Career

A Day in the Life of Karolina Kmiecik, Head of Communications in Chicago

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

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Tell us about your role and responsibilities at Slate Asset Management.

I joined Slate in 2021 from a strategic communications agency, at an exciting inflection point when the firm was really accelerating its global expansion. In addition to maintaining our strong presence in Canada, my focus was on enhancing Slate’s profile among key stakeholders in the U.S. and Europe with a coordinated global communications, marketing, and branding strategy.

Day to day, I work closely with our investment and asset management teams, as well as our various functional teams – including investor solutions, compliance, and ESG – to ensure that Slate’s broader communications strategy is implemented through our external communications, our presence at conferences and events, engagement with the media, digital channels, and much more.

6:00 AM

Wake up – usually with my dog, Cooper, impatiently waiting for his morning walk. I do a quick scan of my emails and the morning headlines and respond to anything pressing.

6:30 AM

Take a quick run around my neighborhood. I had a lot of fun running a 5K race recently and am now training for a 10K with the ultimate goal of completing a half marathon before the end of the year.

8:00 AM

First coffee of the day. I like to start with a latte and usually follow with a cortado later in the afternoon.

9:30 AM

Meeting with our investment team in Europe to discuss upcoming acquisition communications. We’ve completed over €420M of essential real estate acquisitions in Europe year to date, with a robust pipeline of deals in various stages of underwriting.

11:00 AM

Heat up my lunch. I like to prep a handful of healthy meals on Sunday that I can enjoy during the week – my current favorite is a turkey sweet potato skillet.

3:00 PM

Meet with our Head of Responsible Investment. The publication deadline for our 2024 Sustainability Report is coming up, and it’s a collaborative effort to draft, edit, and design all the content.

5:00 PM

Catch up on emails that have come in throughout the day and new headlines from the last 12 hours.

7:30 PM

I decompress by cooking dinner every night and taking my dog for a long evening walk.

What trends are shaping the communications landscape in private equity real estate and infrastructure today?

Shrinking newsrooms and the acceleration of digital media have pushed us to think creatively about how we leverage Slate’s owned channels to communicate with investors, attract top talent, and engage a broad range of stakeholders. We’ve spent a lot of time investing in our website, LinkedIn, Instagram, and other platforms to reach these audiences and tell compelling stories about our brand and business.

It’s also essential in this industry to closely follow global political, economic, and regulatory developments and to understand how they may impact not only our business, but also our tenants, investors, and employees. And, of course, clear, proactive communication that addresses emerging challenges, opportunities, and risks is essential to keeping our stakeholders informed, maintaining trust, and reinforcing alignment with Slate’s long-term vision.

What is a project you’ve completed or experience you’ve had at Slate that you are particularly proud of?

This year marks the 20^th anniversary of Slate’s founding, and it’s been so exciting to work on our communications campaign to recognize this really significant milestone. It’s an opportunity for us to reaffirm to investors, employees, partners, and other key stakeholders our track record and reputation, and to highlight all that we have accomplished over the last two decades. From designing a special 20-year logo to thinking through events and social media campaigns, looking back on Slate’s history and evolution has been such an energizing experience; it’s made me feel so proud to be part of such an incredible firm. We have some great activations planned for our teams and clients to celebrate Slate’s journey, and I’m looking forward to seeing our plans come to life over the next few months.

Beyond this year’s milestone anniversary, it’s always exciting to work on transactions that see Slate entering a new market and further scaling our global footprint. Late in 2024, we announced our first acquisition in Iberia – a portfolio of 12 grocery properties in Portugal valued at approximately €150 million. As the team responsible for all external communications around these deals, we have the unique privilege of helping to “plant the flag” in new markets on behalf of the firm, shaping the narrative and reinforcing Slate’s expanding global presence.

What do you think makes an effective communicator and what does that look like in practice?

There’s so much that goes into being an effective communicator, but one thing that I think is critical is the ability to distil complex details into a more concise and simple narrative that is easy for people to understand and engage with. This is especially important in real estate, where we often need to convey complex financial nuances and do so in a way that also considers the audience, whether that be investors, brokers, regulators, tenants, or community members.

What is a ritual you practice that helps set you up for success every day?

I really try to prioritize doing something for myself every morning – whether that be trying out a new workout studio, going for a run or a quick ride on my Peloton, or walking my dog through my neighborhood in Chicago. I find that when I take some time for myself early on, I can show up better for others throughout the remainder of my day. In the afternoons, when I’m commuting home from work, I unwind by indulging in some pop culture podcasts. It’s a bit of a guilty pleasure, but it gives me an outlet to unplug from the economic and political news I consume throughout the day.