Certified Lease Professional (CLP)

The Board of Directors of the Certified Lease Professional (CLP) Foundation is pleased to announce that Leslie Brown, Senior Portfolio Manager at TEAM Funding Solutions (TEAM) passed the CLP exam and has earned the coveted CLP Designation.

Ted Reynolds, President at TEAM had this to say, “At TEAM, we encourage our staff to continually advance their education through various courses and certifications, particularly by earning their CLP designation. People who have their CLP’s are more skilled, productive and confident with their daily work. Not only does a CLP education demonstrate a high level of excellence, but it also provides a refined knowledge for individuals to properly pursue their career goals. Leslie Brown has been with TEAM for over 7 years and performs at an extraordinary level. She displays amazing passion in every aspect of her life. It’s a real treasure to be associated with her.”

Ms. Brown also weighed in, “Nothing worth having comes easily – achieving my CLP certification took hard work and dedication.  My rewards are knowledge and accomplishment.  On my path to becoming a professional in this thriving and honorable industry, I realized that becoming a CLP was a must.  I’m truly grateful for the opportunity.”

The CLP designation identifies you as a knowledgeable professional to employers, clients, customers, and peers in the leasing industry. There are currently 169 Certified Lease Professionals throughout the world. For more information, call Reid Raykovich at (206) 535-6281 or visit www.clpfoundation.org              

Have you ever wanted to attend a Master Review Class but been unable to travel to an NEFA or NAELB Conference?  The CLP Foundation is pleased to offer you the opportunity to purchase the materials used in the class.  For $150, you will receive a printed and bound folder containing all of the Master Review Class content.  If you’d prefer to receive an electronic copy via e-mail, the cost is $100.  As an added value, the CLP Foundation will give you a $50 credit toward the cost of the CLP Exam if you sit for the exam within 12 months of your purchase.

Contact Reid Raykovich, CLP, at (206) 535-6281 or reid@clpfoundation.org for further information.

Please give a short description of your background in the industry.

You could say that I grew up in the leasing industry.  In 1984 my mother, Bette Kerhoulas, founded Pacifica Capital, a full-service equipment financing and leasing firm located in Southern California.  I was in fifth grade at the time and loved to help Mom out by keeping the funding logs, balancing the checkbook, and organizing funded files.  It was at this tender age of 10 that I fell in love with this industry.  I worked at Pacifica part time throughout high school and college and spent the majority of my time in credit, calling bank and trades references, and preparing submission packages, and I was the master of the original TRW pulling system.  I gradually moved into documentation and funding, all while obtaining my degree in Economics from the University of California, Irvine.  I have been a full-time member of the Pacifica team since 1994, and through the years have been involved in most aspects of operations, including accounting, human resources, systems management, and sales.  Currently, I focus on all general company operations, as well as cultivate and manage key client accounts and vendor relationships.  I became a Certified Lease Professional (CLP) in 1999 and have been actively involved in the Southern California Region of NEFA (formerly UAEL) since 2006.  I served on the Board of Directors for UAEL in 2008 and was recently voted onto the 2013 CLP Board of Directors.

What is your favorite thing about the industry?

There is no doubt that my favorite thing about this industry is getting the opportunity to work with so many incredibly smart and creative people.  Each transaction I work on requires so many individuals to collaborate and look for the best way to get that deal done.  This starts with a hard-working team here at Pacifica, who always conduct themselves with integrity and honesty to treat all of our lessees, vendors, service providers, and underwriters with respect.  Their dedication enables Pacifica to maintain many long-term relationships with our lessees and vendors, who provide over 60% of our repeat business.  The other 40% is made up of referrals from current and previous lessees, underwriters who are contacted directly, and other business relationships, such as accountants and attorneys who send their clients to us knowing they will be well taken care of.  Finally, I really enjoy working with the foundation of our business, the lenders and underwriters who provide us the capital to help our customers grow their business.  Their ability to think outside the box enables Pacifica to accommodate most lessee or vendor requests and get almost every deal funded.

What are the biggest challenges in your day?

As most parents might agree, my biggest daily challenge is time management.  There are just not enough hours in the day to be able to get everything completed at the office and still allow for ample time at home.  That is especially true now that I have been blessed with two amazing children, Ava (age 4) and Ryan (age 2).  It is only with the support of my wonderful family and friends that I am able to rely on others to help out with the kids so that I have the opportunity to be an integral part of Pacifica.  But it does not end there.  My choice to be a working mother requires that my schedule be flexible so that I have the ability to participate in the various school functions and the necessary doctor appointments.  In a recent industry conference in Las Vegas, Bryan Dodge conducted an inspirational seminar called “Time Management & Work/Home Balance.”  In it, he stressed the need for one to keep their life in balance.  “It’s quantity of time at home.  It’s quality of time at work.”  Each day, I strive to make my time at work as productive as possible, so that when I am home with my family I am able to focus on them and really BE THERE with them.

What has helped you in business the most?

There is no doubt in my mind that what has helped me in this business the most is the invaluable lessons I learned by growing up in this industry.  In my 20+ years at Pacifica, I have done everything.  I have held every position and performed every task.  The time that I have put in at each stop along the way, has given me a foundation of leasing that is immeasurable.  By personally working in each department, I am able to better predict the path a lease takes, from credit, through documentation, to funding and beyond, into customer service and subsequent deals.

What is the most interesting place you have ever visited or traveled?

The most interesting place I have ever visited is the beautiful country of Italy.  I have traveled there three times, and each stay has had a profound effect on me and marked a major shift in my life.  I was a teenager during my first trip to Italy and as a recent high school graduate, very excited to explore Europe.  I was introduced to many different cultures and really taught to be open to different foods, ideas, and people.  I came home with a desire to learn more about history and religion, and vowed to try as many new foods as possible.  My second trip was almost ten years later, and after a week of discovering historical sites, visiting wineries, and relaxing on the Amalfi Coast, I was elated when my boyfriend proposed to me in Venice.  Our last trip was just six years ago, and it was there that we enjoyed the more rural parts of the country, began a love affair with Tuscan wine, and decided to start our family.  We are looking forward to taking our children to Italy someday and hope that they, too, will appreciate and fall in love with the incredible country that means so much to us.

What is the last book you read?

The last book I read was Little Princes, by Conor Grennan.  I was just drawn to it at an airport gift shop during a weekend getaway with my husband Justin.  Little Princes is a true story of how in search of adventure, the author volunteered at an orphanage in Nepal.  It was there that he discovered that the children were not orphans at all, but rather taken by child traffickers who promised parents (for a fee) to protect their children from the effects of civil war.  Once they led the children far from home, they either abandoned them in Kathmandu or sold them into slavery.  Grennan committed to reunite the children with their parents and risked his life in the mountains of Nepal to bring the children home.  I was unable to put the book down and spent the vast majority of our flight and vacation, laughing, crying, and wanting to protect not only my own children, but all children.  It is an inspiring book that makes you feel good and reminds you that we can all make a difference in the world.