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Executive Coach, ClientWise LLC; Executive Leadership Coach, Partners in Building Better LLC

From place to place, career to career, Regina Koetters has done a lot in her life. Now, after receiving a master’s degree from CU Boulder, she’s happy to settle into work that she’s passionate about in the real estate industry.

A nontraditional path

Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, Koetters entered the United States Naval Academy straight from high school. She went into aviation as a naval flight officer and was deployed in various places around the United States and Europe. She went to Iraq following the 9/11 attacks.

With all her Navy travel experiences, she developed an interest in real estate development. “I noticed just how incredibly influential the built environment is on the kinds of relationships people have with each other, the city, and ultimately, the lives that people lead,” she said.

Koetters decided to go back to school to get an MBA at the University of Michigan. Following a move to Pittsburgh to pursue an urban planning project, she was recalled to Iraq for a year and then returned to Pittsburgh, where she opened a business in 2012 to help address market inefficiencies with small farms. Although pouring everything she saved into the business, she ultimately made the tough decision to close it in 2016.

Then followed a few more years with the Navy. After that, she relocated to Louisville, Colorado, and began pursuing her master’s in real estate at CU.

Helping business professionals

Koetters parlayed her life and work experiences into becoming a self-employed executive coach. She enjoys advising clients when their businesses are facing a problem, although she said she has never really loved the term ‘coach.’ “It infers that I have a playbook and I just say ‘go run these plays.’ That’s not what happens—I'm much more of a person that helps clients rewire what they believe is possible and what they believe is true about themselves.”

Koetters knows that being your own boss has its challenges, saying there’s no one to rely on but yourself. She can draw from that personal experience, empathizing with business owners about the stress of running a company.

“It’s like everyone in your life is mad at you or wants something from you,” she said. “Very few people are coming to you and saying, ‘Are you okay?’ Most business owners don’t realize how stressful it is.”

She considers herself to be a thought and accountability partner for her business clients. “They really are the ones who decide what's important and what they want to achieve. And I just help them do that—faster and with less pain.”

“I’m a builder at heart. I’m excited to join a great team that’s building great places to live and work, and to put all my skills into practice.”

Regina Koetters (MRelEst’24)

Diversity as a strength

Throughout her career, Koetters has often been a minority in the room—whether it has been as a woman in the Naval Academy, a young person within the commercial real estate industry, or as a nontraditional student. She’s used these experiences to learn and ensure that she’s building a culture of equity and inclusion in each industry she serves.

“Each one of us carries these biases,” she said. “We have to be aware of them so we're able to effectively navigate in a work environment.”

With her master’s degree in hand, Koetters is thrilled to be in the commercial real estate industry.

“I’m a builder at heart,” she said. “I’m excited to join a great team that’s building great places to live and work, and to put all my skills into practice.”