The Announcement:
Leading property valuation and advisory firm Opteon has appointed Karen Bates as Head of Agribusiness & Advisory, following a competitive recruitment process.
Ms Bates will lead the newly established Agribusiness Department within Opteon’s Specialist Real Estate division, bringing extensive experience in economic development and property valuation.
The appointment comes as part of Opteon’s strategic growth plans for its Agribusiness department, focusing on innovation, team expansion, and relationship building.
Ms Bates transitions from her current role as Director – Commercial, Agribusiness and Advisory for Newcastle and Central Coast at Opteon, where she has successfully led the valuation team through a period of significant growth.
With nearly two decades of experience as a regional economic development specialist across Western Australia, South Australia, and Queensland, Ms Bates brings valuable expertise in both ground-level operations and high-level policy development.
“Karen’s strategic leadership, technical valuation skills and experience of working in economic development across many regional areas of Australia are well aligned to the position,” Dan Hill, National Director Specialist Real Estate & Residential Development said.
“Opteon’s goal is to grow the Agribusiness department to the next level through a focus on our people, innovation of product and process, growth of our teams, fostering existing client relationships and leveraging networks to forge new relationships with market participants.”
Ms Bates returned to property valuation in 2013, seeking a family-friendly career path.
Her commitment to industry advancement led her to co-found the Women in Property Valuation community in 2021, which now boasts over 280 members across Australia.
She currently serves as a member of the API NSW State Committee and as an API Examiner for valuer candidate interviews, demonstrating her ongoing commitment to industry development.
