Building Sustainable Tech Ecosystems with Mike Norde of Inhabit

What makes a technology partnership truly sustainable? Mike Norde, Director of Third-Party Partnerships at Inhabit, reveals the strategy behind one of the industry's most powerful ecosystems. With deep expertise from his leadership roles at Streamline, Mike shares how welcoming competitors actually drives innovation, why treating partners like guests creates lasting relationships, and how to identify vendors who deliver real value versus those peddling empty promises. In this episode, Mike discusses Inhabit's approach to API access, the importance of collaborative problem-solving over blame games, and why happy employees translate to happy guests. He offers practical advice for property managers building their tech stacks and vendors looking to integrate with major platforms. Mike also predicts significant consolidation in property management technology over the next three years, which could reduce costs and headaches for operators. This episode is sponsored by Streamline.

Property management technology partnerships can make or break operational efficiency, yet most platforms struggle to balance openness with sustainability. In this episode of The Vacation Rental Show, host Lynell Gordon speaks with Mike Norde, Director of Third-Party Partnerships at Inhabit, about how thoughtful partnership strategies create value for everyone in the ecosystem while maintaining the infrastructure and support quality that property managers depend on.

What you'll learn:

How open ecosystems with competing vendors drive innovation and give property managers meaningful choice
The red flags that identify unreliable technology vendors and how to avoid costly integration mistakes
Why Inhabit's API strategy balances individual property manager flexibility with platform sustainability
How collaborative problem-solving and "no blame" culture creates partnerships that last decades
The future of property management technology consolidation and what it means for your operations
Practical steps for vetting third-party solutions and building a tech stack that scales

Mike Norde serves as Director of Third-Party Partnerships at Inhabit, where he leads the vacation brands division and oversees one of North America's most comprehensive property management technology ecosystems. With years of experience in multiple leadership roles at Streamline, Mike has witnessed the growth of numerous partner companies from startup operations to industry-leading solutions serving hundreds of thousands of units. His unique perspective combines technical expertise with a deep understanding of hospitality culture, making him one of the most respected voices in property management technology partnerships.

In this conversation, Mike shares the philosophy behind Inhabit's sustainable partnership approach. He explains why they don't partner with everyone who approaches them, how they vet potential vendors using what he calls his "human BS detector," and why watching partner companies grow has been one of the most rewarding aspects of his career. Mike also reveals how Streamline's culture of collaborative problem-solving, where teams have each other's backs even when thrown into the deep end, translates into better outcomes for property managers and guests alike.

Whether you're a property manager evaluating new technology solutions, a vendor seeking to integrate with major platforms, or an industry professional interested in the future of PropTech, this episode offers invaluable insights into building partnerships that create lasting value.

This episode is sponsored by Streamline.

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Previous guests include: Jim DeVos of Best Beach Getaways, Stacy Wesson of Cascara Vacation Rentals, Michael Friedman of The Simple Life Hospitality, Steve Caron of Inhabit, John An of TechTape, Jessica Gillingham of Abode Worldwide, Justin Ford of Breezeway, Mahwussh Alam of One Perfect Stay, Lisa Stinnett of Inhabit, and many more.

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