Tributes have been paid to Michael Del Medico, a director in Colliers’ property management team, who died on 30 December after contracting Covid-19 late in the year. He was 47.
Del Medico joined Colliers from CBRE last April, having already worked in the sector for 20 years. Earlier in his career he worked at JLL.
Mark Jarrett, head of property management at Colliers, described Del Medico as “one of the best all-round surveyors and team leaders I’ve ever come across”, adding: “Michael was only with Colliers for a short time but made a significant contribution to our team from day one – he was a real force of nature.”
Jarrett continued: “Michael was a people person with a unique personality that everyone warmed to, making him a natural leader. We loved having him around the office for his wisdom, humour and leadership and we will miss him dearly. We know that he will be remembered fondly by all those across the industry who had the good fortune to work with him, and we wanted to provide a platform for friends, colleagues and clients, past and present, to share memories and pay tribute to him.”
Many of Del Medico’s colleagues at Colliers and other firms have also shared their memories of working with a man known to many as “Del Boy”.
Anna O’Donnell, associate director in Colliers’ property management team, said: “Del Boy, where do I start? I’d say in a pub somewhere. Mike has been at the heart of every team he has been a part of, a true inspiration to many. He knew how to balance being serious and getting the job done whilst ensuring that he was the butt of many jokes in the office. His passing has left a hole in many people’s hearts and all I can hear is his famous saying: ‘incredible scenes!’ RIP Michael, I’ll never forget you.”
At Nuveen, Paul Rought, head of asset management oversight for Europe, who studied with Del Medico and then worked with him at King Sturge and CBRE, said: “Through a mutual friend at university I met Del in the late 1990s before I first started working with him at King Sturge. His professional approach and demeanour exactly mirrored the character I met a couple of years before on that Guildford pub crawl – self-deprecating, opinionated in a positive way, and most of all demonstrating a love of talking to and being genuinely interested in people. Like so many others, I’m hugely proud to call Del my friend and will miss him terribly. Every time I see Bob Mortimer’s Train Guy or Spurs or the 49ers on TV I will think about the idiot with no dress sense and a smile, knowing how lucky I was to laugh with him so many times.”
Paul Edwards, director in asset management at Legal & General, described Del Medico as “a dedicated professional”, adding: “Mike was a self-deprecating person with a wonderful sense of humour. He would never use one word when 10 would do, so we always knew never to raise his beloved Spurs as a topic of conversation. Above all Mike cared. He cared about his team and he cared about his clients and was very good at diffusing difficult situations with his charm and wit. Mike will be greatly missed. The whole L&G team send their thoughts and prayers to Mike’s wife, children and family.”
Colliers HR director Lydia Ings, who also worked with Del Medico at King Sturge, said: “Mike gave of himself without hesitation whether it was helping out with graduate support or sitting on promotion panels. He was someone who I found to be both authentic and compassionate in his style – qualities of a great leader. I do recall him throwing some good shapes on the dance floor at the King Sturge Christmas parties and he was always game for a laugh – his smile is never far away which always made him approachable and open.”
Mark Stupples from JMark Consultants, another former colleague, said: “He was such a lovely bloke – a glint in his eye and always ready to party, but someone you could always rely upon. He never quite realised how good he was – which again was part of his charm. He will be greatly missed!”
Sarah Crockford, a senior director in CBRE’s property management team, said: “Having worked with him at King Sturge and until recently at CBRE, I always valued his view on life. He seemed to roll to the beat of his own drum, and always had some story to tell to entertain, but he also had a way of cutting through the politics and I loved that he thought differently. He’d also hate me for saying this, but he really did care about the people around him. Michael really was one of the genuine ones.”
Jo Edwards, head of Colliers’ Bristol office and a former colleague from Del Medico’s JLL days, recalled taking part in a training session together in which they made a mock promotional video for a fictitious company they ran: “It was so cringey to film and even worse to edit and watch back, however Mike took it in his stride,” he said. “We laughed all the way through and tried to forget it over many beers that evening. Despite his views on the course’s usefulness in day-to-day working life, on which he was not shy about feeding back, he always threw himself into everything he did. He was one of a kind and will be sorely missed.”
Neil Worrall, head of property management at Montagu Evans, said: “I was lucky enough to know Mike for over 20 years through his King Sturge and JLL days, and probably spent too many (or perhaps not enough) fun evenings with him! ‘Del Boy’ was a wonderful character and will be sorely missed.”
Spencer Jones, an associate director at Colliers, said: “I have known Mike for over 20 years, going back to our King Sturge days, then JLL and was fortunate enough to be at Colliers with him too. Always a happy soul, great company (especially in a pub) – shame about his choice of football team though!”
Simon Speakman, associate director at Colliers, said: “I remember Michael always saying to me before any client meeting that he wouldn’t say a word, then within five seconds of the meeting starting he’d be interrupting! He was always the first to say he talks too much, which was true. I even missed turning off a junction on the motorway on one of our site visits because he was rabbiting on so much! It’s hard to believe that he’s no longer with us and is hugely missed.”
The Del Medico family has set up a Just Giving page to raise funds in Del Medico’s memory for the St Helier Hospital Intensive Care Unit. To donate please visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/karen-del-medico
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