Mobility Skills for a Lifetime
Terry Davis - Dec 22 2021Knowledge and experience from a career in mobility equip professionals for a meaningful and rewarding retirement
When people begin to work in the talent mobility space, they quickly acquire information about various disciplines, such as real estate, human resources, transportation, financial planning, career planning, and more.
Talent mobility requires teamwork among a wide array of individuals whose expertise must cross multiple aspects of the process; none of these professionals have the luxury of knowing only about their roles.
But what happens to these skills after a long career in talent mobility? Those who retire from mobility can take advantage of opportunities through volunteering, giving back to communities, or even launching a new career. Retired mobility professionals often find themselves employing their skills in ways they would never have dreamed.
Terry Davis: Serving the Community
Terry Davis was involved in the U.S. domestic mobility industry for 30 years before retiring in July 1995. He managed an in-house relocation program for 13 years, worked for what was at the time the largest global relocation management company for seven years in Chicago, and spent the last 15 years of his career with Ernst & Young (EY). Davis was also actively involved in Worldwide ERC® for all of his mobility career, received numerous awards and recognitions, and was inducted into the Hall of Leaders in 2002.
Davis and his wife retired the same week in 2015 with no idea how they would spend retirement other than traveling extensively, cruising, and serving in their local church. A visit to a new church one month before retirement would change all of their plans.
The Olmstead Falls, Ohio, church was just starting with a congregation of approximately 200 and a building that would seat more than 1,200 congregants. That building came with challenges, including mortgage payments, maintenance costs, and the need for extensive repair work due to a lack of general maintenance after a decade of vacancy. In addition to the immediate need to accomplish numerous repairs and remedy general deferred maintenance, the church also needed to evaluate the current service providers and negotiate new contracts for all services.
Even though the building was a major blessing, the related expenses were a significant challenge for a small congregation. For this “church plant,” money was going to be tight, and volunteers would be needed to fill positions that, in other circumstances, would be paid.
The pastor invited Davis to fill one of these volunteer roles after he learned Davis had worked for an accounting firm and had extensive real estate experience. It seemed at first to be an overwhelming responsibility. But Davis realized that all mobility professionals' skills—communication, personal interaction, conflict resolution, project management, team development, procurement, finance, annual budgeting, and outreach to clients—apply to supporting a church.
Davis’s mobility experience would prove invaluable as he coordinated tasks such as purchasing large amounts of needed equipment for the new congregation—easy compared to negotiating and managing national mobility service provider contracts.
Major construction projects included sourcing and installing three commercial multi-ton HVAC units on the church building roof. Davis’s experience using mobility competitive bids and contracts helped him accomplish this significant project with reasonable costs of $100,000.
Again, Davis also drew on his experience in planning, organization, and teaming with external suppliers, which he gained during his career in mobility, to accomplish major updating projects by coordinating with multiple volunteers and suppliers, helping the church save costs.
Five years later, the church has grown to more than 800 members, and the facility has been updated and provides a welcoming space for anyone seeking spiritual growth. According to Davis, the time has flown by. He is grateful that his experiences from two personal relocations, mobility management, and national service provider relationships have prepared him for a rich retirement experience rooted in serving the community.
Pandra Richie: Busier Than Ever
Another Hall of Leaders inductee and recently the Cris Collie Award recipient, Pandra Richie, has always had a passion for travel, which pre-dates her 35-year career in real estate and talent mobility. Although she retired as president of Corporate Real Estate for Long & Foster Companies, a prior position and her service on the Worldwide ERC® Board of Directors gave her the opportunity for extensive domestic and international travel. She knew she would do something in the travel industry, but she wasn’t sure when or what form it would take.
In 2011 she first began talking to her husband, Don, about what her life after mobility might look like and suggested they start a home-based travel business that he could establish and run until she was ready to retire. Don had been retired since moving to Northern Virginia in 2008, so he agreed, and Windows of the World Travel was born.
Travel wasn’t Don’s passion, so Richie put together a couple of group trips a year for friends, which was the extent of the business early on. In her spare time, she took online classes and was an avid reader of all things travel and knew that someday she could put her knowledge to work. A believer that things always work out for a reason, Richie and Don found their idyllic retirement location at Kings Mill Resort in Williamsburg, Virginia. She wasn’t planning to retire as early as she did, but after commuting between Northern Virginia and Williamsburg for 15 months —and living in her first apartment in 36 years—she knew it was time to make a life change.
After leaving Long & Foster at the beginning of 2018, Richie took a few months to decide whether to be a “one-man-band” or hire employees and how much time she wanted to devote to her new career. After much soul-searching, she felt she wanted to give 100%, but only to the extent that she could personally work with clients herself and manage the planning and execution.
Organization was an essential skill learned in her real estate and relocation career, and it has served her well in the travel business. Keeping up with changing flight schedules, people’s preferences, and logistics is critical to success and requires staying on top of many moving parts. She has always been a relationship-driven person, and the friendships she has formed over the years in the mobility and real estate industry have served her well. “There is nothing I love more than traveling with friends,” says Richie, and being able to put together customized trips with groups of friends has certainly fueled her passion. Many friendships have been sustained and new friendships forged by putting together like-minded groups, which has immensely enriched her life. It has also been a wonderful way to keep in touch with those who have retired from the mobility industry and help them stay connected. She also gets joy from talking with old and new friends and helping them create the perfect trip, whatever the occasion. Mobility friends have often reconnected on trips planned to enjoy traveling together and sharing a lifetime of memories.
Clearly, 2020 was a challenging year for the travel industry, and she found all the patience and skills she learned in her former career were needed to “unravel” many of the plans that friends had been looking forward to for months. Having navigated several ups and downs in the real estate cycles through the years prepared her for the downturn in the travel business. Still, as people become optimistic about the future, and there is pent-up demand for travel, she finds herself busier than ever. “Although 2020, and even the first part of 2021, shaped up to be a time of reflection and quarantine, I tried to put a positive spin on it by educating myself with online classes and certifications. I believe our world will be a better and safer place soon, and that we will all enjoy the opportunity to travel and be together again,” says Richie.
Mary Quigg: Be Well
Mary Quigg attended her first Worldwide ERC® conference in 1969 at the Drake Hotel in Chicago. During her early career, she was with Ticor—which later became Prudential Relocation—with roles including manager of HR and administration and manager of client relations, where she served corporate clients throughout the U.S., wrote the company’s operations manual, managed numerous group moves, and responded to hundreds of RFPs. It was truly an education of real-world experiences, she says.
After her son was born, she started a Realty World real estate office in Northern Illinois, which failed miserably when interest rates hit 18%. Undeterred, she relocated to St. Louis as a commercial property manager and, in 1985, founded Vandover, which provided career transition services and served families in transition. In the 1980s, this industry niche didn’t yet exist, but Mary knew the need from years of firsthand experience. By the time she sold her business, she had served more than 125 of the Global 500, plus numerous government agencies and smaller companies. Yes, spouses do need career transition assistance, she says, and yes, families need help navigating relocation decisions and the myriad of details associated with settling in to new communities.
In 2013, after selling her company, she attended her last Worldwide ERC® Conference, where she handed the Vandover baton to IMPACT Group. So, what do you do with this skill set at early-retirement age? For 20 years, Mary had also been a member of the Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO). In this worldwide group, women presidents, CEOs, and managing directors help each other solve business and personal challenges. After selling Vandover, she was due to retire out of this group. But WPO asked her to stay on and serve as chapter chair and facilitator, and it was easy to say yes. During her mobility career, she had served as president of St. Louis ERC, Midwest ERC, Worldwide ERC® Advisory Council, and other committees. These experiences proved invaluable in this new role.
Today she continues to serve this group as it navigates ever-changing business conditions, especially those impacting women in the workforce. The experience of creating emergency plans after 9/11 has served her well too. Her latest initiative is WPO Next, where she plans to serve other WPO members as they transition into their next adventure after they sell their business or retire. “Whether facing COVID-19, changing economic conditions, or new government regulations, problem-solving is still problem solving,” she says. “Together, we solve problems.”
On a personal note, Mary also recognized that it was time for a serious health and wellness journey in her retired life, and she lost 70 pounds four years ago. She connected with Isagenix, a health and wellness company during that journey. Attending conferences, hosting events, and sharing her journey with others became another adventure when Mary formed a group called IsaBuddies, achieving director status with Isagenix. Today, she is healthier than she can recall and enjoys mentoring others.
Whether managing geographic transitions, career transitions, business transitions, or wellness transitions, Mary’s many experiences in mobility have led her to where she is today. And as 2020 made clear, she says, we live in uncertain times, so each day is a gift, and we do have hope and a future. “Love life, live life, and serve one another well,” she adds.
Well-Prepared for Retirement
Most people have dreamed of retirement more often than they would like to admit. The pandemic, daily stress, mergers, and even the loss of a job have made everyone long for the day when they can lay back, do nothing, and retire. The dream retirement involves playing golf, tennis, or pickleball for some. But peruse the bookstore shelves related to retirement, and you’ll find many volumes about how to have a vibrant and fulfilling retirement. Most encourage retirees to find ways to pursue their passions and remain active in fulfilling endeavors. With their diverse skills, variety of experiences, ability to operate in teams and to help people through a variety of changes, mobility professionals are exceptionally well prepared to accomplish just that—and maybe make society a little better.