Role and responsibilities

 Strategic Leadership of Be First’s Commercial Property Portfolio

• Provide strategic direction for the management of Be First’s commercial property assets.

• Collaborate with the Development Director to establish a fully integrated asset management function, supporting Be First in its role as Barking & Dagenham Council’s strategic delivery partner for property investment and development.

• Develop and maintain the Consolidated Commercial Investment Portfolio Strategic Plan (CCIP-SP) as a permanent, dynamic framework for asset decision-making and reporting.

• Embed the CCIP-SP within Be First’s and the Council’s governance structures, ensuring alignment with financial planning, risk management and service delivery strategies.

• Drive portfolio performance by maximising asset value, income generation and long-term compliance and sustainability. 

• Lead on developing and implementing effective strategies to maximise the value of assets, working with wider teams to develop and deliver effective asset management plans.

• On-going management and supervision of the portfolio including the appointment of third-party suppliers and advisers.

• Monitor market trends and assess their implications.

• Establish robust reporting mechanisms to monitor asset performance, costs and alignment with strategic objectives.

Regeneration, Income Generation and Financial Performance

• Lead the strategy to identify property across the portfolio suitable for disposal, providing expertise in transactional matters to derive capital or release land for housing.

• Identify regeneration opportunities within the portfolio for progression by the Development team in collaboration with the Development Director and manage block dates and meanwhile uses to achieve vacant possession in line with Be First’s development strategy and pipeline.

• Deliver income growth through lettings and disposals, driving effective marketing strategies and challenging agents and advisers to perform.

• Work collaboratively across Be First, the Council and subsidiaries to align asset use with wider regeneration and service delivery priorities (e.g. Adult and Children’s Services, non-general housing needs).

• Secure new consultancy business by advising the Council and external organisations on asset disposals, acquisitions and development opportunities.

• Manage the Be First Asset Management Business Plan including budgets, forecasts, financial performance and delivery of profit targets.
  

Team Leadership, Governance and Compliance

• Lead and manage the Be First Asset Management Team together with external consultants including property managers, facilities managers and agents.

• Establish effective monitoring and quality assurance procedures and implement measures to enhance the quality of services to the client, customers and wider stakeholders.

• Ensure that formal annual and periodic reports are submitted in an approved format to the client and that client contact with the Council is established and maintained at all levels.

• Oversee the specification and implementation of asset management systems and digital tools to enable data-driven decision-making.

• Ensure full compliance with all relevant legal, financial and environmental standards.

Person specification:

Essential:

• Strategic thinker with commercial drive.

• Ability to operate in a politically adept and commercially astute manner working effectively with stakeholders to persuasively influence complex and sensitive transactions.

• Strong communication skills (verbal and written) including preparing reports and analysis with clear, sound recommendations.

• Proven track record in commercial property asset management at director or senior leadership level.

• Highly numerate and detail conscious, able to evaluate the financial value of new opportunities and present creative, robust and convincing financial business cases.

• Strong knowledge of investment appraisal, property law, leasing, and valuation.

• Demonstrable success in maximising asset value and delivering financial returns.

• Excellent negotiation and stakeholder management skills.

• Strong financial acumen with ability to interpret complex data and present at board level.

• Existing senior level networks and ability to leverage new relationships, achieving highly successful account management at the highest level to facilitate development opportunities and revenue growth.

• Resilient, adaptable, and able to manage competing priorities.

• High integrity and commitment to corporate governance.

• Strong team leadership and people management skills.

Desirable:

• Relevant professional membership e.g. MRICS/FRICS or similar.

• Evidence of continuous professional development.

• Degree level education (potentially in Real Estate, Finance, Business, or a related field).

• Experience in property development, regeneration, or joint ventures.

• Knowledge of sustainability frameworks (BREEAM, EPC, ESG reporting).

• Familiarity with public-private partnerships and institutional investor requirements.

Key metrics of success:

• Deliver superior portfolio performance, client service and stakeholder value.

• An outline programme is set out in Be First’s Strategic Plan & Roadmap with 2025/26 focused on establishing the CCIP-SP base position and project pipeline, and 2026/27 on CCIP-SP implementation. 

• Working at pace on quick financial wins is very important, but so too is developing, adopting and maintaining the CCIP-SP as a core governance document. This will ensure the sustainable, efficient and accountable management of assets over the longer term. Critical here is ensuring this is supported by a dedicated function within Be First and avoiding additional cost and/or layers of management to the Council (direct or indirect) through sub-contracting. 

• Equally critical is establishing a consistent approach to assessing assets, having regard to realised benefits, which are not limited solely to a financial return.

• Meeting the financial performance targets in the Asset Management Business Unit Plan including winning new consultancy work.