Protocol and communication expert Pamela Eyring joins MHN's Laura Valean to talk about the leadership skills technical expertise can’t replace.
As a multifamily professional, technical expertise can get you in the right room, but it’s your communication skills, presence and trust that often determine what happens next.
In the September episode of Mission Success: Women in Multifamily, MHN Executive Editor Laura Valean sits down with Pamela Eyring, president & owner of The Protocol School of Washington, to examine why the skills often dismissed as “soft” may be better understood as “power skills” in a relationship-driven industry.
Eyring explains how small details—from the way a leasing office greets a prospect to how an executive communicates in a high-stakes meeting—shape perceptions of both the individual and the company. She also discusses the gaps she sees among young professionals entering multifamily and why mentorship, coaching and clear expectations can help translate technical knowledge into workplace readiness.
For women in multifamily, the conversation gets especially practical. Eyring shares advice on projecting confidence without losing authenticity, avoiding communication habits that can undermine credibility and building professional presence over time.
One key takeaway from the conversation is very simple: In an industry built on residents, investors, partners, vendors and teams, people skills are business skills.
Listen to the full episode for practical ideas on building trust and strengthening leadership presence from an etiquette and communication expert.
Here’s what Eyring and Valean talk about:
- (1:23) Why “soft skills” are really “power skills” in multifamily
- (2:43) The gap between technical preparation and workplace readiness
- (5:57) The “everything speaks” principle
- (9:06) Professional presence for women in multifamily
- (15:45) Communication habits that can strengthen or undermine credibility
- (18:29) Managing intergenerational differences in the workplace
- (22:34) How leaders can bridge generational communication gaps
- (24:38) Networking as relationship-building rather than self-promotion
- (28:50) Formal training vs. mentorship and coaching
- (31:24) Giving feedback without bias
- (33:14) Habits women can build early to strengthen leadership presence
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