Real Estate Manager UK & IE

Take your next career step at ABB with a global team that is energizing the transformation of society and industry to achieve a more productive, sustainable future. At ABB, we have the clear goal of driving diversity and inclusion across all dimensions: gender, LGBTQ+, abilities, ethnicity and generations. Together, we are embarking on a journey where each and every one of us, individually and collectively, welcomes and celebrates individual differences.

Real Estate function’s objective is to effectively support ABB’s business activities by securing the most efficient and profitable use of ABB’s real estate facilities/assets. This requires local, professional real estate expertise, to ensure optimum results across all Business Areas and Divisions. The Real Estate Manager will work within a collaborative environment in the head office in Daresbury, United Kingdom, reporting directly to the Country Holding Officer and dotted line to the Real Estate Manager for Motion.

Your responsibilities

• Work with all Business Areas and Divisions to establish a Real Estate strategy and Masterplan aligned with the business strategy of ABB’s core operations.
• Development of medium and long term, strategic real estate plans, enhancing current and future facility requirements. Incorporating ABB’s continued operational flexibility. Consolidating dispersed locations with co-location concepts where possible and reducing / eliminating vacancies.
• Manage the financial performance of the function to meet or exceed committed performance level (e.g. budgets and forecasts). Ensure financial accountability of the real estate function including P&L, balance sheet and cash flow. Ensure accountability for all assets under Real Estate responsibility.
• Establish and regularly update and report the country’s detailed corporate real estate inventory of all ABB owned, leased sites, plots of land, offices, manufacturing, warehouses, storage, parking and other facilities.
• Carefully benchmark, rationalize and regularly report the related real estate occupancy costs for every facility. Understand and communicate occupancy charges to the occupying Divisions.
• Lead all major Corporate Real Estate investments in owned or leased facilities. Oversee that such investments are delivered in accordance with Company Policy and formal approval process with the Capital Investment tool.
• Establish an excellent working relationship for mutual trust and respect with ABB’s various Divisions and the countries’ management to pro-actively support its operational achievements and business targets.
• Implement a functional Real Estate organization in line with ABB’s leading operating model.
• Manage the Real Estate program with focus on:
• Space Efficiency through Corporate Workplace Design Guidelines
• Identify Energy Efficiency projects through the Green Real Estate Program
• Optimized facility services through IFM (Integrated Facility Management) to ensure high quality levels across all sites
• Health Safety and Environmental (HSE) to ensure the implementation of the HSE requirements related to facilities with own and subcontract employees and to ensure safe working environment
• Manage the financial performance of the real estate function and benchmark, rationalize and report the occupancy costs for every facility.
• Acting as prime point of contact for local authorities for regulatory and compliance purpose related to Real Estate.
• Ensures (with HR Partner support) that the area of responsibility is properly organized, staffed, skilled and directed. Guides, motivates and develops direct and indirect subordinates within HR policies.
• Living ABB’s core values of safety and integrity, which means taking responsibility for your own actions while caring for your colleagues, and the business.

Your background

• At least 10 years of professional real estate experience in a corporate or global real estate environment.
• Solid understanding of facility management and commercial / industrial real estate and experience with challenged or distressed environmental properties.
• Bachelor’s degree in real estate, engineering, business, or related field.
• Aptitude to develop, lead and coach a distributed workforce within a functional organization and demonstrated effective change management leadership.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills to effectively communicate with stakeholders at country and global levels, architects, engineers, developers, commercial brokers, contractors and others.
• Ability to energize Real Estate staff and standardize and harmonize facility services and levels.
• Strong focus and leadership in HSE practices within all real estate facility/project activities.
• Excellent negotiating and presentation skills.
• Experience with facility management, real estate occupancy costs, commercial lease negotiations and knowledge of lease accounting.
• Knowledge of financial analysis (discounted cash flow and P&L).
• Familiarity with construction systems and building design to understand construction documents and achieve space and cost efficiencies.
• Experience in real estate transactions.
• Understanding of the components of buildings and the characteristics of their building construction system including but not limited to electrical, mechanical, and structural systems.
• Ability to effectively manage multiple projects simultaneously and complete within estimated time frames and budget restraints.
• Strong organizational skills to collaborate with multiple support functions to achieve a positive working environment for the achievement of common business and corporate goals.
• Fluent in English (spoken and written)