Operations management Jobs in Elizabeth, NJ

Senior Director, Asset Management Operations

Southern Land Company, a national real estate development and construction firm is seeking a full-time Senior Director, Asset Management Operations to join our dynamic team in New York, NY. This position can also reside in Nashville, TN or Dallas, TX. The salary range for this role is $180,000 to $225,000, depending on experience.

The position is a senior role responsible for collaborating on shaping and executing the commercial vision across a portfolio of mixed-use developments that integrate retail, restaurant, entertainment, and residential uses. This role blends strategy, placemaking, leasing execution, operational excellence, and financial acumen to create compelling destinations that enhance both the commercial and residential components of each project.

The Sr. Director, Asset Management Operations will collaborate with many internal and external stakeholders including the CEO to define tenant mix strategy, oversee leasing execution primarily through external brokers, negotiate and structure leases, manage ongoing tenant relationships and financial performance. The ideal candidate is both a visionary place maker and a detail-oriented commercial operator who understands how leasing decisions impact other components of a project, long-term asset value, and project proformas.

Primary Responsibilities

Vision, Tenant Mix & Placemaking

• Develop and execute the commercial and tenant mix strategy for mixed-use projects, ensuring alignment with project vision, market demand, and residential integration.
• Curate experiential, complementary tenant mixes that emphasize food & beverage, lifestyle retail, and destination-oriented uses.
• Partner with development, design, and branding teams to ensure commercial spaces support placemaking, activation, and community engagement.
• Evaluate emerging concepts, local operators, and national brands to create differentiated, experience-driven environments.

Leasing Strategy & Execution

• Lead all commercial leasing efforts across the portfolio, working closely with external leasing brokers to drive velocity and quality of tenants.
• Set leasing strategies, pricing, deal parameters, and timelines by asset and phase.
• Negotiate letters of intent, leases, amendments, and renewals, balancing risk, return, and long-term value.
• Structure creative and complex deal terms (e.g., percentage rent, TI structures, rent abatement, kick-outs) appropriate to restaurant and mixed-use environments.

Financial & Proforma Management

• Analyze and underwrite leasing deals and understand their impact on development and operating proformas and participate in discussions on whether to proceed.
• Responsible for creating, maintaining, tracking and reporting on the commercial budgets from development through operations.
• Collaborate with multifamily accounting, asset management and development teams to refine revenue assumptions, lease-up schedules, and long-term valuation impacts.
• Ensure lease structures align with lender and investor requirements including CAM details.
• Prepare CAM statements based on lease terms, work with accounting to ensure proper billing and payment and communicate with tenants on CAM reconciliations as needed.
• Coordinate schedule and drive completion of landlord work. Coordinate payment of TI as appropriate.

Tenant Relations & Asset Operations

• Serve as the primary point of contact for commercial tenants' post-lease execution.
• Oversee tenant issues, lease compliance, billing inquiries, CAM reconciliations, tenant parking and operational coordination.
• Work with on-site multifamily property management to coordinate day-to-day management functions where applicable.
• Ensure accurate and timely tenant communications as necessary.
• Support tenant success while protecting ownership interests and lease integrity.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner closely with multifamily asset management, development, construction, property management, marketing, and accounting teams throughout the project lifecycle.
• Provide commercial input during site selection, entitlement, design, and construction to optimize leasing and operational outcomes.
• Represent the company with brokers, tenants, municipalities, and community stakeholders.

Education and Experience

• 10+ years of experience in commercial real estate leasing, mixed-use development, retail and/or restaurant-focused projects, preferably at a developer or owner/operator.
• Demonstrated experience curating tenant mix and leading leasing for food-and-beverage driven or experiential projects.
• Strong lease negotiation and deal structuring skills, including complex restaurant leases.
• Deep understanding of proformas, NOI, valuation, and the financial impacts of leasing decisions.
• Experience managing external brokers and third-party partners.
• Knowledge of CAM structures, rent billing, and ongoing tenant financial management.
• Proven ability to balance creative placemaking with disciplined financial execution.
• Proficient in Excel and underwriting modeling.
• Yardi experience a plus.

Preferred Qualifications

• Strategic thinker with a hands-on execution mindset
• Strong relationship builder with tenants, brokers, and internal teams
• Entrepreneurial, collaborative, and solutions-oriented
• Passion for creating memorable places and experiences
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, development-driven environment

Southern Land Company believes that community is the heart of every successful development project. With that as our starting point, we create residential developments around the country that provide a generous, comfortable lifestyle to those that call them home. In support of our single family and multifamily projects, we also undertake key retail, office, and recreation developments to craft convenient, complete communities. We believe in big ideas and paying attention to every detail required to realize them.

We Have

• A strong brand recognized for quality, performance, and artistry
• Guiding principles of creativity and innovation
• An open mind for new ideas and creative methods
• A strong compensation and benefits package, including health, vision, dental, 401k with a strong match and more!

Southern Land Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) and we seek to create an inclusive work place that embraces diverse backgrounds, life experiences and perspectives. Southern Land Company offers a competitive benefits package, including 401k and paid time off. Southern Land Company is a Drug Free Workplace.