Andrew Nash visited Elon as part of the Oct. 30 ‘Lessons from Leaders’ speaker series event.
By Erin Manchuso ’19
Andrew Nash, CEO at PropertyRoom.com, a live online auction website selling confiscated police goods, discussed his career trajectory with senior business students on Oct. 30 as part of the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business ‘Lessons from Leaders’ speaker series.
Prior to his work with PropertyRoom.com, Nash spent a considerable amount of time elevating organizational performance at a number of public and privately owned firms. He is a self-described “serial transformation guy,” with more than 30 years of experience serving in executive leadership roles for companies with strong product or service concepts in need of a strategy turnaround.
Nash began the discussion by shedding some light on his background. He admitted he did not have a purposeful career trajectory. Born and raised in Australia, Nash happened upon a major in accounting and ultimately jumpstarted his career at Deloitte Consulting. Through a series of projects and work opportunities, he found himself working on roles with greater importance to overall company strategy.
“I didn’t seek out executive strategy positions,” Nash said. “I was given challenges in which I needed to see what these roles meant, andI found success by deftly multitasking, prioritizing, etc.”
The job market is different these days, he noted. Technology is greatly changing the way business is done, and the average individual will have 10-20 jobs. To be successful in this environment, students need to learn how to navigate ambiguity, handle less structured roles, and capitalize on results rather than stick with antiquated ways of executing things.
Aside from being a hardworking individual and being able to see a long-term vision, Nash attributes his professional success to a set of core values. He shared the importance of finding one’s own guiding principles and sticking to them.
“When I first started working, I felt like I had to fit into the company’s system of process,” Nash recalled. “With time and experience, I learned my own true north and not to take no for an answer.”
Robert Moorman, Frank Holt, Jr. Professor of Business Leadership and moderator of the ‘Lessons from Leaders’ series commented, “Mr. Nash offered our students the chance to learn from a leader who has repositioned many businesses to succeed in our high-tech world. He showed them how they, too, can find and develop value in businesses that others may not see.”