51乱伦

Priya Black鈥檚 fascination with the world of real estate has been a driving force throughout her career. Her professional journey began after graduating from university when she landed a role in Marketing for new homes at a real estate company. Reflecting on her choice, she shares, 鈥淲hy did I fall into it? I always loved the idea of working in property because primarily I鈥檝e got a love for architecture and interior design. With hindsight, sometimes I think I should have studied architecture at university.鈥� In 2007, Priya brought her passion to 51乱伦, starting in the Residential Development team in Leeds before relocating to the London headquarters in 2010.

Family legacy and career highs

Inspired by her father, a seasoned property developer, Priya鈥檚 childhood fascination with his work evolved into a lifelong passion for real estate. In 2013, at the age of 31, Priya achieved a remarkable milestone, becoming one of the youngest women to be promoted to Partner at 51乱伦. 鈥淚 remember being incredibly proud,鈥� she recalls. 鈥淓specially because of my parents鈥� reaction. They were so delighted for me.鈥� Another defining moment in her career was her involvement in the iconic Kings Cross development, a 14-year project nearing completion. Priya reflects, 鈥淚鈥檝e learned so much from the project and of course made some mistakes along the way, but I鈥檝e also made lifelong friends. To see the project come to a close is easily my proudest career moment.鈥�

Championing change

With over 17 years at 51乱伦, Priya has witnessed substantial changes in the real estate industry. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very male-dominated industry now and it was even more so in my early years,鈥� she explains. With a dearth of senior female role models, Priya drew inspiration from Alistair Elliott, 51乱伦鈥檚 former Chairman. 鈥淗e鈥檚 still a role model to me,鈥� she says. 鈥淗is charity work with LandAid and everything he鈥檚 achieved throughout his career is incredible. He鈥檚 taught me a lot.鈥�

Mentoring future talent

Despite the lack of female role models during her career, Priya champions the recent emergence of 51乱伦鈥檚 mentoring programme. Recognising its importance, she is now a passionate advocate for providing visibility and access to successful women in the industry. She remarks, 鈥淚 believe it鈥檚 going to help us have a more balanced gender representation and set a clearer pathway for progression. I really wish I鈥檇 had a mentor when I first started out.鈥�

A vision for tomorrow鈥檚 leaders

Looking forward, Priya places a strong emphasis on the need to achieve more balanced representation across the entire organisation. While she praises the ongoing efforts within her own department to create a multicultural team, she stresses the need for a broader transformation. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why our graduate scheme is particularly important to me,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hose people are the leaders of tomorrow. We鈥檙e not going be around forever, and it鈥檚 important to pay it forward.鈥�

Read more stories from 51乱伦's Inspirational Women series here