Farbman Awards & Accolades

The Large Company Overall Champion is the Farbman Group in Southfield, which has 115 full-time employees and more than 85 independent contractors. The Small-Business Champion, with eight employees, is Assembly Ventures, a specialized venture capital firm in Detroit.

Farbman Group President Andy Gutman says the key to having satisfied employees is to treat them like family rather than workers. “Woven into the fabric of Farbman is a kindness culture,” Gutman says. “It starts by listening to people.”

There are several ways the Farbman Group goes about listening to its people. There’s an anonymous message board where employees can air grievances. There are monthly think tank forums, and there’s a committee called Farbman 3,000 dedicated to technology and the future of the organization.

“If there are barriers to the success of our employees, it’s our job to remove them,” Gutman says.

Other ways Farbman treats its employees like family include loans for employees who are facing financial difficulties, catered lunches two or three days each week, and a fully stocked kitchen.

“We have a mixture of healthy and unhealthy snacks,” Gutman says. “We tried all healthy for a while, and that wasn’t very popular.”

Active in the community, Farbman supports several charitable organizations. What’s more, employees volunteer to represent the company at events, and they can participate in activities like whirly ball games.

The firm also excels in the workplace flexibility category, a longtime staple.

“We were doing workplace flexibility before it was COVID-19 cool,” Gutman says. “And we foster a culture where you’re allowed to make mistakes, as long as it’s not intentional, repetitive, or from a lack of work ethic. We can learn from mistakes.”

Perhaps most important is the company’s overall dedication to its workforce.

“When the Great Recession hit, we didn’t lay a single person off,” Gutman says. “We decided to carry a little bit more overhead during that time. We figured the loyalty would pay off because people will remember that.”

The strategy paid off.

“We have very little turnover here,” Gutman says. “The people who do leave are retiring. We have longevity here and I think that’s a statement about how we treat our people.”

To read more you can visit Culture of Winning – DBusiness Magazine

Commercial Real Estate Awards!

Alis Manoogian, the assistant vice president of investment sales at Southfield, Michigan-based commercial real estate company Farbman Group, was elected as the first female president of Michigan’s chapter of Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM), a professional organization of documented experts in the commercial and investment real estate industry.

In her new position, Manoogian will lead the Michigan chapter, which has had more than 200 members historically, by serving as its spokesperson. She will set the chapter’s agenda and collaborate with its board of directors to reach new goals and strategic initiatives to drive the chapter’s growth in the future.

Manoogian sees a significant opportunity for growth in the industry by decreasing the gender gap among commercial real estate professionals. She noted that women make up just 36% of employees in the field, a number that has remained stagnant for the last 15 years.

The new president also has a goal of expanding the chapter’s membership through universities offering commercial real estate programs and companies relocating to Michigan. In addition, she hopes to increase the value CCIM offers members through educational programming and expanding the organization’s industry connections.

Manoogian has been an active member of CCIM Michigan since 2018. In 2020, she received a CCIM credential, an honor that fewer than 10 percent of real estate professionals hold. Since 2021, Manoogian has served on the board of directors of CCIM’s Michigan chapter.

Andy Gutman has been named one of Detroit 500’s Most powerful Business Leaders for the 4th year in a row! DBusiness magazine presents Detroit 500, a comprehensive list of the most powerful executives in more than 30 industries across metro Detroit and Michigan. The most highly selective biographical database of business leaders in our region and state, the resource list of individuals was compiled based on a number of factors including the size of a given company or organization, growth rate, geographical reach, and extensive personal contacts. @dbusiness #dbusiness(goes to new website) #detroit500(goes to new website) #businessleader(goes to new website) #leader(goes to new website) #detroit(goes to new website) #cre(goes to new website) #commercialrealestate(goes to new website) #farbmangroup(goes to new website) #farbman(goes to new website) #fg(goes to new website) #naifarbman

Farbman Group is proud to announce that Andy Gutman, President, has been named to Crain’s 2021 Notable Real Estate Executives. Congratulations, Andy, on this prestigious honor!

Farbman Group has been named a 2020 Best of MichBusiness Honoree! We are so proud of the work our company does and to be honored with this award.

Farbman recognized in five additional categories in 2020 edition of Freep’s annual Best of the Best awards

No matter what business you are in, awards and recognition are always gratifying. When it’s your clients, peers, and fellow professionals in the community making the selection, being honored is extra meaningful. That’s why Farbman Group’s recent inclusion in six different categories in the Detroit Free Press Best of the Best awards is so special to us.

Detroit Free Press Best of the Best Detroit Awards is a program that identifies, recognizes, and celebrates the very best community businesses across the region. The list of Best of the Best honorees is a roll call of organizations widely recognized for being the finest in the area and consistently demonstrating exceptional services. The awards are sorted into 15 individual categories, and winners are subsequently chosen by members of the community.

This is the first year the Detroit Free Press, has honored a commercial real estate company in its Best of the Best program. Farbman’s selection as not just one of the best commercial real estate companies, but the best commercial real estate company in the market is an extraordinary honor. To be the inaugural winner in this important new category is not just rewarding, but feels like a validation of the Farbman model.

As our CEO Andy Farbman makes clear, that model is about the passion of our people and their collective dedication to their craft. It’s the basis for Farbman’s meticulous approach, attentive service, and personalized, hands-on management approach. Fundamentally, it’s about valuing people, and the personal and professional connections we forge with them. Andy recently stated that “Farbman’s ability to exceed expectations of service and professionalism as one of the best commercial real estate companies in Detroit comes from valuing client relationships above all else.”

Best Commercial Real Estate Company

It’s not a coincidence that, in addition to being named Best Commercial Real Estate Company, Farbman was also named Best Place to Work, Best Benefits Program, Best Company Culture, and Most Innovative Workplace, along with a personal honor for our CFO, Chris Chesney, who was named Best Accountant.

Winning in six different categories is indicative of the strong and connected culture we have cultivated here at Farbman, a place where employees are treated as valuable members of the Farbman team—and where we value our ability to form rewarding long-term partnerships with clients. That culture and those people-first priorities help generate the results and relationships that creates bottom-line satisfaction from clients, tenants, owners and investors.

While Farbman has done business across the region and the nation, we are a Detroit company with Detroit roots. We pride ourselves on knowing and serving our hometown market with special diligence and consistent excellence. To be recognized in this way as one of the area’s best commercial real estate companies by such an iconic Detroit media outlet is both a testament to our people, and a strong sign that the very best is yet to come.

Congratulations to Michael Kalil on your induction into the Midwest Real Estate’s Hall of Fame.

We are so very proud of you!