: Dits and dots?
Marinda: In Morse code, it’s called dashes and dots – my friends and I always referred to it as “dits and dots.” Over the years, I’ve used it as a silly reference for highly technical people and things.
RESO: Wow. LRUs, ICs, dits and dots. This is definitely one of the more unexpected interviews in the Three Questions series!
Three Questions is meant to be a fun interview series that features real estate industry professionals, their businesses and how they interact with real estate standards.
