Brad Hinkelman is the CEO of Casacol in Medellin, Colombia, a prominent figure in Colombian real estate and hospitality with a strong background in business administration and finance. He graduated from Simon Fraser University and furthered his finance studies at NYU. Hinkelman has a robust Fortune 500 career background and moved to Medellin to pursue his dream of building a real estate and hospitality empire.
As the leader of Casacol, Hinkelman oversees a team of 300 employees and maintains close ties with local industry affiliations and government policy makers. His work is well-recognized, particularly for the Casacol Foundation’s significant contributions during the Covid-19 pandemic, including massive food donations.
Hinkelman is an avid speaker on topics like entrepreneurship, real estate tends, team building, and the transformation of Medellin and Colombian tourism. He focuses on integrity, leadership, and tenacity, aiming to build a brand that creates jobs and benefits the community while navigating cultural differences.
Despite the challenges of the pandemic, Hinkelman’s leadership ensured no layoffs at Casacol, maintaining the highest rates and occupancy in the local hotel industry. He emphasizes the importance of family and guest experience in his business approach and is constantly engaged in learning and networking to address market needs over a 5-10 year horizon. His vision and dedication are reflected in exceptional reviews on platforms like Google, Booking.com, and Airbnb, showcasing his commitment to excellence in real estate and hospitality.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
I start my day early with family, then a workout to start the creative and competitive “juices”. Then, I review my to-do list, prioritizing the most important tasks. I focus on clear communication with my team and set and review specific goals for every day. I take short breaks, usually coffee with staff or investors to stay fresh and. Ending the day with another review of the to-do list helps me feel accomplished every day and prepare for tomorrow.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I share my (sometimes crazy) ideas with my team to get their input and test feedback from individuals. We brainstorm together in a weekly team meeting and plan out the steps needed to make the idea work. As a company and as people we are constantly evolving, improving. Attention to detail is a core value of the company and essential to both construction and hospitality. I believe in testing ideas internally quickly to see what works and what doesn’t. Then I test again with our investors. Feedback is key, I always listen to others’ opinions more than I provide my own. We adjust the plan on every project every operation as needed and keep moving forward.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Apart from the ever growing interest in Colombian tourism, I’m excited about the rise of sustainable and eco-friendly building practices. It’s amazing to see how technology is helping us build greener. People are more interested in living and working and staying in green buildings. For example green cement is now stronger and soon to be cheaper than traditional production methods. The same is happening with green steel. Glass technology has advanced tremendously. And inside the hotels we’ve removed all plastic bottles opting for elegantly designed in room water filters. It all adds up to good design, good business and responsible practices.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
I religiously follow my to-do list which is always about 100 items long in 7-10 categories. It helps me stay focused on what’s important. I also break big, complex tasks into smaller steps to make them more manageable. Staying organized with my tasks keeps me on track and not letting anything slip through the cracks. I try to keep internal meetings to 30 minutes or less. I used to work for a company where more meetings made you look busier and more important. In my business the opposite is true unless those meetings are strictly revenue producing.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Don’t be afraid to take risks and follow your dreams as early as possible. Entrepreneurship gets harder the older you get. Once you’re locked into a good career and family it’s harder to start a company. Make as many mistakes as necessary as long as you learn from them. Stay curious and keep learning new things, never become complacent with success. Treat and pay key staff like partners not employees.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you on?
I believe that challenges and failures are the best teachers. Many people see them as setbacks, but I see them as opportunities to grow. Facing difficulties helps us build resilience. It’s through overcoming challenges that we become stronger and wiser. I think more people should embrace this mindset.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Get organized and stay organized, focused on a goal. Some people work hard without being pointed in a specific direction. If you have a hard time getting organized in business and life then having specific, written goals can help. Otherwise highly organized and productive individuals are constantly driving to the goal in an almost innate, industrial fashion.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
Sometimes a walk outside helps me reset, it can be alone or with someone who listens well to the issue at hand. Owning a business is unfortunately about solving a lot of problems. I also try to focus on one task, one meeting, one person at a time instead of multitasking on my phone. A long run getting your heart rate up and keeping it there also has some great effects after 30-45 minutes. Aside from that nothing will help you reset your perspectives more than engaging with your children, it’s all that really matters at the end of the day.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
At some point a small business becomes bigger with multiple layers of management and you lose some touch with every single employee, client etc. When the culture and success you’ve built is founded on certain core values you should document those values and make sure every new employee understands what made the company successful in the first place. People, customers, suppliers, should hear and see you and your core values in their interactions with your staff.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
Real estate development is inherently risky and there can and will be unforeseen events and costs that can bite you. I had one project that went way over budget after the COVID period. Investors were sold a product that was hard to build to spec and also maintain profits. Cutting corners is not in my DNA so I covered the costs and learned the hard way. But if it was earlier in my career it could have been a much bigger setback.
What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
I’ve inspired a lot of people to create businesses similar to mine and I would continue to encourage them. Lots of competition is a sign of a healthy market and the market decides who are the winners and losers. But I don’t spend a lot of time thinking of new business ideas, mostly ideas to improve my own.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
My god I don’t know how people live without using WhatsApp, using anything else for communication is just a productivity killer.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
I found the Lex Fridman podcast when he was just getting started and I find his conversations awe inspiring, he’s like the modern day Charlie Rose on steroids. Business books like Zero to One (Thiel/Masters) and Principles (Dalio) are great for entrepreneurs.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
Unfortunately the only screen time I get now is on Disney or cartoons with my girls. Years ago I watched Dark on Netflix like 3 times.
Key learnings:
- Strong relationships and networking are crucial for business growth and problem-solving.
- Facing challenges and learning from failures are essential for personal and professional growth.
- Clear goal-setting and using project management tools enhance productivity and team efficiency.