DM: Yeah, so it was sort of a circuitous route. If you had asked me, or if somebody had asked me when I was coming out of school, or even my first few years in the workforce, if I’d be doing what I’m doing and there’s not a chance I would’ve guessed this. So it sort of happened, you know, by accident. I got into the technology space back in the 90s, sort of the earliest days of the internet. And I was on the consulting side, right? So professional services, more of guidance to customers, Fortune 500 type clients. And from there, you know, one of the lessons I learned was sort of the importance of focusing on strategy, right? Business strategy and outcome before you made any determinations on technology selection. I think that sort of served me well in the current role. But from there, I got out of the consulting side and I got into a software product, which was interesting just to kind of round out my understanding of the space. It was a video analytics firm, so kind of early on with computer vision. And the technology was primarily used for security applications. So that’s kind of how I got into the access control business where I’m at today and also video. And from there, I left that company and joined a security company that did both services and tech. So it was sort of a combination of my past two stops. And then during that time, I was running corporate strategy and there was this pesky startup that was really sort of creating a lot of buzz in the industry. And I had like the good fortune of just inadvertently being introduced to one of the founders. And as I got to speak with them more and more, I realized that they were for real. And so I joined Open Path, a little over three 1/2 years ago, and it’s been some of the best, most exciting years of my professional journey. And right before the headwinds of the economic crisis that we’re kind of flirting with today, Motorola Solutions acquired Open Path. So in July of 2021. And the great thing there was not only is it a fantastic, you know, kind of Fortune 500 in and of itself, but it’s accelerated our growth and our objective of being the number one security provider in the world. And with a special emphasis for me on serving the commercial real estate and multifamily markets.

DA: Amazing. So just begs the question, if you haven’t gotten into the software side, the technology side, and you didn’t think that’s where you’d end up, did you have an idea of where perhaps you would’ve headed?

DM: You know, it’s going to be so boring. So when I got out of school, my first job was actually with Chevron Chemical.

DA: Okay.

DM: So I spent some years there in the petro chemical business on the selling raw materials into the packaging industry. So lo and behold, I might have been in the packaging industry still, if it weren’t for tech.

DA: Well, I’m glad it worked out this way, and I’m glad as a another pesky little founder of a startup, I get an opportunity to chat with you today. So tell me, why do you think you were so uniquely suited in this opportunity? So, again, maybe it wasn’t exactly what you thought, you know, coming out of school, what made you successful? What has helped you to be successful?

DM: Yeah. I’d say the people around me have been really the sort of the key factor in my success. I learned kind of early on whether I was, you know, just an employee in a company or if I was running the company. Surround yourself with a diverse set of people that are smarter than you, goes a long way, right? You start to get a better understanding of different perspectives. You start to become more curious, I think, and that just in turn just makes you more effective at what you do. So I’d say that was one key factor. Starting in the technology space, on the consulting side, you learn to ask a lot of questions and not be embarrassed by asking those questions. So that’s helped me round out to become what I’d call like a technical business person. I’m still a business person, I’m not a developer, but I understand the technology and how things fit together. And I think the last thing was really the advice that I learned from a mentor kind of early on in my professional journey, which was, you know, every day there’s three things you need to accomplish. Number one, learn something new every day. Number two, teach someone something new. And number three is have fun. And if you do those three things every day, you’re going to find that you just generate this pattern and this this journey of success. And so that’s what I really attribute it to.

DA: Right. Yeah, if you can get into that rhythm. Rinse and repeat, right, just keep doing it.

DM: Yeah, absolutely.

DA: I like that. We often get bogged down in the day to day, and I think taking time to think about those three factors, probably is a very healthy thing to do.

DM: Yeah, absolutely. It’s so simple.

DA: Right.

DM: So many people just don’t embrace it. And honestly, if maybe if my mentor hadn’t explicitly called it out, you know, and sort of made you recite that on a daily basis, you know, maybe I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing or at the level that I’m doing it.

DA: Right. Well, thanks for sharing that learning. I always like to look for those tidbits that we could share with our listeners that can help impact them as well. So yeah, that’s awesome. Listen, if you’re knee deep in the commercial real estate space as are we, I think we can agree that we’re still going through some pretty turbulent times. They’re not quite over. Certainly creating new opportunities, you know, we’ve got commercial real estate, the largest asset class in the world continuing to rebound. We’ve just been through a period of historically low levels of occupancy. The industry is continuing to evolve to meet the emerging needs of this industry, of the people that are living and working in buildings. And we have technology, you know, continuing to disrupt the industry. And I think that’s a good thing. And I think it’s, you know, really providing some incredible opportunity. You know, our team certainly believes that the workplace in particular is now part of a much larger workspace ecosystem, and that’s creating opportunity. And, you know, we can now work from just about anywhere. The physical workplace, a building. We can work from our dining room at home, a coworking space, a local cafe, your vacation destination. So we think that has tremendous ramifications for the industry. And given your space and the lens that you bring to the industry, would love to know what you’re seeing. What now do you think industry is doing to respond to the needs of commercial real estate, on occupants? You know, what’s your perspective?

DM: Yeah. I mean, it’s fascinating. And whether time has helped me, you know, put me in a better position to understand what’s going on, because this is not the first down cycle I’ve been through. And then usually, everything recovers, right? It just takes a little time and it takes- It’s an opportunity for innovation. So a couple things that, you know, I’m seeing right now is number one, the way landlords think about tenants, right? It’s no longer just, hey, I signed the lease. It’s five-year, it’s seven-year, it’s 10-year. I know the office administrator or the executive on the finance team that signed the lease, or maybe it’s the CEO for a smaller company that’s lease space and that’s the extent of my interaction. Right, I hear from them when it’s too warm in the office or something’s broken or something needs to get painted. Today, it’s all about establishing relationships and connections all throughout the entire workforce of those companies that are leasing space for you. So to me it’s sort of the democratization of space, number one. Number two, there’s much more thoughtfulness around customer, right, as compared to a tenant. And that’s to me is adopting hospitality concepts, right, and bringing those to where we go to work. And it’s interesting. Now for me, being on the Motorola Solution side with video and access control, it’s also about how do you enable technology to be flexible to meet these changing and emerging needs, right, and business concepts? So for us it’s about helping landlords, helping operators navigate and deliver the ability to offer for flexible space, right? And that can be flexible space that’s within a single structure, or it could be across my network of properties, right? So that’s what we’re kind of seeing is that, you know, how do you adapt? I don’t think people will be going back to the office five days a week.

DA: Right.

DM: I think that that horse has left the barn. But what I do think is people are recognizing the value of going to workspace and whether it’s my HQ hub that I work out of, or maybe it’s a satellite location that’s just a little more convenient for me to go to when I need, like, some personal time. But to me, it outweighs sort of working from home all the time, which is something that I’ve been sort of relegated to the last few years.

DA: Right. No, totally agree. I want to just echo your earlier comment about, you know, the customer and sort of, you know, how it used to be. I.e., you know, every five years or 10 years when it was time for lease renewal, you know, you were knee be knee deep in conversation with your customer. And a nod to, and just recently we had two important guests on our program, John Love, CEO of KingSett, a return guest, and Brian Rosen from Colliers Canada. And, you know, for the first time, both acknowledged that they now view CEOs, very large real estate operators and owners, you know, recognize their customers, the person that walks into their building each and every day.

DM: Yep.

DA: That is a transformation and I think that’s very exciting for our industry.

DM: Yeah, no, I’d agree with you. And, you know, some of the other stuff that we’re able to do now today is provide visibility into occupancy, right?

DA: Right.

DM: When are people arriving? When are they not, right? Where are they going? How are they using, you know, the entire building options that are available to them, which tenants are most active returning, ’cause that maybe gives you an indication of health of that business for a renewal and which tenants aren’t showing up, right, which might flag that, hey, they’re a potential risk when that lease comes up for renewal or expiration.

DA: Right. You know, I think given the work that you do and your relationship with potentially both landlord and the occupier, we certainly believe there’s an opportunity for landlords, building owners and operators to be working more closely with the customer, most closely with those that occupy space in terms of attracting and retaining the best talent and helping to create experiences, not only leading it up to the individual occupier, but the building itself as well and helping to build, great companies, great buildings, great communities. What are you seeing? How often are you working with the building operator versus the occupier or both in delivering building access?

DM: Yeah, so you’re right, from a company perspective, we’re working both sides, right? So the landlord, the operator as well as the occupants, the tenant companies that are leasing space. My focus is primarily on the building owner, the landlord.

DA: Okay.

DM: Owner, operator or developer. And so we spend, you know, a lot of time trying to be thoughtful and trying to be contributing what we learn on the tenant side and how that might shape or inform an appropriate position for a landlord themselves. To me, I think about the office as really sort of an intersection of digital interaction, which is obviously what we’re doing right now, plus that face-to-face or physical interaction, right? So it plays a really important factor. And I think about how that affects company culture, right, in terms of the bonds that you develop and the embracing or the understanding of a vision, right, and how that continues to evolve. I think that’s amplified and it’s easier to translate when you’re face-to-face with people than to do it over phone calls or video platforms, meeting platforms. I think it’s also the means of establishing friendships, deep friendships with people that you work with, right, which only makes that employer stickier, right. But I think back at my progression through the workforce and right now I’m generationally at an exciting time, right? I get to work with new people, young professionals that are just starting, maybe it’s their first job right out of a school or it’s people that are maybe a little older and they’re really starting to make progress climbing the corporate ladder. And I think back of, you know, what was it like when I was their age? And so much of what I learned was just enabled by being in the office, right. Being around people and learning through osmosis. And what I learned through osmosis was probably every bit, if not more important than what I learned in a classroom. And so, to me that has to be what gets embraced, right? Just your ability to better comprehend, better understand, and better develop as a professional. That’s all enabled by being in that office place.

DA: Agreed. So to better educate me and perhaps our listeners, and also to help give a plug to you, talk to me a little bit more about the technology. This is a little bit off script, but we’re out there talking with building owners and operators. We’re obviously very focused on helping to digitize the customer experience, reducing friction, improving efficiency, creating community, you know, helping to attract and retain tenants. But we’re often asked about building and access. I’m sure that does not surprise you. And in some cases, you know, their first question is, you know, we have a legacy system we can’t necessarily rip and replace. So tell me a little bit about how your technology works just to also help me as I’m having conversations with potential partners. Is it a rip and replace? Is it layering software and some hardware on top of? What does that look like? It’ll certainly be helpful to me to better understand.

DM: Yeah, yeah. No, thanks for teeing that up. So it’s really sort of the response is a combination of things. It could be adding software and hardware. It could be rip and replace. It really depends on what’s currently deployed. So we’re talking about existing operating properties, whether it’s multifamily or whether it’s commercial office. Coming out of the legacy business of Open Path as we join the Motorola Solutions company or platform, we are on the access control side. And what’s really interesting about access control is for the most part, it hasn’t changed much since the 1990s, right. It’s still very much a client-server sort of software architecture. You’ve got software that gets installed locally. It runs on a PC or on a server somewhere, whether it’s in a closet or under somebody’s desk. You’ve got to nurture that system. Anytime there’s a software update, somebody’s got to apply it to those systems, to those PCs, that computational hardware. Anytime there’s a operating system update, that gets done as well. And what happens is systems just don’t get updated, right, until you get to a point of vulnerability and then you’re like, oh crud, what do I do? Or that computational hardware has to get replaced and it’s still very much a card based system, right? So anytime I add somebody, I got to get that number off that card program and into that person’s profile, program it, hand it to you and you’re off and running. The approach that we’ve taken is let’s use modern technology. Let’s get out of the 1990s and let’s start afresh. And so we built our platform kind of with three attributes that are sort of differentiating. And it’s surprisingly they are in the 21st century. Number one, it’s native cloud-based, right. So you get rid of that computational hardware on premise. You don’t worry about software updates because they push automatically, right, all the way down to the reader if necessary without a truck roll. You get rid of being tied to licenses that say, I can only manage my system from this particular laptop or this particular PC. Make it available from anywhere. And during pandemic, we learned that people aren’t obviously working out of their house. I mean, out of the office. So they have to be able to do their work from home, right, or wherever they happen to be in the world, as long as they have an internet connection and a browser. So that was goodness number one. Number two about the cloud is obviously you can be nimble. So as you’re adapting to new business models or needs, getting to how do you support flexible work, you can do that all by pushing updates through the cloud. It’s different than having to run people from building to building to apply software updates. Second thing we did was we focused on mobile first. We believe mobile is the most convenient, most secure, most enabling credential. It can do a lot more than a card or a FOB could do because it’s interactive, right, and it’s really easy to administer and really easy to distribute. You as an end user, you download the HILO app. At some point we hope it’ll have our SDK in it, credential in it. Once you have that, you’re set. Any door that you have permission to unlock, you can unlock right with your mobile app, and you can keep that phone in your pocket. You simply go up, you wave your hand or touch a reader. Door magically unlocks. I think the third thing that made us different and why we’ve become so particularly successful on the ecosystem of property technology partners is we’re an open platform. Our API is public, it’s on our website. Anything we can do natively has an API call to it. So it really enables our technology partners to become that single pane of glass and eliminate the need for any secondary app or any secondary portal, administrative portal. We also have an SDK, right? So that means that everything that we can do in our native app has now delivered through yours. And those have been the things that have been sort of differentiating. All three of them are important. Some of them get kind of dismissed as, yeah, that’s not that big a deal anymore. But what we’re finding is there’s still a lot of legacy tech that just doesn’t support the needs of today’s owners, operators or end users.

DA: Right. So just briefly on the hardware side. Can it layer on top of existing hardware? Are there some hardware that needs to be replaced? Patches? What does that look like?

DM: Yeah, yeah. So for us, at a minimum on the access control side, we need one of our own access control panels. We call ’em smart hubs. They’re the things that wind up in like IDF closets. And then all the electrified door or hardware and readers wire back to ’em. We can use third party readers. Not a problem. If those are already in place, continue to use them. Our readers, we call ’em smart readers, they do some special things that enhance the mobile experience. And what we find is most of our end customers wind up using our access readers, our smart readers, because it’ll still support FOBs and cards, but it enables that, you know, keep my phone in my pocket, wave my hand type experience on the mobile side. On the video side, same exact thing. We can work with existing video infrastructure. Those cameras plug into what we call a cloud connector. And that now makes those cameras that were dumb, now gives ’em analytics and the ability to manage ’em from the cloud. Or greenfield. Hey, we want to add a camera. Or this camera has sort of died, you put in one of our new cameras, it’s a POE device, and now all of a sudden I’ve got best in class analytics, cloud management, and all the storage happens directly on that device itself.

DA: Perfect. Great. That was really helpful. Thank you for that. We think a lot about buildings and we don’t think of them just as silos. We really think about them as part of neighborhoods and cities. And we believe there’s just an incredible opportunity to think of them more, you know, as part of that collective. Just curious, from your perspective and also again, through the lens of building access, do you think that buildings and workplaces can play a role in creating larger and more connected communities?

DM: Yeah, I’d say without question. The answer is definitively yes. I mean, you just think about the past couple of years. Right? So we go through a pandemic or starting to work from home and the effect that that has on that local community, right. When a building is full, people are taking public transit. Right. So you’re keeping that system funded and operational and keeping it safer because there’s people on it. When we go to work, we’re consumers, right?

DA: Yeah.

DM: So I’m buying things either to or from work or during my lunch break, I’m buying food, right? I’m dropping off my dry cleaning. I’m stopping in local businesses and supporting them. I’m entertaining after hours. I mean, there’s just so much goodness that comes from that. And that was recognized and that was sort of why mixed use, live, work, play developments were occurring, right? It’s like there’s just this natural connectivity that we all experience then. And the past couple years, some markets have really suffered from it, right. When a building is vacant now or largely vacant, all of that, all of those consumer behaviors change, right. And so once that happens, it has a negative effect, I think, on that community. Right now, I’ve got storefronts that are vacant, right. People have moved out. I’ve got businesses that just can’t quite cut it anymore. And that just creates, like, this level of depression. So I think it’s really important, the role that buildings and businesses that occupy those buildings, that they play in those local communities. Without question, it’s tied together.

DA: Yeah. I’m with you and it’s fascinating. We’re having lots of conversations with different stakeholder groups, BIAs, business improvement areas, or business improvement districts, and talking with other real estate developer that are really focusing in on that mixed use, creating that 15 minute city where everything is accessible and available and also obviously recognizing the impact that this has had on, you know, major cities like New York and Toronto and others. So there’s still a lot to unpack as we continue to come through this period of time. But I think bringing people back to buildings again with some level of frequency is ultimately I think good for everybody.

DM: Yeah, I agree with you.

DM: Alright, let’s take a short break. We’ll pause for a commercial and we’ll be right back.

COMMERCIAL BREAK

DA: And now I’d like to welcome back to the show, David McGuinness, head of business development, CRE and multifamily Motorola Solutions. Again, thank you for being with us. I’m really enjoying our conversation.

DM: You know I am as well, David. Thank you. You’re being kind to me.

DA: Oh, of course. You know, as I mentioned earlier, technology’s playing such a significant role in shaping how building operators are delivering great experiences to their tenants, their customers. And workplace engagement certainly is uppermost in everyone’s mind and really presents some incredible opportunities as to how we can do things differently. So certainly through your lens, through building access, but any other perspective that you might be able to offer, you know, what are you seeing from a technology perspective that is being introduced into both multifamily and commercial that’s really gaining traction and contributing to delivering better experience?

DM: Yeah, I mean, there’s so much that’s going on, both in terms of, you know, how buildings are being repositioned and designed or redesigned to make them more inviting, more comfortable, more hospitality-like. Specifically though, when I’m looking at, you know, from an access standpoint, what are the themes that are really emerging in support of, you know, the reality of flexible workspaces? It’s resource booking is becoming more and more common, right? So it could be within my own company that I work for, where we now are utilizing resource booking. So I can book a desk. So it’s a sort of a hoteling type concept where I book conference rooms, right, for a team, for team events or team efforts. That’s extending to maybe alternate office locations that Motorola Solutions might operate, or it might be flexible workspace operators that we have contracts with, right. If I have to do something that’s beyond working in house, I have places that I can go, based upon how far I want to travel or what my objectives are for that day or that week. We’re seeing on the building side as well, right. It’s not just, hey, you reserve space in your own work office, your own office, but we might have our own flexible spaces that were vacant spaces before, right? So they get built out as spec suites, and then there are short term monetization strategies through making them flexible. So I can offer it while it’s still in the market. I could offer it out on a daily, weekly, monthly basis. We’re also seeing a network effect of I’m an owner-operator. I’ve got buildings in certain regions of the country. I’m going to connect those buildings as almost like a loyalty or membership group. You work in my building in Chicago, you’re going to be in LA next week, book that space. Now you have an address to go to in Los Angeles when you have downtime, right. And we’re seeing that also in multifamily, right, of, hey, I’m traveling. Is there a place where I can work out? Hey, great, there’s a community that’s pretty close to where I’m staying in the city or where I’m working out of the city. I’m going to go use that workout facility because I’m a member of that organization. And that’s all enabled through dynamic access control. Because I booked that reservation, I can get in the parking garage. I can get into the lobby. I can get to the floor through the elevator, and I can unlock those doors that I need to to get to my ultimate destination, which is that desk or that conference room.

DA: Right. And you really just highlighted for me, thank you very much, one of the reasons why we developed HILO as a platform and not just another building app provider, you talked about, you know, a provider that has buildings perhaps in multiple cities and yet wanting to provide a very seamless holistic solution. So rather than have them have to download all those different building apps, we’d like them to be able to go to a single platform, but when they’re traveling to Los Angeles from, you know, San Diego, be able to maybe access a building or a flex suite in that space. And again, do it in a very seamless and reduce, you know, all those points of friction. So, yeah. Very interesting. And we’re starting to see, and we’re starting to see other professionals like yourself, you know, help suggest use cases that really help support the type of vision that we have for the industry.

DM: Yeah. I mean, you guys have such a tremendous reputation in the marketplace, so not surprising that you’re kind of ahead of even my simple thinking on the topic.

DA: Well, we’re trying to. It’s certainly, it’s evolving every day. You’ve just got to be willing to sort of continue to look at things differently.

DM: Yeah.

DA: Our last sort of section of questions is really an opportunity to get to know you a little bit better, more on a personal level. So when you’re not working, what are you doing? What’s keeping you busy?

DM: Yeah. So, you know, I’ve always found cooking to be a really relaxing activity for me. And it serves as an outlet for gratitude, right, towards the people that I love and care about. So to me, I’ve been ratcheting up my cooking game.

DA: Great.

DM: Especially during COVID, being able to take, like, MasterClasses online. To me, it’s one of the greatest things that we can do for each other, right?

DA: Yeah.

DM: You get the opportunity to put your love into something. Serve people that you care about and engage with them.

DA: Yeah, it brings people together and there’s nothing better than celebrating over good food.

DM: Exactly.

DA: And good drinks. So what’s your favorite beverage of choice?

DM: Yeah, so I’d say today it’s bourbon mead has been sort of the kind of the primary go-to. Although living in San Diego, I have this obligation that I have to have, you know, one or a couple of IPAs beers during the course of a week, but…

DA: Okay. It’s your obligation.

DM: That’s right.

DA: Favorite movie or current TV series that you’re watching? There’s a lot of talk about a bunch that are kind of wrapping up their seasons at the moment. What are you into?

DM: Yeah, god, there’s really no shortage of content out there. For me, the hardest thing is how do you navigate and find the stuff that I really enjoy?

DA: It’s true.

DM: But I would say one program that I’m a little late getting on, but we’re almost, we’re just wrapping it up is “The Last Of Us,”

DA: Okay.

DM: With Pedro Pascal. So to me it’s, you know, it’s a little bit dark.

DA: Right.

DM: It really kind of keeps the real world in perspective for me, right. We’re not at the point where we’re at the end of a civilization yet, right. So it’s been pretty fun to watch.

DA: I’ll have to check that one out. Name one way in which technology has improved how you live or work.

DM: Yeah. For me, this really goes back to, you know, kind of those objectives for every day, right? To me it’s learn something new. And so I would say online learning has been something that I’ve really been embracing more over the last 24 to 36 months. So it starts with, you know, cooking classes. Maybe I’m taking a Thomas Keller class on MasterClass. But lately, I’ve been trying to learn languages at a basic level. So it’s like Duolingo, right, where they’ve done a really clever thing of gamification.

DA: My wife is a huge fan. I think she’s closing in on a 3000-day streak.

DM: Wow.

DA: Yeah.

DM: That’s remarkable. The gamification piece just makes you want to do it every day.

DA: Totally.

DM: Right. And all it takes is like 15 minutes, 15 to 30 minutes a day and, you know, it’s not like I’m conversational, but I understand things, right. And at least I know how to say certain things.

DA: Yeah. Good for you. Your personal choice for days spent in person with your colleagues versus working from anywhere.

DM: Yeah, yeah. That’s an easy one for me. I’ll take a day working face-to-face with colleagues over being remote. As much as I am a remote worker, whether it’s I’m working out of the house or I’m traveling out to see customers and technology partners, I love the chances I get to be with my colleagues.

DA: Right. Awesome. Okay, listen, David, thank you so much for spending time with us today. I really learned a lot and enjoyed our conversation. I know our listeners will as well. I hope this is the first of many. We are continuing to collaborate with Motorola going forward, and we’re excited about those opportunities and I’m sure there’ll be more as we move forward. Thank you so much.

DM: Thank you, David. It was a pleasure.

DA: Great. Take care. I want to thank David McGuinness for joining me on this episode of  TEN and for contributing to the global conversation around buildings being part of a robust ecosystem, helping to build great companies, and that they are vital in the effort to cultivate and support great people and teams. The future of the workplace will likely take many forms, and we’ll continue to explore what that looks like together.

Subscribe to TEN for more conversations with leading CRE industry professionals and experts who all have something to say about tenant experience in the future of the workplace. We love hearing from you. So if you enjoyed this episode of TEN please share, add your rating and review us through your preferred podcast provider.

If you or someone you know would like to be a guest on a future episode, please reach out to me directly at david@hiloapp.com. And until our next episode, I wish you all continued success in building community where you work and live, thank you.