After more than nine years in the role, and over 15 years in total with the company, STOREYS has learned that Royal LePage Chief Operating Officer Carolyn Cheng is retiring at the end of November.
Cheng stepped into the newly created role of COO in May 2016, and over the next near-decade she was tasked with leading the broker and agent services team, and contributing to the profitability and potential of the company through the development of products and services.
“This appointment comes on the heels of a period of tremendous growth for the company. The Royal LePage brand is resonating as never before as a wholly-owned Canadian company that designs and delivers leading real estate services in Canada for Canadians,” wrote Royal LePage Chief Executive Officer Phil Soper in an appointment notice from 2016.
In addition to her positions with Royal LePage, Cheng spent two years as Director of Strategic Business Services and over four years as Vice President of Strategic Business Services at Royal LePage.
She’s also spent time with Brookfield Real Estate Services (as Senior Vice-President of Strategic Business Services), Brookfield Residential Property Services (as Director of Business Development), and Deloitte Consulting (as Senior Consultant).
A clear power-player in North American residential real estate, Cheng has been featured on the Swanepoel Power (SP) 200 list for six years running, most recently ranking 141, alongside CEO Phil Soper. The list celebrates those who are making powerful moves at a national, and sometimes even multinational, scale in residential real estate.
“Carolyn has had a huge impact on the success of our business over the past quarter century. The real estate brokerage world has evolved rapidly since the turn of the millennium. Her focus on developing and executing services that are meaningful for our agents and brokerages has helped keep us at the forefront of an incredibly competitive industry,” said Royal LePage CEO Phil Soper in an announcement letter sent to the company earlier today and supplied to STOREYS.
“Carolyn has not only been a valued colleague, but also a friend to me and many others. She will be greatly missed, and we wish her much success in her future endeavours.”
On top of her professional accolades, Cheng — a graduate of The London School of Economics and Political Science — is notably an award-winning landscape photographer who has had her work displayed in several Canadian galleries including the Art Gallery of Hamilton, the Robert McLaughlin Gallery, and TMU’s Paul H. Cocker Gallery, among others.
In the wake of Cheng’s departure, Soper also announced a series of promotions at Royal LePage, including Kelly McCain to VP, Services Delivery and Development, David Piaia to VP, Brokerage Technology & AI Enablement, and Anne-Elise Cugliari Allegritti to VP, Research and Communications.