George Vumbaca

    There are not many people who can say that they have worked continuously in the same industry, or at the same company, for 50 years, but George Vumbaca, principal of Jamesons Strata, is one person who can.

    George began working in the strata industry in 1973, as an employee of C N Jameson and Associates. He saw the potential of, and enjoyed working in, the strata industry so much, that he bought the company in 1980. To this day, George and his family continue to own and manage Jamesons, as well as a number of other strata management and affiliated strata businesses.

    George Vumbaca began his working life in banking after completing Year 10 at Asquith Boys’ High School in 1965 and gaining his School Certificate. George began working for the Commercial Banking Corporation of Sydney in January 1966 at the Lindfield branch. During the next three years, whilst working for the bank by day, he studied at TAFE five nights per week in order to gain his Matriculation Certificate, which would allow him entry to university. He had quickly realised that career advancement in the bank was slow, but, if he were to branch out into a new career, he would need a university degree. Having achieved his goal of matriculation, George resigned from the bank and studied fulltime at the University of New South Wales, graduating in 1973 with a Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in Accounting.

    Almost immediately, George landed a job as an accountant with C N Jameson and Associates, an accountancy and tax firm, whose office was on the corner of Military Road and Harbour Street, Mosman, the very building which Jamesons occupy to this day.  George quickly learnt that, whilst Jamesons was an accounting firm, most of its income came from managing strata blocks for their clients and, so, from a very early stage, George was heavily involved in the strata side of the business.

    In 1980, the company principal, Charles Jameson, wanted to retire and he sold the business to George. At that time, the company managed 250 buildings and employed 11 staff. In this same year, 1980, the first professional body for strata managers, the Institute of Strata Title Management (ISTM) was formed in Sydney and George Vumbaca was one of its pioneer members. In fact, on 3rd November 1978, George had attended a meeting called by Gary Bugden, at which Bugden challenged the 30 strata managers present to establish such an organisation. As a result of this meeting, a steering committee was formed and in November 1980, ISTM came into being. This body morphed into SCA(NSW) in 2010.

    After the incorporation of ISTM, George was one of the first members elected to the expanded Board of Directors in 1981 and he later served a second term as Director from 2005 until 2008, during which time he was Senior Vice President. George has the distinction of attending the very first ISTM convention in the Hunter Valley in 1984, when he and his wife, Teresa, took eldest child, Michael, who was only a few months old. George has attended nearly every convention since that time.

    George Vumbaca was awarded the prestigious Max Dunn Award in 2011 by SCA(NSW) and received Life Membership of SCA(NSW) in 2015 for services to the strata industry.

    George and Teresa, have six children and five of them work with George in the family business. George counts this as one of the great joys in his life and one of the reasons for his longevity in the business. Jamesons Strata is very much a family affair, with son, Michael, the company CEO and siblings Georgia, Anthony, Rebecca and Vanessa, along with Michael’s wife, Jackie Booth, all involved in other major roles. In addition, Vanessa’s husband, John Xiloportas, is also heavily involved in the business.

    George continues to work in the business everyday as a mentor; credit controller; and overseeing the culture of the business. At the present time, Jamesons, now operated under the parent company, CNG Property Group, has thirteen branches in Sydney and regional New South Wales; manages more than 1100 buildings; and employs more than 100 staff.

    George Vumbaca has been an integral part of the strata industry for half a century and a genuine pioneer of SCA(NSW). Of the 30 people present at that initial meeting in November 1978, George is only one of five who survive and, with Gary Bugden and Walter Herrmann, one of only three who are still active in strata management to this day.

      George is a gold plated “Legend” of the strata industry, but despite all the accolades and success, he remains a humble, gracious and quietly spoken gentleman, who is much loved and respected by all in this industry.