Diane Baumann Thomas (FCHS ’79)
What’s the best way to become a successful real estate professional? Most people would guess that it’s all about helping others: the obvious example is someone who wants to sell or buy land, a house or a building… maybe even sell and buy. Diane is very good at that, but she also excels at this equally hard part: figuring out and fulfilling the needs of her clients. That means listening, being persistent and making results happen. She has delivered on this career slogan, time and time again: “building a community, one happy household at a time”.
Licensed in Indiana and Kentucky for 28 years, Diane has tallied up some seriously staggering real estate metrics: listings and closings, measured in millions year after year. Her consistent top positions in SIRA (Southern Indiana Realtor Association) speak just as clearly: Realtor of the Year (2010), Realtor Hall of Fame (2012) and president of the Association (2014). Diane is a tireless self-starter and a proven entrepreneur: co-owner of a real estate firm, as well as founder and owner of Smart Designs Building Company along with Rent Quick, Inc. She has helped to assess housing needs, in affiliation with IAR (Indiana Association of Realtors) and worked to boost economic development (Floyd, Clark, Harrison County) through the private sector consulting firm Strategic Development Group, based in Bloomington. At the local level, she has served on the Grievance Panel and chaired the Professional Standards committee, two separate terms in 1996 and 2003.
For some, career satisfaction can be the springboard to another passion. Diane’s discovery has been not just one, but three, at a level of extraordinary involvement. In 1995, Diane plunged into Human Resource Management. Step one: she secured her own SHRM certification. In step two, through an affiliation at U of L, she taught others, 1996-1999, preparing them for their own PHR/SPHR SHRM designations. She was influential at IUS, pushing the HRM concentration field of study ahead, offered now as a post-baccalaureate certificate program in the School of Business.
She’s also made a major commitment to the Tri Kappa Philanthropic Organization, a uniquely Indiana service sorority founded in 1901, with 46 charter chapters and 96 associate chapters across the state. Tri Kappa gives $1.5 million per year to charities. She served two terms on the statewide committee that chooses college students to receive Tri Kappa academic and fine arts scholarships. She’s a past president of the Floyd County chapter, which provides scholarships to NAHS, FCHS and OLPHS seniors. In a parallel fashion, her third passion repeatedly brings her to serve in leadership positions for programs with a focus on youth and education. It includes serving on the Board of Directors for Big Brothers and Sisters Kentuckiana. She has served on the YMCA Board of Directors and also chaired the YMCA’s “Strong Kids” campaigns in 2010 and 2011.
Diane and her husband Mark (NAHS ’74) live in Floyds Knobs. Their adult children Stuart and Karlyn are both FCHS graduates.
I asked Diane to reflect on finding the motivation and the energy to pursue the passions that fall outside her work in real estate. She answered: “helping the lives of others is what makes your life count. It’s what gives your life meaning beyond your career”.
Read the entire March 2023 Legacy Ledger (Issue 31).