Five Questions Kristin Davis
	Selected as one of the Top Women in Commercial Real Estate for 2007 by the Florida Real Estate Journal, Betsy D’Jamoos’ career began at her father’s small Boston company, which sold interior building materials. There, she honed her business-management skills and helped increase revenue by $5 million. She went on to manage and consult small businesses, and then became a senior official at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services in Washington, D.C. In 2001, she joined her father in business again—this time in Naples. She is president of the venture he began in 1997, now called The D’Jamoos Group, which develops retail, mixed-use and residential properties. 1. How has your work experience in different jobs informed your current role? Each one had so many components that helped shape who I am and how I work today. I didn’t know how the government and political work would translate, but funny enough, I find more relevance in what I did in Washington than in any other experience I’ve had, from understanding the role of government in our business to instilling checks and balances in an organization to being able to handle anything that comes our way. 2. What criteria earned you the title of top woman in commercial real estate? They considered the position I held in the company, the company’s growth and achievements, the path taken to achieve my success and the contributions being made to the community. A commonality I noticed among this year’s recipients is that we all hope to inspire and mentor other women to find their success in this business. 3. How has the dip in the real estate market affected your business? Commercially, we’ve stayed steady. The key aspect of our business is that we’re flexible. We can respond to market issues and market demands. Residential is slow, but we feel we have a product that is of great value with Andalucia [a community of 167 homes in Naples]. As a family business employing people with families, we look at how what we’re doing [helps] Lee and Collier counties grow. We’re not always just looking for projects that appeal to tourists or snowbirds. We’re looking for sustainability in our projects and the buildings we build. 4. Which construction projects are you most proud of? We’re proud of all of it. We’re in the last stages of construction for the Vanderbilt Galleria, a five-story, professional office building. The Galleria really embodies our thought process and vision. It’s an office park, but it’s walkable and has features for the employees to enjoy. 5. What’s next on the horizon? We’re excited about Estero on the River [a mixed-use project with riverwalks and lawns flanking the Estero River]. There is a lot of history on that site and we’re working with the historical [society] folks to preserve the history. We’re in the land-planning stages now.