US Homebuilding "The Masters" Series

From 200 to 2,000 Closings: Boyd Martin, former Division President, D.R. Horton Utah - Building a Division That Lasts

In this episode of US Homebuilding: The Masters Series, host Gerard Ball sits down with Boyd Martin, who spent almost 25 years at D.R. Horton and ran the Utah division as Division President from 2004 until March 2025.

Boyd took a division doing around 200 homes a year and grew it to 2,001 closings, making D.R. Horton the largest builder in Utah for four consecutive years. Along the way he also ran Idaho for five years and opened southern Utah, where the division became the market leader within its second year. His executive team averaged 14 years of tenure, and almost every one of them was promoted from within.

Episode Highlights:

- Learning production home building from Rick Salisbury, a bricklayer turned builder running a 45 calendar day construction schedule in 1998

- Why "empty homes lose money" became the operating principle behind everything that followed

- Moving from a fast local builder to a slower one, and knowing when the culture is simply wrong for you

- Surviving the crash: from 350 closings to 100, and an executive team that cleaned toilets, picked up trash and sat models to keep the machine running

- Spotting the master plan opportunity in 2010 and building conviction ahead of the market

- Why he stopped hiring superintendents from other builders and hired green instead

- Building a talent pipeline out of personal networks rather than job adverts

- Running an accountability culture on monthly scorecards without making it personal

- Finding an advocate inside a large organisation, and how to do it without being a kiss up

- How the job changes when the division passes 1,000 closings

Notable Quotes:

"It has nothing to do with the technology. It has everything to do with the mindset of your construction team and purchasing team." - Boyd Martin on build cycle times

"We learned quickly, do not hire superintendents from other builders. It failed almost every time. We hired green and promoted up, and those young people did an incredible job." - Boyd Martin on building a construction team

Key Takeaways:

- Prioritise culture and opportunity over compensation early in your career, because compensation follows

- The habits that make a division successful are usually formed in the hardest part of the cycle, not the best one

- A well documented system lets you hire for attitude and train for skill

- Accountability works when everyone is measured, including the leader

- Advocacy inside a business is earned by volunteering for the jobs nobody wants

- Home building is a people business at every touchpoint, from the subcontractor to the city inspector

About the Guest:

Boyd Martin is a BYU accounting graduate who found home building on job sites before he found it on a balance sheet. He began his career with Salisbury Homes and Hubble Homes before joining D.R. Horton in 2001 as CFO and VP of Operations for the Salt Lake division, becoming Division President in 2004. Over more than two decades he led the division through the financial crisis and the recovery, took it to number one in Utah, and delivered eight master plan communities ranging from 1,000 to 2,400 lots. He teaches a construction class at BYU.

This is one of the most complete division president careers we have had on the show, in one market, over 25 years. Essential listening for anyone building a division, a team, or a career in home building.

Guest Introduction / Episode Overview:In this episode of The Masters Series, we sit down with Abby Cornelius, a 21-year home building veteran who has held sales leadership roles with several of the industry's best-known builders, including Taylor Morrison and Stanley Martin, and now runs Elevate Actually, a coaching and training venture focused on developing leaders across the industry.

Abby goes into a problem she calls "the forgotten middle": talented top performers promoted into leadership without the skills, support, or training to succeed there. From generational shifts in what employees want, to why cross-functional understanding separates good leaders from great ones, to her own four-part leadership framework, this conversation is packed with practical insight for anyone managing people in homebuilding today.

Episode Highlights:

• Why top salespeople don't automatically make great leaders

• "The forgotten middle": the generational leadership gap created by 2008

• Signs someone is ready for a leadership role before they're promoted

• Structured internal programs (certified coaches, DP training tracks) that actually work

• How Gen X, millennial, and Gen Z employees define a good job differently

• Building an Employee Value Proposition without breaking the bank

• Why cross-departmental fluency separates top VPs and Division Presidents

• Fairness vs. equality in how leaders support their teams

• Self-funding your own leadership development when your employer won't

• Abby's "Four Ds" framework: Diagnose, Decide, Drive, Deliver

Notable Quotes:"Not all top performers make great leaders. It's a we versus me mentality." - Abby Cornelius on identifying leadership potential

"I am an investment worth making." - Abby Cornelius on why she started paying for her own leadership development

Key Takeaways:

1. Identify peer-leadership signals, not just sales numbers, before promoting someone into management

2. Build structured, ongoing leadership development, not a once-a-year succession conversation

3. Recognize that different generations need different support to stay engaged and perform

4. Treat cross-departmental relationships as a core leadership skill, not a nice-to-have

5. Apply fairness rather than blanket equality when supporting individual team members

6. Take ownership of your own development rather than waiting for company sponsorship

About the Guest:Abby Cornelius has spent 21 years in home building, moving from new home sales through sales training, sales leadership, and a stint in land acquisition before returning to leadership with a broader operational perspective. She previously worked at Taylor Morrison, among other national builders.

Today she runs Elevate Actually (elevateactually.com), offering both team-wide and individual coaching programs built around her Four Ds leadership framework.

In this Orlando edition of the US Homebuilding Masters: Sales and Marketing Leadership Community Roundtable, host Gerard Ball sits down with two leaders who know this market inside out: Melanie Hemingway, VP of Sales at Taylor Morrison Orlando, and Tatiana Souza, who spent 17 years at Meritage Homes rising from the sales floor to Division Vice President before joining Davila Homes.

With over 800 sales counselors in the Orlando market - and roughly a third having moved in the last 12 months - the pair dig into what it really takes to attract, hire and keep top-tier new home sales talent in one of America's most dynamic and competitive marketplaces.

Episode Highlights:

• Why Orlando is currently a candidate's market - and how land assets and community pipelines are driving unprecedented movement among sales counselors

• The traits that beat experience every time: coachability, growth mindset, urgency and competitiveness

• Why both leaders prefer hiring green talent - Tatiana built teams that were 80% industry newcomers

• The backgrounds that translate best into new home sales: educators, restaurant workers and luxury retail

• Recruiting is always on: Melanie's Ulta story - how a stocking stuffer shopping trip produced a Rookie of the Year and Salesperson of the Year

• How the Predictive Index became a non-negotiable hiring gate at Meritage

• Structured interviews at Taylor Morrison: stacked interview days, cross-functional panels, scored interview guides

• Radical honesty in the pitch: weekends, holidays, and the 12-18 month runway before the big paychecks arrive

• Why candidates choose leaders and culture over logos - and how personal brand and company brand must work together

Notable Quotes:

"I never really looked for experience as much as I looked for coachability, growth mindset, and high sense of urgency, being competitive." - Tatiana Souza

"If you want to come work here, you're working for Taylor Morrison. I don't hire for communities, I hire for my brand, and I hire for my culture." - Melanie Hemingway

Key Takeaways:

• Hire for traits, not experience - coachable, urgent, competitive people can be trained into top producers

• Always be interviewing, even when you have no openings, so you are never forced into a desperate hire

• Be brutally honest upfront about weekends, holidays and the timeline to real earnings - it prevents costly early turnover

• Protect your loyal team - promising prized communities to outside stars damages the culture that retains your best people

• Great recruiters treat every service interaction as a scouting opportunity

About the Guests:

Melanie Hemingway is VP of Sales at Taylor Morrison in Orlando, leading sales operations across the division. She previously spent almost five years at PulteGroup in Nashville, including time as acting division president.

Tatiana Souza spent 17 years at Meritage Homes in Orlando, starting on the sales floor in 2008 and rising to Division Vice President while the division grew from 200 to over 1,100 closings. She has since joined Davila Homes to help grow the company.

Whether you are a sales leader building a team or a professional considering a move into new home sales, this roundtable is a masterclass in recruiting, hiring and retaining top talent in one of the toughest markets in the country. More markets to come.

In this inaugural roundtable episode of the US Homebuilding Masters Sales and Marketing Leadership Community, host Gerard Ball brings together two of Dallas-Fort Worth's most respected sales leaders: Karla Horton, VP of Sales and Marketing at Ashton Woods and Starlight Homes, and Jason Walker, VP of Sales at Highland Homes.

With over 44 years of combined homebuilding experience, they unpack what it really takes to recruit, develop and retain top sales talent in the most competitive new home market in the country - where more than 1,000 sales counselors compete and roughly 30% of them changed roles in the last 12 months.
Episode Highlights:

1. The Dallas hiring reality - 1,000+ sales counselors, 30% churn, and the market shift driving it
2. Why the COVID-era sales playbook no longer works and how top performers are adapting
3. Lessons from 2008 and 2012 - the handful of leaders who remember "selling" versus "order-taking"
4. Karla's source pipeline for new-to-industry hires: luxury goods, military, hospitality, education and fresh graduates
5. Jason's strategy for recruiting experienced counselors: soft visits, sub-market fit and long-term relationships
6. The interview process - speed for newbies (one to two weeks), depth and out-of-office conversations for experienced hires
7. Using role play in the interview room to reveal genuine grit and confidence
8. The 30/60/90 day onboarding reality and where most new hires misalign on expectations
9. Red flags both leaders have learned to screen for the hard way
10. How to win when you are competing head-to-head with another builder for the same candidate
    Notable Quotes:
    "You can't shortcut reps. If you're in this industry for five years, think about how many handshakes, how many greets, how many introductions - that is a refined skill that just becomes second nature." - Jason Walker
    "It's all about leadership and support. The great athletes all came with talent, but they're not where they are without a great coach who pushed them and held them accountable. You have to have that relationship." - Karla Horton
    "I'd rather go without a sales counselor for a while until we have the right fit. If it's not 100% and it's not going to work with the culture, all you're doing is putting someone in a place that's not going to work out for them." - Jason Walker
    Key Takeaways:

• The best recruiters never stop recruiting - even with no open role, top leaders maintain a handful of active conversations per month
• Greatness is a behaviour pattern, not a personality type - look for grit, resilience, adaptability and CRM hygiene
• Speed matters for new-to-industry hires; depth and relationship-building matter more for experienced ones
• Cultural fit beats raw performance numbers - a top producer at one builder may fail at another
• Scaring candidates with the reality of the job upfront protects both sides from costly misalignment
• The Dallas market is collaborative, not cutthroat - leaders routinely refer candidates to each other when the fit is wrong

About the Guests:

Karla Horton is VP of Sales and Marketing at Ashton Woods and Starlight Homes in Dallas-Fort Worth, leading a 1,200+ unit dual-brand business with 24 years of homebuilding experience. Jason Walker is VP of Sales at Highland Homes, where he leads a team of 65 covering roughly 800 closings annually at price points from $300K to $2.5M - and where he uniquely began his career on the sales floor.

This first roundtable delivers the unvarnished reality of building a winning sales team in America's toughest homebuilding market - essential listening for any VP, Director or Sales Manager refining their hiring playbook in 2025 and beyond.

In this episode of "US Homebuilding 'The Masters' Series", host Gerard Ball sits down with Dana Mayberry, VP of Sales at Taylor Morrison in Raleigh, North Carolina.

With 23 years in homebuilding spanning Pulte, Beazer, Ashton Woods and now Taylor Morrison, Dana shares the growth mindset, the calculated risks and the leadership lessons that have shaped her path from commission-only sales counsellor to senior operational leader.

What runs through every chapter of Dana's story is a refusal to plateau. Each move - sometimes lateral, often into harder ground - was a deliberate bet on her own capacity to learn, adapt and add value in a new environment.

Episode Highlights:

• An unconventional entry into homebuilding, from environmental science graduate to Pulte sales counsellor after a chance encounter in real estate broker class

• Selling 84 homes in her first year in a community everyone else had written off, and what that taught her about belief and buyer mindset

• Why a fixed mindset is the single biggest predictor of failure in new home sales, regardless of the market

• Navigating the 2008 housing crash on the front line, why it became her best earning year, and how it ultimately landed her first leadership role

• The honest reality of moving from top sales performer to sales leader, including the pay cut, the loneliness and the mindset shift to winning through other people

• Why "activity beats analysis" in homebuilding, and how the best leaders led during the crash without showing fear

• Leaving a decade at Pulte for a VP role at Beazer, joining a brand under enormous pressure and watching one of the great turnarounds in homebuilding

• Leading the cultural and product pivot at Ashton Woods from semi-custom to scalable production

• Why Taylor Morrison's culture under Sheryl Palmer& Amy Rino stood apart, and the power of a brand that treats sales leaders as true operators

• The case for sales leaders building deep finance fluency, and why Dana went back for an MBA mid-career to break the stereotype

Notable Quotes:

"You can analyse things to death, but you cannot run a company off just spreadsheets. Activity beats analysis in homebuilding."

"You fail, and hopefully you fail fast. And if you're not failing, you're not trying something new."

Key Takeaways:

• A genuine growth mindset - openness to change, willingness to fail fast, hunger to keep learning - is what separates careers that compound from careers that plateau

• Bet on yourself: the hardest career moves often unlock the next decade of growth

• The best sales leaders learn to win through other people, not by stepping in to close deals themselves

• Network beyond your own brand early - peers, competitors and adjacent disciplines all expand your operating lens

• Finance fluency is no longer optional for sales leaders aiming for division-level impact

• Choose the brand and the leader, not just the title - culture is the multiplier on every other decision

About the Guest:

Dana Mayberry is VP of Sales at Taylor Morrison's Raleigh division, leading a roughly 400-home-per-year operation. Born and raised in Raleigh and an NC State alumna, she built her career at Pulte (sales counsellor through GSM and Design Centre Manager), Beazer Homes (VP of Sales through the post-crash turnaround), Ashton Woods (VP of Sales through their production pivot), and now Taylor Morrison. She holds an MBA with a corporate finance specialisation.

This episode is essential listening for sales counsellors with leadership ambitions, sitting GSMs and VPs of Sales, and any operational leader who wants to understand what truly great sales leadership in homebuilding looks like in 2026.

From Silicon Valley to Summit: Brian Cutting on People-First Leadership and the Career That Built Him

In this episode of US Homebuilding "The Masters" Series, host Gerard Ball sits down with Brian Cutting, current RVP at Hayden Homes and former Division President at Woodside Homes, overseeing the Hubble Homes brand in Boise, Idaho.

With nearly 20 years in homebuilding spanning Silicon Valley tech, land entitlement, acquisition and development, a pivotal detour through Walmart's commercial real estate division, and two major M&A integrations, Brian brings hard-won wisdom and a distinctive worldview to leadership. An alpine mountaineer who has scaled glaciated volcanoes in Ecuador, Brian's philosophy is simple: get uncomfortable, invest in your people, and show up 100%.

Episode Highlights:

1. From Silicon Valley to Sacramento: why a tactile guy who spent his evenings in his wood shop left a product management career in high tech for the world of homebuilding

2. The six-month light bulb moment: what it really takes to find your footing in a new industry and discipline

3. Surviving the 2008 recession inside Woodside as the company entered bankruptcy, and the personal and professional toll of watching colleagues exit month after month

4. The Walmart detour: how three years acquiring land for Walmart Supercenters transformed Brian's approach to due diligence, contracts and risk management - and what he brought back to homebuilding

5. Getting boots on the ground: why Brian voluntarily took on the role of land development superintendent, and what that taught him about empathy, rapport and effective leadership

6. Navigating two M&A integrations simultaneously - Hubble into Woodside, then into the Sekisui House / Richmond American group - while running a 500+ closing operation

7. Alpine mountaineering as a leadership laboratory: lessons from summiting Cotopaxi at 19,347 feet on commitment, team performance and boardroom calm

8. The Oxford comma hiring test: Brian's creative approach to spotting attention to detail in candidates

Notable Quotes:

"I am never going to ask one of my employees to do something that I'm not willing to do myself." - Brian Cutting

"If you take care of your people, the people will take care of the process. If you're so focused on the process that you forget about the people, you are going to be running up a hill your entire time." - Brian Cutting

Key Takeaways:

• Get uncomfortable deliberately - that is when growth happens

• Know your blind spots and seek out people who excel where you don't

• Building personal relationships at every level of the organisation is non-negotiable for high-performing teams

• Mountaineering teaches boardroom calm: business decisions are challenging, but they are not life-or-death

• Be patient, nimble and curious - the challenges ahead may be ones the industry has never seen before

About the Guest:

Brian Cutting spent nearly 20 years with Woodside Homes, progressing from entitlement manager in Sacramento to VP of Land Acquisition and Development, and ultimately Division President overseeing the Hubble Homes brand in Boise, Idaho. His career has also included roles in purchasing and commercial real estate with Walmart Stores. He'scurrently RVP at Hayden Homes, and had previously been with Woodside Homes following the broader integration into the Sekisui House family of companies.

This episode is a masterclass for any homebuilding professional navigating career transitions, leading teams through change, or looking to build the personal and mental resilience that separates good leaders from great ones.

Blooming Where You're Planted: Sandy Richert, VP of Sales at Trumark Homes, on Building a Career Through Curiosity, Culture, and Leadership

In this episode of "US Homebuilding: The Masters Series," host Jamie Panter interviews Sandy Richert, VP of Sales at Trumark Homes, who shares her remarkable 30+ year journey through the homebuilding industry, from her start at Centex Homes in 1993 through leadership roles at Pulte Homes, Meritage Homes, and now Trumark Homes.

Sandy offers invaluable insights on building a successful career without relocation, the evolution of sales in homebuilding, and creating high-performing teams through leadership principles that prioritize culture over individual star performers.

Episode Highlights

The Serendipitous Start: Sandy's unexpected entry into homebuilding through friends in the industry and how Centex's robust training program shaped her foundation in sales

The Power of Curiosity: Why being genuinely curious about customers, construction processes, and industry trends separates top performers from average salespeople

Navigating Career Growth Locally: How Sandy rose through the ranks while staying planted in the San Francisco Bay Area, building a powerful network through councils and volunteer leadership

Technology's Transformation: The evolution from five-part NCR paper to digital systems, and why embracing technology while maintaining human connection is crucial for modern sales success

Progressive Leadership Philosophy: Moving from "boss" mentality to "leader" mindset - why people want to follow you matters more than formal authority

Managing Through Market Cycles: Strategies for leading teams through the 2008 recession, COVID-19, and various market shifts over three decades

Building Team Culture: The critical importance of hiring for cultural fit and curiosity over lone-wolf sales talent, and why toxic performers hurt more than they help

Multi-Generational Living Trends: Identifying emerging buyer needs for flexible spaces accommodating aging parents, boomerang kids, and income-generating units

Notable Quotes

"Don't let people diminish your value. I've had people through my career that didn't see my potential and weren't my advocates. Don't let a bad manager get you down and think that you can't do it." - Sandy Richert on overcoming career obstacles

"If you're standing still, you're actually falling behind. Keep your foot on the gas, keep learning, keep growing, keep embracing new ideas." - Sandy Richert on continuous improvement

Key Takeaways

Geographic flexibility isn't the only path to advancement - building deep local networks and expertise can create equal opportunities

Curiosity across all business functions (sales, construction, design, operations) distinguishes top performers from average ones

Starting your career in a challenging market builds resilience and skills that create long-term advantages

Cultural fit and team chemistry matter more than individual sales talent when building sustainable high-performing teams

The best salespeople expand their knowledge beyond their core role to understand how their function impacts the entire business

Protecting your personal brand and maintaining relationships is critical in homebuilding's tight-knit industry

About the Guest

Sandy Richert serves as VP of Sales at Trumark Homes in the San Francisco Bay Area, leading an 18-person sales team. With over 30 years of homebuilding experience spanning Centex Homes (1993-2002), Pulte Homes (14+ years), Meritage Homes, and Trumark Homes (9+ years), Sandy has navigated multiple market cycles including the 2008 recession and COVID-19 pandemic. She serves on the steering committee for the Bay Area Women's Housing Leadership Group and previously participated in Pulte's national Women's Leadership and Diversity Council. Her expertise spans sales operations, team development, product design input, and organizational culture building.

In this episode of "US Homebuilding: The Masters Series," host Gerard Ball interviews Dave Prolo, a 30-year industry veteran who has opened, scaled, and led divisions across the Western United States.

Dave's career spans Watt Homes Utah founding team, John Laing merger, surviving 2008, orchestrating the Candlelight Homes acquisition for Cal Atlantic, and serving the Irvine Company. His experience ranges from zero-home startups to managing 2,000-unit operations.

Episode Highlights:

1. Second-Generation Builder DNA: Following both grandfathers into construction, from sweeping floors to studying construction management at BYU, demonstrating deep industry roots

2. Promoted to Division President at 31: Leading Watt Homes Utah division to become #1 in customer satisfaction nationally, competing head-to-head with Larry Webb's Southern California division

3. Surviving the 2008 Crisis: Managing weekly cash decisions on which trades to pay, maintaining team morale, and transitioning to receivership work disposing of $100M+ in distressed assets

4. Leading Multiple M&A Integrations: Navigating Watt/John Laing, Standard Pacific/Ryland (Cal Atlantic), and Cal Atlantic/Lennar mergers while maintaining operational excellence

5. Market Entry Strategy: Opening Cal Atlantic Utah from scratch, then acquiring Candlelight Homes to secure 5,000 lots and instant market presence within six months

6. Scaling Operations 101: Understanding critical inflection points at 250 units (expanded trade base) and 400-500 units (staying disciplined to business model)

7. Master-Planned Community Excellence: Working directly under Donald Bren at Irvine Company, transitioning from fee-build model to in-house GC for $2.3M average homes

Notable Quotes:

"Don't be afraid to raise your hand and ask the question that challenges the status quo. That's what separates VPs who get promoted from those who plateau."

"Go slow to be in a hurry. You need to be thoughtful and take smart steps, but you also need that innate urgency. I had the urgency but didn't have the go slow part early in my career." - Dave Prolo on leadership maturity

Key Takeaways:

- Building local relationships and joining Home Builders Associations immediately is essential for market entry success

- New market divisions often overpay for first land deals - balance urgency to scale with disciplined underwriting

- M&A cultural integration requires humility to recognize the acquired company's strengths, not just imposing your own systems

- People decisions matter most during recessions - transparency and honesty about challenges builds lasting loyalty

- Read one operational/management book per month to stay ahead of competitors who don't invest in learning

- Cross-pollinate across disciplines by volunteering for company-wide initiatives beyond your current role

- First hires in new markets often don't stay long - expect cultural and operational turnover

About the Guest:

Dave Prolo brings 30 years of homebuilding leadership across California, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. His career includes founding team roles at Watt Homes Utah, regional president at John Laing Homes, VP of Operations for Cal Atlantic's 1,800-unit Southern California region, and leading Lennar's Utah startup from acquisition through 500-unit scale. Most recently, he led operations for the Irvine Company's master-planned communities. His experience spans multiple economic cycles, successful M&A integrations, market entries, and scaling operations from zero to 2,000 units annually.

This episode offers invaluable insights for professionals seeking to advance into VP or division president roles, those considering market expansion strategies, or anyone navigating the complexities of M&A integration in homebuilding.

From Sales Floor to the C-Suite: Women Leading the Way in Homebuilding with Cristi Green & Courtney Smith-Gonzalez

In this episode of US Homebuilding: The Masters Series, host Jamie Panter sits down with two exceptional leaders: Cristi Green, former VP of City Operations, and Courtney Smith-Gonzalez, former City Manager at a leading national homebuilder.

Both bring 20+ years of experience rising through the sales ranks to senior leadership, offering candid perspectives on career development, culture, and the evolving role of women in homebuilding.

Episode Highlights:

1. The Sales-to-Leadership Pipeline: Why sales professionals develop exceptional leadership qualities — resilience, relationship-building, and cross-functional understanding — that prepare them for executive roles.
2. Breaking Down Silos: The critical importance of sales leaders understanding every aspect of the business, from land acquisition to construction, and building trust across teams.
3. Data-Driven Decision Making: How the industry is shifting from gut instinct to data-informed strategy, and why entrepreneurial thinking still matters at large builders.
4. Diversity as Competitive Advantage: The business case for women in leadership — 24% of first-time homebuyers are single females, and women drive the majority of household home-buying decisions.
5. Creating Future Leaders: Strategies for identifying and developing talent early, including the importance of mentorship and removing unconscious bias from hiring and promotion decisions.
6. Culture Through Mergers: Navigating the challenges of blending organizational cultures during acquisitions, and the empathy required when asking people to change established ways of working.
7. Leadership in Adversity: How great leaders maintain consistency and optimism during market downturns, focusing teams on what they can control.

Notable Quotes:

"Leadership is the people business. All your problems come with hair, and it's the human type." — Courtney Smith-Gonzalez

"Be willing to lead before you have the title. Leadership comes in all forms and does not always come with a title." — Cristi Green

Key Takeaways:

• Sales experience builds essential leadership skills: resilience, people management, and cross-functional collaboration
• The best leaders make people feel supported and capable regardless of market conditions
• Genuine diversity requires intentional effort to include different backgrounds and perspectives in decision-making
• Career advancement comes from embracing challenges outside your comfort zone
• Leaders must maintain consistency in how they show up during both good times and adversity

About the Guests:

Cristi Green brings 20+ years of homebuilding experience, progressing from onsite sales through sales management to VP of Sales and VP of City Operations. Her diverse path demonstrates the career mobility possible within the industry.

Courtney Smith-Gonzalez rose from being the first sales agent in her market to City Manager, progressing through Sales Manager, VP of Sales, and VP of City Operations. Her journey exemplifies how strategic relationship-building and cross-functional knowledge accelerate career advancement.

This episode is essential listening for women considering leadership roles in homebuilding, current leaders building more inclusive teams, and anyone who wants to understand what separates good leaders from great ones in this industry.

In this episode of US Homebuilding "The Masters" Series, host Gerard Ball interviews Anjela Salyer, Division President of Mattamy Homes in Tucson, Arizona.

Anjela shares her remarkable 20-year journey that began when a Pulte recruiter literally grabbed her arm at a college career fair, launching her from radio station intern to homebuilding sales. Her career trajectory spans the euphoric 2004-2006 boom market in Southern California's largest growing county, through the devastating Great Recession as a young sales manager managing a team that shrank from 24 to 6 members, to her current role leading the division she helped build from the ground up.

Her story uniquely demonstrates the power of resilience and relationship-building, from surviving multiple market crashes to co-founding a startup division that began with just two people meeting at a dining room table and conducting business meetings in hotel lobbies.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Starting a homebuilding career during the 2004-2006 market peak and learning the fundamentals

• Navigating leadership challenges during the Great Recession with massive team reductions

• Transitioning between companies and roles to gain diverse experience across disciplines

• Building a startup division from scratch: recruitment, team building, and market establishment

• Leading through uncertainty when corporate questioned the division's future

• Creating high-performance culture through transparent communication and celebrating small wins

• Crisis management during COVID-19, including creative solutions like sourcing appliances from big box stores

• The reality of division president responsibilities and decision-making weight

Notable Quotes:

"Good things come to those who wait, but only what's left by those who hustle." - Anjela Salyer's career philosophy

"You achieve what you believe. We can't let all the garbage and outside noise affect our mindset. If we believe something, we will achieve it because we're gonna figure out how to do it." - Anjela Salyer on team mentality during crisis

"Every decision I make affects 60 people, their families, and if they get paid every two weeks... Every decision I make, I make with the understanding it will directly affect if my team puts food on the table for their families." - Anjela Salyer on the weight of leadership

Key Takeaways:

• Strong foundational training and mentorship are crucial for early career success

• Crisis periods provide invaluable problem-solving skills that serve leaders throughout their careers

• Cross-disciplinary experience is essential for division president readiness

• Building culture through transparent communication and celebrating small wins drives performance

• Taking ownership of your own development is critical - nobody will advocate for you better than yourself

• Embracing change as opportunity rather than threat accelerates career growth

• Team loyalty and trust are built through shared challenges and authentic leadership

About the Guest: Anjela Salyer serves as Division President for Mattamy Homes in Tucson, Arizona, overseeing the division she helped establish as the second employee hired. Her career spans multiple economic cycles and includes experience at Pulte Homes, Lennar, and smaller regional builders. She has successfully navigated startup division challenges, market downturns, and corporate restructuring while building one of the industry's most highly regarded team cultures.

This episode offers essential insights for sales professionals aspiring to leadership roles, current managers facing team challenges, and anyone interested in understanding how to build successful organizations from the ground up in the homebuilding industry.