CAROL BULMAN
‘Specific situation’
Carol Conway Bulman, once the heir apparent to Jack Conway & Co., has resigned from the real estate company her father owns.
The resignation comes just weeks after Bulman, 39, was named vice chairman of the Norwell-based firm, one of the largest independent real estate companies in Massachusetts.
Reached last week at her Scituate home, Bulman did not want to talk specifically about her reasons for resigning.
“There was a specific situation but it’s not something that I want to get into,” said Bulman. “Basically, we weren’t seeing eye to eye on some issues and I thought it was best to take some time and put space between me and the company.”
Bulman had spent 19 years at Jack Conway & Co., helping her father, Jack Conway, found Conway Financial Services, a mortgage brokerage company, in 1994. She served as president of Conway Financial Serivces and was recently named vice chairman of Conway & Co., the parent company of CFS.
Jack Conway, chairman of Conway & Co. and CFS, also declined to discuss the specifics of his daughter’s resignation.
“It’s a family matter. I don’t want to comment on it,” said Conway, emphasizing that he has a very good relationship with Bulman.
Conway said that no plans have been made to restructure leadership of the firm, saying only that the company is operating like it always has, with Richard Cahill serving as president of the company and Debbie Campbell serving as senior vice president of CFS.
“Natually we will miss Carol’s talents,” said Conway.
Asked if the door is open for Bulman to return in the future if she so chooses, Conway said, “Positively.”
“The door is always [open]. This is a family company and I hope it will remain a family company,” he said.
In an article for a special section commemorating the 45th anniversary of Jack Conway that was published by Banker & Tradesman in mid-April, Bulman said she spent many years thinking that she had to become more like her father in order to effectively run the company.
“But I don’t feel that way anymore. My dad is my role model, personally and professionally, but he understands that I have to be true to myself and chart my own course. He wouldn’t want it any other way,” she was quoted as saying.
Last Monday, Bulman said she enjoyed working at Jack Conway & Co. and praised her father, Cahill and Campbell.
“I have great respect for my father and Dick Cahill and Deb Campbell, who is overseeing Conway Financial Services,” she said.
Bulman started working for Jack Conway as a file clerk when she was just 15 years old. After graduating from college, she joined the company as a loan processor and originator for Northern Mortgage Co., a full-service subsidiary lender. When Jack Conway sold Northern Mortgage to Mellon Bank in 1994, Bulman was in charge of creating a business plan for the new financial arm of Conway & Co. As a result, Conway Financial Services was born.
When asked about the next stage of her career, Bulman indicated she did not have any immediate plans for taking a new job.
While saying that she did not envision returning to work at Conway & Co. in the near future, she also left that door open, saying, “Nothing is forever.”
“Right now, I’m just enjoying being home with my kids,” said Bulman, who has four children ranging in ages from 7 to 16.
Jack Conway & Co. serves all of Cape Cod and Southeastern Massachusetts, including Plymouth, Norfolk and Bristol counties. Founded in 1957, the company employs roughly 1,000 people, with 659 of them selling real estate.
