SUMMAY
The Director, Real Estate Management leads BGIS’s Lease Administration practice and holds end-to-end accountability for service delivery, client account oversight, team leadership, and the technology and process backbone that supports lease administration across the national – and expanding global – portfolio. Reporting to the National Director, Lease Management and Audit, the role owns the standards, systems, and people that keep client lease portfolios accurate, compliant, and audit-ready – spanning lease abstraction, critical date management, rent and operating cost (CAM) recovery review, payment processing, and property tax assessment and appeal support. The Director provides corporate-level oversight and support to all client-aligned lease administration teams, partners across Real Estate Services and the broader Facilities Management lines of business on cross-functional initiatives, drives continuous improvement and automation, and plays a lead role in business development and RFP responses that grow the practice.
KEY DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES
Leadership
- Lease Administration Practice Leadership: Lead and own the lease administration function across the national portfolio. Set the standards, workflows, and quality controls for lease abstraction, critical date management, rent and operating cost (CAM) recovery review, payment processing, and lease data integrity, and provide corporate-level oversight, governance, and support to all client-aligned lease administration teams.
- Team Leadership and Talent Development: Lead, mentor, and develop a multi-site team of lease analysts, team leads, and managers. Set clear performance objectives and KPIs, build bench strength and succession depth, and foster an accountable, high-performing, and collaborative culture. Attract and retain top talent.
- Client Account Oversight: Hold senior accountability for assigned client accounts, owning the service relationship, governance cadence, SLA and KPI performance, and escalation resolution. Act as a trusted advisor to clients on lease administration strategy, risk, and portfolio decisions, and ensure consistent, bilingual (English/French) service delivery where required.
- Business Development and RFP Response: Lead and contribute to RFP and RFI responses, pricing and solution design, client presentations, and pursuit strategy. Identify opportunities to expand scope within existing accounts and to win new business, growing the practice nationally and into emerging global markets.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Real Estate Services (transactions management, property tax, lease audit, property management) and the broader Facilities Management lines of business to deliver integrated, cross-functional initiatives and seamless client experience.
- Issue and Escalation Management: Proactively anticipate and mitigate risk and serve as the senior point of resolution for escalations that reach leadership.
Operational Excellence/Continuous Improvement
- Technology and Tools Ownership: Own the development, selection, and continuous improvement of the technology that underpins lease administration – lease management systems of record (e.g., RealLease/RealSuite), business intelligence and reporting (e.g., Power BI), workflow automation, and emerging AI-enabled tools – while ensuring data residency, security, and client data governance requirements are met.
- Service Delivery and KPI Management: Ensure consistent, high-quality, audit-ready service delivery across all accounts. Define, monitor, and report on KPIs and SLAs, and drive corrective action where targets are at risk.
- Process Improvement and Standardization: Lead continuous improvement initiatives to standardize, streamline, and scale lease administration processes across accounts. Apply structured methodologies (e.g., Lean/Six Sigma) to improve accuracy, turnaround, and cost-to-serve.
- Property Tax, Assessment and Compliance Support: Provide subject-matter oversight on property tax assessment and appeal matters and on lease compliance, partnering with property tax and lease audit teams to identify recovery and cost-avoidance opportunities for clients. Translate portfolio and operational data into actionable insight and executive-level reporting for clients and internal leadership.
Corporate Goals
- Financial Stewardship and Risk Management: Oversee the financial performance of the lease administration practice – budgeting, forecasting, resourcing, utilization, and profitability – while maintaining business continuity and rigorous risk management.
- Workforce Planning and Resourcing: Forecast staffing and capacity across accounts, support recruitment, onboarding, and (where applicable) offshore/shared-service delivery models, and manage cost-to-serve to protect margin while enabling growth.
Governance and Compliance:
Ensure compliance with all company policies, including code of conduct, HR, Health & Safety, privacy, and IT/data security.
KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS
- University graduation or professional certification (e.g., P. Eng., CMA, CGA or equivalent courses would be an asset).
- 10+ years of progressive experience in lease administration / lease management, including team leadership at a Sr. Manager or director level.
- Strong technical knowledge of Commercial Real Estate Services and the technology platforms that support them, including lease management systems of record (e.g., Yardi, Lucernex, JDE, Tango, Nakisa, Prolease, Manhattan, etc.), business intelligence/reporting (e.g., Power BI), and Microsoft 365 (advanced Excel).
- Must have experience and a solid understanding of leasing, lease administration, critical date management, operating cost (CAM) reconciliation/recovery, property taxation and tax appeal/assessment disciplines. Lease accounting exposure (IFRS 16 / ASC 842), asset management, real estate valuations, and forensic lease audit are also an asset.
- Experience leading business development, RFP/RFI responses, pricing, and solution design in a service-provider or outsourced-services environment.
- Demonstrated ability to own and improve technology, data, and reporting – defining requirements, partnering with IT/BI teams, and driving process automation while respecting data residency and client data-governance requirements.
- Bilingual (English/French) is a strong asset, given the national portfolio and Quebec-based client and regulatory requirements.
- Experience on either the Corporate Real Estate side or on the Service provider side with a good understand of the relationship between the two.
- Demonstrated ability and experience in leading portfolio strategy and optimization initiatives
- Demonstrated ability and experience in identifying opportunities and leading and implementing continuous improvement initiatives to achieve ongoing operational excellence.
- Proven ability and experience in managing and developing client relationships.
- Strong relationship management, communication, influencing, persuasion, and negotiation skills.
- Proven ability to collaborate and engage relevant stakeholders including Executives to achieve desired results.
- Lean Six Sigma Project Management skills is an asset.
- Develop and maintain strong, strategic alliances with external industry contacts including but not limited to: Developers, Real Estate Brokers (and Capital market groups), asset managers and other corporate real estate professionals.
- Strong leadership skills – able to motivate and lead a team. Attract and retain top talent. Encourage a hardworking, fun environment.
- Strong communicator with excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Understands strategy and is able to articulate strategic initiatives that support client goals.
Licenses and/or Professional Accreditation
One or more of the following would be considered an asset:
- University Degree in Business, Engineering or Accounting would be an asset.
- Real estate licence (provincial real estate / salesperson registration) would be an asset.
- Industry designation (e.g., RPA, FMA, CPM, CCIM) or P. Eng. / accounting designation (CPA) would be an asset.
This is a regular, full-time position with a salary range of $120,000 to $150,000 per annum. The starting salary will be based on the successful candidate’s competencies, including but not limited to experience, education and performance related to this role.
