Sydney was barely 18 when she toured at her first potential college apartment (College Manor, a true University of Florida classic!) and said to her roommate, "I should be the lady who gives the tours!" A University of Florida Gator graduate with a BS in Business Administration (Marketing), she took her first apartment industry job doing Street Team marketing for a student housing community in Gainesville, FL with nearly 1200 residents! She worked nearly every leasing job in that community's office—Street Team, Marketing Assistant, Leasing Professional, and Leasing Manager. The best things about working on-site were throwing her residents a good party, seeing how everyone decorated their apartment, and the thrill of meeting a challenging weekly leasing goal. However, her favorite moment of any day was helping people find an apartment that met their needs and, most importantly, felt like home.
Sydney was thrilled when she was offered the opportunity to continue her career with iLS Network where she was able to put her on-site property know-how to the test helping even more renters find even more perfect apartments. In order to do this effectively, Sydney, a lifelong learner, made it her mission to enhance the skills and experience she already had by pursuing any opportunity to learn, grow, and give back. She started out by obtaining her Certified Apartment Supplier (CAS) Certification from the National Apartment Association (NAA) and became a proud graduate of the Leadership Lyceum through the Florida Apartment Association (FAA).
It was these experiences that really solidified Sydney's passion for education and ignited her talent for giving back through teaching. She was invited to continue to develop her skills as an industry educator through the NAA's Education Institute, and became a certified instructor who has been teaching the Certified Apartment Manager (CAM) course for NAA as well as developing her own curriculums for classes like "Closing Strategies" and "Leasing 101" that she teaches for our local apartment associations in Gainesville, Orlando, and Tampa. Her hands on, dynamic, and engaging teaching style, paired with nearly 10 years of experience in the field, continues to prepare the next generation of successful apartment industry leaders.
Outside of the classroom, Sydney has the pleasure of interacting with her peers and mentors as a board member of not one, but two, Florida associations. As a North Central Florida Apartment Association (NCFAA) Board Member, Sydney has been inspired by watching how apartment communities in the city of Gainesville come together to truly create the fabric of life in this growing city. Likewise, Sydney is an Apartment Association of Greater Orlando (AAGO) Foundation Board Member and Chair of the Foundation Committee. The Foundation is the charitable arm of AAGO, and Sydney's participation allows her a direct way to share the heart of Orlando's multifamily industry with the greater Orlando community. It's really a full circle experience as the fundamental motivator of Sydney's work has always been about home, community, and connection.
In her day to day, when she's not leading a team of dynamic professionals at iLS Network as the Managing Director, she loves digging into statistics in Google Analytics, bouncing around creative marketing ideas with property managers, and is always setting up her next A/B test in an attempt to uncover best practices. And just in case you thought Sydney might actually live and breathe all things "apartment", she does! But she also is an Orange Theory Fitness junkie, loves to hang out with her rescue pup named Henry, is thrilled to pull out a map and explore new and exciting places, and can make a mean plate of homemade pasta. On any given day, you can find Sydney in any one of the iLS Network markets, from Orlando to Gainesville and beyond managing connections between property managers, renters, community members, and coworkers—so, be sure to say "hello," next time she's in your market!