How Ken Ashley Survived 2009 and Rebuilt for Volatile Cash Flow

Ken Ashley has spent nearly 30 years at Cushman & Wakefield Atlanta, but the conversation that shaped his career happened over breakfast in the mid-90s. In this episode, Ken shares how that breakfast pulled him out of a CFO role and into commercial real estate, and why he's spent the rest of his career trying to repay it.We dig into the 2009 downturn, when his wife Karen sat him down in tears and told him they were in trouble. Ken walks through the two paths in front of him, the one he chose, and the permanent changes he made to his business afterward, including building a roster of 14 enterprise accounts (with a goal of 20) to smooth out lumpy cash flow.We also cover:His marketing thesis after COVID and why the buddy-call model is dyingThe difference between sales and marketing, and how social media earns him the right to ask senior execs for adviceWhy he stayed at a big shop for three decades and what it actually unlocksCREI Summit 2026 in Savannah and the Create Lab content sessionsHis new book, The Prescription, launching March 10thIf you're a CRE broker trying to build a career that survives the next downturn, this one's worth your time.