Head of Leasing

Our client is looking to hire The Head of Leasing who will spearhead all leasing and sales functions. This individual will lead business development and strategic initiatives to optimize leasing opportunities, generate revenue, and ensure successful tenant relationships. Additionally, international travel is necessary to attend conferences and meet with potential and existing brands, fostering relationships and exploring opportunities to enhance the mall's offerings. The ideal candidate will have deep experience in commercial leasing, team leadership, and market analysis.

Key Responsibilities:

Leasing Operations:

• Team Leadership: Supervise and mentor the leasing team in daily activities, ensuring high performance in achieving occupancy and revenue goals across all properties. Foster a culture of continuous improvement and excellence in service.
• Vacancy Management: Ensure all vacancies are filled according to pre-approved tenant mix plans, meeting strategic leasing objectives. Monitor tenant turnover and identify ways to reduce vacancy periods.
• Lease Negotiation: Lead negotiations with potential tenants, securing favorable lease terms that align with the property's strategic goals and deliver optimal revenue.
• Lease Documentation: Review and finalize leases, amendments, addendums and associated paper work to ensure completion while ensuring compliance with legal and financial requirements. Coordinate with the legal and financial departments for negotiations and final terms and conditions. Also coordinate with local, regional and international brands.
• Lease Renewals: Ensure lease renewals are managed promptly, providing seamless continuity for existing tenants in line with company policies.
• Tenant Retention Strategies: Implement and oversee initiatives focused on long-term tenant retention to reduce turnover and maintain high occupancy levels.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate with finance, legal, marketing, and operations teams to ensure seamless leasing operations.

Strategic Planning and Reporting:

• Strategy Development: Develop and implement both short-term and long-term strategic leasing plans that align with the company's broader corporate goals. Adapt plans to varying markets for each mall, considering specific market trends and dynamics.
• Performance Monitoring: Monitor and analyze key leasing KPIs to proactively identify challenges and opportunities, enabling data-driven decision-making. Utilize these insights to refine leasing strategies and achieve revenue growth.
• Reporting: Provide strategic reports, comprehensive market analysis, and leasing projections for executive management, ensuring transparency and data accuracy for informed decision-making.

Stakeholder Collaboration:

• Marketing Coordination: Collaborate with marketing to create promotional campaigns that drive leasing traffic, enhance brand visibility, and achieve occupancy targets.
• Facility Management Partnership: Work closely with the facility management (RDD, Operations) teams to ensure that property conditions meet tenant requirements and expectations.
• Broker Relationships: Build and maintain strong relationships with external brokers, real estate professionals, and stakeholders, ensuring leasing objectives are met and competitive intelligence is gathered.
• Cross-Functional Coordination: In addition to marketing and facility management, work closely with legal, finance, and operations teams to ensure leasing operations align with business goals and legal compliance.

Business Development:

• Revenue Generation: Generate additional revenue by being creative, such as introducing temporary kiosks, pop-ups, or other innovative initiatives that maximize the utilization of space and attract footfall to the property.
• Lead Generation: Direct all business development and leasing activities to generate high-quality leads and expand relationships with new brands. Coordinate and nurture partnerships with potential tenants and customers, ensuring contracts meet strategic goals and development criteria.
• Customer Service: Handle customer requests related to tenancy matters, offering sound advice on leases, contracts, and investment opportunities. Gather customer feedback to continuously improve the leasing department’s services and offerings.
• Market Expansion: Explore opportunities for market expansion beyond the current malls, both domestically and internationally, to attract high-value tenants.

Technology Utilization and ERP Implementation:

• ERP Coordination: Coordinate with the ERP team to identify and specify the leasing department’s requirements. Support the successful integration of ERP functionality, ensuring the system aligns with business processes and enhances leasing activities.
• Interim Management: Maintain seamless leasing operations during the ERP implementation phase, working without the ERP system to ensure continuity and minimize disruption.

Budgeting and Compliance:

• Budget Management: Participate in preparing annual income budgets, ensuring adherence to financial goals across all properties. Identify opportunities for cost reduction and revenue optimization.
• Competitor Analysis: Regularly analyze competitor activity to ensure brand standards are maintained, and that strategies remain competitive and up-to-date with market trends.
• Legal Compliance: Ensure compliance with commercial real estate laws and internal policies, maintaining a thorough understanding of leasing regulations.

Training & Succession Planning

• Team Development: Lead, mentor, and manage the leasing team, ensuring their continuous development through tailored training programs and regular performance evaluations.
• Successor Identification: Identify and develop a qualified successor to take over key Head of Leasing responsibilities in the event of absence, promotion, or other contingencies.
• Continuous Development: Design and implement ongoing professional development initiatives to equip the leasing team with the skills and knowledge required to excel in their roles and adapt to evolving market demands.

Additional Responsibilities:

• Board Support: Handle tasks and responsibilities assigned by the Board or top management, ensuring timely and accurate execution.
• GM/Acting CEO Support: Carry out any assignments or responsibilities delegated by the General Manager or Acting CEO, demonstrating flexibility and reliability in fulfilling organizational priorities.
• Project Tracking: Track and oversee all leasing-related projects, including tenant performance, lease renewals, space utilization, and revenue enhancement initiatives.
• Data Provision: Assist consultants hired by the Board or shareholders by preparing and providing requested leasing-related data following Board approval.

Qualifications & Experience:

Educational Background:

• Bachelor's Degree: A bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Real Estate Management, or a related field is required.
• Advanced Education: A master's degree or professional certifications in real estate management, such as CPM (Certified Property Manager) or CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member), is highly desirable.

Professional Experience:

• Overall Experience: A minimum of 3 years of experience in retail leasing, with significant expertise in mall management and high-level strategic roles.
• Team Leadership: Proven experience in leading, developing, and managing a leasing team across multiple properties. The candidate should demonstrate a track record of motivating teams to meet and exceed leasing and revenue targets.
• Market Analysis and Strategy: Strong analytical skills to interpret market trends and adjust leasing strategies accordingly. Ability to develop and implement strategic plans that align with business goals.
• Negotiation and Contract Management: Exceptional negotiation skills to secure favorable lease terms and handle complex contract management with minimal risk. Capable of providing tenants with comprehensive advice on leases and investments.
• Relationship Building: Demonstrated ability to build and maintain strong partnerships with tenants, brokers, and internal stakeholders. Skilled at fostering relationships that lead to mutually beneficial outcomes.
• Technology Savvy: Experience working with CRM systems, leasing software, or other relevant digital tools. Familiarity with ERP systems is a plus, especially in integrating leasing requirements into company-wide technology solutions.
• Budgeting and Financial Acumen: Ability to manage, prepare, and analyze annual budgets, identifying revenue opportunities and ensuring alignment with financial goals.
• Multimodal Retail Leasing: Experience in handling a variety of tenant types (retail, food, services, etc.) will be valued to ensure a balanced tenant mix across properties.
• Experience in Lease Restructuring and Change Management: Candidates with a strong track record in lease restructuring and adapting to market fluctuations will be preferred.