Michelle Mills Clement, Chief Executive Officer
Sarah Ware, President
Drussy Hernandez, President-Elect
Erika Villegas, Treasurer
Antje Gehrken, Immediate Past President
For the second year in a row, an all-women team leads the Chicago Association of Realtors. This team helped launch the organization’s strategic plan for the next three years. Developed by volunteer leaders and staff and approved by the board of directors, the plan has three goals: position Realtors as trusted advisors, proactively advocate for important issues and enhance members’ business success through tools and resources.
Hosting over 80 events this year on topics such as investing, DEI and business planning, the association provides the connections and education necessary for its members’ business success. Soon, new skill- building courses focusing on digital marketing, lead generation and data analysis will be introduced.
Providing access to new tools is part of this leadership team’s priorities. That includes launching a partnership with CREXi to provide a members-only view of the platform featuring commercial properties, as well as offering a discount on the deal-tracking and financial-management tool Symba to help streamline workflows.
As advocates for Realtors and their clients, the association has been on top of changes in Chicago’s political landscape this election year. Leading up to the election, the association held a mayoral candidate forum, ensuring that members heard from each candidate on real estate issues, including zoning reform, property taxes and access to housing. They continued building and strengthening relationships with Chicago’s elected officials, gearing up to work with the new mayor’s administration and city council.
To ensure that all of Chicago’s neighborhoods are vibrant places to live, work and play, the association hosted a variety of philanthropic volunteer initiatives—such as park clean-ups, a partnership with Humble Design to provide furniture for those in need and community grants for minority-owned businesses.
This leadership team’s eyes are on the future and focused on intentional, community-invested growth. With each initiative, they continue to advocate for the industry and drive Realtors’ business success and the economic development of Chicago’s communities.
