Holladay Properties’s Mike Micka, Vice President of Development, Continues His Passion for Real Estate In New Leadership Role

Holladay Properties’s Mike Micka, Vice President of Development, Continues His Passion for Real Estate In New Leadership Role

Few companies play as much a part in shaping the face of Northwest Indiana as Holladay Properties. By offering services like design, construction, development, and management, the company provides businesses and organizations across the Region with a one-stop shop for real estate solutions. Holladay is built on excellent leadership by people like Mike Micka, their Vice President of Development.

Micka, a Valparaiso resident since high school, started working in real estate and construction early on. While in high school, he did some part-time construction work. Then, he attended Purdue North Central, now known as Purdue Northwest, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in accounting. During college, he obtained his real estate license and sold houses. Surprisingly, it was an infomercial that inspired him to enter the real estate business.

“Way back in the day, there used to be a guy who was on midnight TV called Carleton Sheets,” said Micka. “He talked about buying, renting and flipping houses. I was always drawn to that and had done construction work in high school, so that’s why I got my license and sold houses.”

After finishing his degree, he started working in finance at companies like Crowe Horwath, usually doing something related to his longstanding attraction to real estate. Eventually, he got to know Tim Healy, who is now Holladay’s Chief Operating Officer, and John Phair, Holladay’s CEO, and interviewed for a position 10 years ago. He landed the job and began climbing the ladder.

“During my 10 years I’ve really learned the business,” said Micka. “Tim recently got promoted, and he talked to me about taking the leadership role at the Portage office. I’ve had a lot of experiences and touched on a lot of projects, so I understood the ins and outs of Holladay and its environment.”

His new leadership role sees him managing those doing his previous job, the leaders of Holladay’s different development projects around the Region. He’s looking forward to learning the ins and outs of the role, and working with the other talented people of Holladay Properties.

“I’m so excited to work with the team,” he said. “I want to help them reach their goals on different projects. At first, I was skeptical about taking this job because I really enjoyed leading things on the project level because I got to see a job done from start to finish. I’ve come to see my new role as helping everyone else do that same work that I enjoyed.”

One of Micka’s favorite things about working at Holladay is the company culture. It’s a unique environment that fosters openness, creativity, and building strong bonds with co-workers.

“Our company culture is amazing,” said Micka. “Even though there are individual project leaders, we all work together on projects, and we’re constantly interacting with each other on what a building should look like, or what the most effective way to build something is. And at least once a quarter, we get together as a team to go out and have fun. Like in February we’re planning a teambuilding event at Accelerate Speedway.”

When he is not in the office, Micka enjoys spending time with his daughter, playing sports, and working with the different boards he sits on.

“I’m a sports guy,” he said. “In the summers I enjoy getting outside and playing golf, or softball. In the offseason, I play in a couple basketball leagues locally, and I’m on a couple different boards that take some time as well.”

Holladay Properties built its reputation on the skill and talent of leaders like Micka and the teams they helm. For more information about Holladay Properties, go to www.holladayproperties.com.