Working/Functional Title
Director of Real Estate
Position Summary
The Director will provide real estate advice and counsel to university leaders and will serve as a chief collaborator on emerging development projects including public private partnerships.
Reporting to the Assistant Vice President of Infrastructure Planning & Facilities for Real Estate and Capital Planning, the Director of Real Estate will provide strategic vision, leadership, expertise, and management of the university’s current and potential real estate holdings. This position oversees a statewide real property portfolio of 27,000 acres and a suite of real estate, leasing, and property management services on behalf of the university.
Leading a team of four real estate professionals and 40 property management personnel, the Director is charged with developing a data-driven approach to real estate asset management that integrates with and provides added value to existing institutional decision-making paths. The director will develop and implement decision criteria to evaluate and assess current and future property holdings and provide analysis and reports to university leaders in support of high value transactions.
As a land grant institution, MSU has long had a statewide agricultural presence. More recently, the university has added to that portfolio with the development of medical schools, teaching centers, and research activities in Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Flint. This growth signals a key role for a seasoned real estate professional, capable of building lasting relationships, geographic networks, and local expertise to support the multi market activities of the institution.
In support of MSU’s Mission and commitment to inclusion, the Director will promote an environment that recognizes and supports diversity, creates a climate that values and recognizes initiative, innovation, service excellence, continual learning, stewardship, and the achievement of results.
Key Business Units under the purview of the Director
- Real Estate Administrative Office -
Manages the acquisition, due diligence, and disposal of real property; develops and negotiates off campus property leases, easements, licenses, and mineral rights; and maintains an extensive database of properties, restrictions, and encumbrances.
As part of an administrative team that includes MSU’s Office of the General Counsel, The Provost’s office and the Finance Office, the Real Estate Office plans, evaluates, negotiates, and manages new development opportunities and partnerships for both on and off campus locations.
Property Management and or Operational Services -
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- Demmer Center - manages the operations of a shooting sports and education center
- Hidden Lake Gardens - provides property management services, preservation, and upkeep to a public facing educational arboretum in Tipton, MI
- Kellogg Biological Station Facilities - provides property management and maintenance services at an off campus educational and research complex located in Hickory Corners, MI
The successful Leader:
- Demonstrates strengths in strategy and leadership across a variety of teams and functions; promotes and monitors operational excellence; builds consensus and fosters effective teams.
- Establishes strategic direction and sets priorities to develop and grow the new Real Estate Office, building upon the existing leasing and capital acquisition/disposition activities and integrating these into a complete asset management portfolio that spans campus locations statewide; creates and assesses decision variables and KPIs to monitor performance and support strategic approaches to project delivery and real property management.
- Mentors and supports staff and team development, fostering individual and collective team responsibility and accountability and developing a customer service, solution focused approach to challenges.
- Acts as a chief collaborator to university units to evaluate, and manage alternative delivery models for strategic capital projects, such as but not limited to, public private partnerships.
- Collaborates with and seeks relevant guidance from campus stakeholders, cultivating a high level of trust and collaboration.
- Establishes and builds trusting relationships with customers and campus and community partners.
- Ensures a culture that practices and enables a diverse and inclusive environment, building a participative team climate that assumes a proactive stance and seeks innovation solutions, enhancing partnership with university stakeholders (on campus and across the state), delivering outstanding service and creating value for users.
- Sets a tone of fiscal diligence, advancing sound fiscal management and employing effective strategies that balance mission with cost effectiveness, innovative solutions, and high-level service and quality.
- Promotes and ensures compliance with university policies, procedures and ordinances, state and federal laws.
DEPARTMENT OF INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING & FACILITIES
Infrastructure Planning and Facilities (IPF) plans, builds and maintains the physical environment for the university’s education, research and outreach missions. The unit is comprised of numerous professionals who specialize in their areas of expertise, guaranteeing the best care and stewardship of MSU’s campus. As a unit, its collective vision is to be the most high-performing, innovative, leading-edge facilities organization in the nation.
MSU’s Mission
- Mission: Provide outstanding educational opportunities, to conduct research of the highest caliber, and to advance outreach and economic development efforts to lead to a better quality of life for individuals in their communities and the world.
- With the adoption of the MSU 2030 strategic plan, the Infrastructure Planning and Facilities (IPF) unit is poised to support this vision, bringing expertise and stewardship to plan, build, maintain and beautify MSU’s physical environment. The new Director of Real Estate plays a critical role in this endeavor, aligning aspiration with function to advance university goals.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability or protected veteran status.
Required Degree
Bachelors -Real Estate, Urban Design and Planning,
Desired Degree
Masters -in a related field of study
Minimum Requirements
EDUCATION & WORK EXPERIENCE
- A Bachelor''s degree in Real Estate, Planning, Urban Design, Business, Facility Management, and/or related field or equivalent education/experience
- 5+ years of progressively challenging responsibilities in real estate or planning for a large multifaceted institution, including high value contract negotiation, risk assessment, leasing, and licensing, and implementing systems that advance related data capture and analysis.
- Experience in real estate development; and developing and managing alternative delivery models such as public private partnerships (P3s)
- 10+ years of progressively challenging professional experience building and leading complex and interdisciplinary teams; with a history of demonstrated leadership aptitude and a proven ability to build consensus.
- Experience with multi viewpoints and gathering relevant information through a variety of methods (i.e., surveys, focus groups, industry best practices, benchmarking) in order to provide recommended action and to build consensus
- Experience implementing strategic frameworks, mission, vision, values and action plans
- Experience leading within a complex, interdisciplinary, union environment that deploys business intelligence tools for reporting, queries, and analysis
Desired Qualifications
- Possession of a State of Michigan Real Estate or Broker License
- Master’s degree in a related area of study and/or professional certification such as, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED/LEED-AP) certification, or Certified Educational Facilities Professional (CEFP)
- Licensure as a professional Engineer, Architect, Landscape Architect, or Attorney
- Knowledge of Environmental Health & Safety regulations
- Experience in a higher educational setting
- Substantial experience in motivating, directing, and second-level management; experience leading in a unionized environment and human resources policies; highly skilled in change management
Required Application Materials
Applicants will be required to submit CV and Cover Letter/Letter of Interest
Together-we-will Statement
The university is requiring all MSU students, faculty and staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19 with limited exceptions. Learn more at:
https://msu.edu/together-we-will/
Remote Work Statement
MSU strives to provide a flexible work environment and this position has been designated as remote-friendly. Remote-friendly means some or all of the duties can be performed remotely as mutually agreed upon.
Website
IPF.MSU.EDU
MSU Statement
Michigan State University has been advancing the common good with uncommon will for more than 160 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU pushes the boundaries of discovery and forges enduring partnerships to solve the most pressing global challenges while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.