Last year, Natalie Davis advanced inclusion and belonging across Keller Williams Realty International, serving as director of community growth and company liaison to national Affinity Groups. She launched the first Virtual Inclusion Summit open to all real estate professionals, hosted the inaugural Inclusion & Belonging Affinity Group Community Luncheon and implemented quarterly town halls to foster dialogue and connection. Here she details her career achievements and what’s ahead.
Michael Catarevas: How did you feel being named a 2026 RISMedia Newsmaker?
Natalie Davis: Honestly, I was overwhelmed with joy and gratitude. Being named a RISMedia Newsmaker in 2023 took my breath away. To be recognized again in 2026 for the continued work I am doing in this industry means the world to me. We are talking about an industry with millions of contributing professionals. To be seen among those who are truly moving it forward is humbling. I do not take it lightly.
MC: Can you explain exactly what you do in the role of director of community growth and company liaison to national Affinity Groups?
ND: My role consists of three key parts: Growth, education and inclusion and belonging. The simplest way I describe it is this: I work to ensure that every Keller Williams associate, market center leader and team member has the tools, support and the community they need to show up fully and grow without limits.
On the practical side, that means I work directly with regions and market centers across the KW ecosystem to operationalize inclusion and belonging as a real business strategy. Not a program. Not a campaign. A strategy. I develop and deliver education and training, both live and virtual, designed to help agents understand and serve diverse clients with confidence.
A big part of my work is leadership identification and development. We are identifying the next generation of KW leaders from within the Inclusion and Belonging community and giving them the tools to grow. That includes training, mastermind opportunities and structured development programs.
I also oversee the Affinity Groups within the KW ecosystem. These groups are built by agents, for agents. My job as liaison is to ensure each group has alignment with the broader KW mission, the resources they need to serve their members and consistent visibility across the organization. We hold regular leadership meetings, develop strategic programming and connect those communities to national initiatives and opportunities.
We also publish a monthly I&B Community Newsletter, and we host quarterly Inclusion and Belonging Summits, where leaders, authors and industry practitioners have real conversations about topics that directly impact your business.
The goal behind all of it is the same. When people feel they belong, they perform. They serve their clients better. They build stronger teams. They build businesses that last. My job is to create that environment at every level of this organization, and I take that charge seriously every single day.
MC: How many years have you been a Realtor, and how has business been the last few years?
ND: I have been a licensed Realtor since 2010, building my career in the Colorado market. Over those years I have worked as an independent agent and broker, built a team and invested in a small brokerage before rolling my team into the Keller Williams ecosystem. My areas of specialty are luxury, new construction and first-time homebuyers.
I have the honor of coaching agents all over the country, and what I have witnessed over the last few years has been a real test of resilience for everyone in this industry. And quite honestly it’s a fabulous thing to see. The last few years have ultimately created an even playing field for every practitioner. If you are not analyzing your business to make sure that your business practices and systems are refined to keep you relevant in the future, then you will scramble to stay competitive with others in your market. The agents and leaders who stay focused on relationships, education and their clients’ specific needs are the ones who continue to grow, regardless of market conditions.
MC: Talk about why KW is the right brokerage for you.
ND: Keller Williams gave me the platform to do work that goes beyond individual transactions. The culture here is built around contribution. People genuinely want to pour into each other. That aligned with everything I believe what this business should be.
When I saw the opportunity to step into the director of community growth role, I knew this was an organization serious about inclusion and belonging as a business strategy, a service to our KW associates and a resource to grow our market centers. Given the inclusion and belonging work that I have done within the industry, KW has given me the relationships, and the reach to continue to do this work on a national scale. That is rare. That is why this is home.
MC: Talk about the two books you’ve written.
ND: The first is my Magical Mornings Affirmation and Gratitude Journal. I created it because I needed a single place to record both affirmations and gratitudes as part of my morning routine. The product did not exist in the market the way I needed it, so I built it. This is a book that I use every day and has a tremendous impact on my daily mindset.
My second book, The Quiet Gift, is the first in the Red Journal series, which I co-authored with my business partner, Pamela Cass, in 2025. The series is connected to our Reignite Resilience podcast community and shines a light on identifying your self worth without external validation.
Soon I am releasing the second book in the series, Meaningful Success: How Clarity and Alignment Drive Real Achievement. The core message is based on the idea to stop proving and start living free. Too many high performers are chasing metrics that have nothing to do with what actually matters to them. So the book spotlights this and creates a framework to break free of it.
MC: Do you feel minorities are represented well enough in the real estate industry?
ND: That is a great question. I think that we have made progress in this space but there is still much work to be done. If we look at the data from NAR back in 2020 (the most recent data that speaks to income and demographic representation in the industry), non-Hispanic white agents make up 70% of the industry while representing 62% of the general population. Black agents represent just 5% of the industry when the general population is closer to 14%. Hispanic and Latino agents make up roughly 13% of the industry while representing nearly 19% of the overall population. We are not close to proportionate.
I am grateful for the progress that has been made. I am grateful to companies like Keller Williams that make inclusion a priority by creating space for the creation and growth of affinity groups like ours. I’m grateful for the conversations that have been had and continue on today. And my hope is that we, as an industry, understand the importance of individuals seeing people that look like them in boardrooms, leading organizations and companies. And then making a commitment to applying this same understanding to business strategies and practices so we can all continue to build together.
MC: Tell us about your life away from work.
ND: I am a proud empty-nester with two amazing adult daughters. It’s beautiful to watch these humans on their own life’s journey. I love to travel with them and my significant other. Seeing new parts of the world keeps me curious and grounded.
I am also a podcaster and love it. I co-host the Reignite Resilience Podcast and just launched the Leadership That Shines Podcast as a solo show in 2026. Both bring me genuine joy. They are spaces where real conversations happen and I am watching communities form from each.
Working out and getting out on the trails or simply getting outside in nature here in Colorado keeps my mind sharp and my energy high. Colorado is an extraordinary place to live, and I take full advantage of it.
