Erik Russell Edeen, Principal & Senior Director of US Investment Sales, Avison Young
Erik Russell Edeen, Principal & Senior Director of US Investment Sales, Avison Young
Learning by Doing
Starting out as a financial analyst on an institutional investment sales team gave me invaluable insight into underwriting institutional-quality deals and operating under pressure— especially on large-scale transactions. But just as important as technical skill was adopting the mindset that no job is too small. I’ve always been willing to take on any task I’d ask of someone else, and that mindset led me into areas outside my formal job description. Whether it was marketing strategy, tech implementation, or operational support, diving into those adjacent functions gave me a broader understanding of how the business works.
That perspective allows me to lead more effectively today—I can anticipate where teams may face friction and frame decisions in a way that sets them up to deliver the strongest results possible.
Clarity Before Execution
In my current role, I’m responsible for both strategic execution and daily operations across a large team. Balancing those demands starts with setting a clear strategic direction. Once we know where we want to go, we can align the right people with the right goals and responsibilities so that we’re all rowing in the same direction.
I like to stay hands-on with our data systems and go-to-market strategy, but I also have incredibly capable team members who drive day-to-day execution. We’ve built a structure where results act as a feedback loop. If something’s working, we build on it. If it’s not, we adjust. That ongoing iteration helps us consistently improve and deliver better outcomes for our clients.
Redefining a Successful Deal
That alignment and structure have enabled us to perform even as the market has shifted dramatically. Over the years, I’ve led transactions totaling more than $5 billion— and I can confidently say that the definition of a “successful deal” has changed.
The market over the past five years has been fundamentally different from the decade before. In New York, we’ve had to navigate major disruptions, from the rent law changes in 2019 and the onset of the pandemic in 2020 to a historic rise in interest rates. Every headline today has the potential to reshape investor risk strategies.
In this environment, it’s more important than ever to bring product to market that is risk-mitigated and backed by a clear, compelling investment story. We take pride in our ability to track sentiment and anticipate how capital will respond. Our variance between broker opinion of value and final sale price is consistently within 5 percent, which speaks to the accuracy of our underwriting and the strength of our positioning. That level of precision—something we are now rolling out nationally—is key to succeeding in today’s unpredictable environment.
Success today is about precision, narrative, and execution. That’s where we excel.
Thriving Amid Volatility
Of course, with continued capital markets volatility, challenges persist. Volatility is no longer an exception—it’s the baseline. The disconnect between buyer and seller expectations, shifting lending conditions, and wide differences across regional markets all contribute to a more complex capital matching process.
One of the biggest challenges in my role is helping clients and investors move forward in the face of uncertainty. Buyers want optionality, but deals require conviction. We’ve evolved how we tell the story of each asset and how we support it with real-time data. Our national USIS platform was built for this moment. It connects best-in-class local expertise with broad national capital relationships, allowing us to position deals more effectively and bring in the right buyer for each asset.
Advice for the Next Generation
For those entering the industry today, I believe the most important mindset is curiosity. In a market where deals take longer and every step is more complex, you need the curiosity to understand what’s changing and the drive to think one step ahead. That next-level thinking is what prepares you to deliver on the next assignment.
No one can make you like this business. You have to find that passion on your own. Just as someone might dive deep into a hobby they love, you have to show up every day excited to tackle challenges. If you don’t wake up curious, it’s hard to last in this business.