The Kenwood Team
When you join Kenwood Management, you're joining more than a team, you're becoming apart of the Kenwood family. As you meet our team, you may learn a fun fact or two about who we are outside of the office and one thing we all share a love of here at Kenwood, ice cream. We pride ourselves on the wonderful working environment we create and the relationships we have with one another here at Kenwood Management.
Hank
One of the founders of Kenwood Management, Hank has been with Kenwood since 1996. While Hank has been working in this industry for over 50 years, Hank still loves discovering something new. “Each week, I come across a new challenge I’ve never seen.” When the company started, Hank and Phil shared the engineer’s penthouse (a very small room) and now Kenwood is on the 7th floor of their building in Bethesda, Md. When asked what kept Hank with Kenwood for all of these years, he said, “We built it. There was never a desire to go elsewhere. We have a lot of pride in our accomplishments. This is a company that values the investors, employees, and tenants.” Outside of working in real estate, Hank enjoys spending time at his home in Santa Barbara, Calif. Hank is also an active golfer, skier, runner, and bridge player. He started his bridge career in college and often spent more time playing bridge than studying. He has returned to the bridge table in recent years and is even better now that his studies aren’t a distraction.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Chocolate with Nuts
Phil
One of the founders of Kenwood Management, he held key positions in large Real Estate Companies, but his working relationship with Hank convinced him to take the leap in 1996. The dream was born when they recognized that they could create a company that could outperform others in a niche market. He knew if they committed themselves, they would achieve success. The company was built from devotion, much more than just a necessity for a job. When asked what made him pursue real estate, Phil said, “real estate gives you the opportunity to be a painter without a canvas.” Phil credits his success to attention to detail. “A person’s impression (of a property) can be made or lost by some of the most minuscule details”. Phil is a thrill seeker outside the office, whether he’s jumping out of planes or winning racing in one of his race cars around the track. He also enjoys public speaking and uses his talent to motivate others. “I enjoy making a difference every day. I want to make people feel comfortable with their expectations and image.” Phil summarized his time with Kenwood saying, “I have enjoyed the 23 years of growth. It started as a small daisy and now we’ve covered an entire meadow.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Chocolate Mint
Bill
Bill has been a principal of Kenwood Management Company since joining the team in May 2002. When asked how he started at Kenwood, Bill said: “When I first met with Hank and Phil, it was a really small team, but I saw the vision of what it could be.” Bill felt a connection to Phil and Hank, which he believed could allow them to do something special. Bill said, “(that vision) is unfolding now, the same one I had 17 years ago.” Bill enjoys his profession because every day is different, he’s not tied to a desk, but rather gets to see properties and, most importantly, meet with tenants and contractors. As Bill put it, “the things I enjoy the most are helping our tenants succeed in their business goals and making them feel welcome in our properties. Outside of work, Bill likes to travel and to play squash. When asked his favorite spots to travel, he said that St. John (USVI) and Sydney, Australia, are at the very top of his list.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Coffee Heath Bar Crunch®
Laura
Laura works as an Asset Manager for Kenwood Management and enjoys the team she gets to work with every day — “all of our relationships here are collaborative and positive.” Laura said that she is happy to be a part of this team because it’s “one of the top (teams) I’ve worked with in my career.” When asked how she would describe her career, she said “sometimes it just all comes together like a jigsaw puzzle. It’s always so much fun to put the pieces together – whether you’re figuring out how to reposition an asset, tackling challenging market conditions or working through a transaction.” While this is a bit different from her original dream of being an FBI agent, she is proud to be a part of the talented team of people that Kenwood has put together. When she’s not working, Laura enjoys reading and Pilates. Born in the south, Laura’s favorite vacation spot is the bright lights of New York City.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Chocolate Peanut Butter
Holly
Holly is a member of the management team at Kenwood. When asked what made her choose Kenwood, Holly said, “I immediately felt a sense of care for the tenants, investors, and employees.” She feels that the team at Kenwood wants everyone to succeed and grow. Outside of work, Holly is an avid biker, and she recently completed a 150-mile bike ride from Hanover to Bethesda. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is important to Holly as she previously worked as a holistic health coach. In her role as a health coach, Holly said that she could see factors that contributed to people being successful versus not thriving at their highest level. She continues this in her position at Kenwood as she understands the impact that spaces have on tenants and the value of a positive office atmosphere.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Rocky Road
J'nai
J'nai works as the controller and head of the accounting department for Kenwood Management. Since first joining the Kenwood Management team, J’nai has felt that it was fate that brought them together. Originally starting in the banking industry, J’nai became experienced in accounting and moved into a role as an accounting clerk. During her afternoon commutes, she would drive past a large commercial building with “Kenwood” written down the side, and wondered who worked there. After joining the Kenwood team, J’nai loved the family atmosphere and knew this was the place she wanted to be. When she is not working at Kenwood, J’nai enjoys spending time with her three children. She now gets to live out her childhood dream of being a pediatric surgeon by being her family’s go-to doctor whenever they aren’t feeling well.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Gold Medal Ribbon® (Baskin-Robbins)
Kelvin
Kelvin is one of the longest-tenured Kenwood employees, as he started in 1998, the founding year of Kenwood Management. Kelvin has a special connection to Kenwood since, as he puts it, “we grew together.” When asked what he enjoys most about working at Kenwood, Kelvin said that he gets to meet a lot of tenants and visit a multitude of properties. He feels that every day is different, and his job never gets stale. In fact, this job was Kelvin’s dream since he was a child. He knew that he always wanted to be an engineer and work with his hands. Originally from North Carolina, Kelvin loves cooking, especially barbequing.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Carrot Cake
Vito
Vito is an engineer with Kenwood Management and has the unique ability to look at problems and find a solution quickly. He enjoys the work and likes when things run streamlined and efficient. When asked how he started in this career, Vito said, “I enjoy fixing and repairing things. It’s always been an interest.” Starting off in the contact lens manufacturing industry, Vito is used to solving problems and seeing the impact it has on people. Vito points out that throughout his career, things have evolved. “I’ve grown, I’m not at the top point, but I’m working my way up.” When he isn’t solving problems, Vito enjoys volunteering with the local Boy Scouts. He also hopes to travel to Saint John Island sometime in the near future.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Coffee
Gervy
As one of the engineers at Kenwood Management, Gervy has enjoyed the diverse staff that he gets to work with every day. “When I got here, I could tell that the company embraces diversity.” Throughout his career, Gervy has been a student of the trade and been driven for constant improvement. Outside of Kenwood, Gervy enjoys golfing with Aberdeen Proving Ground being his course of choice. Originally from Jamaica, Gervy still enjoys visiting the island for the tropical fruits, “they’re fresh and flavorful.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Rum Raisin
Ryan
Ryan is an engineer at Kenwood Management and has been working in the trade since he was seven years old. He started off working on old school locomotive engines with his father, who also worked in the trade. As Ryan put it, “I’ve come a long way.” His dream was always to be an engineer. When asked what made him choose Kenwood, Ryan said that it offered new experiences. In his previous jobs, Ryan either had abundant travel or no travel, and Kenwood offered him the happy medium he was seeking. His favorite part of the job is being able to take something mechanical that’s broken, take it apart, then reassemble it good as new. Outside of work, Ryan takes his work home by managing a few residential properties of his own. When he isn’t working on properties, he enjoys spending time with his children.
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Strawberry