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Sr Director of Real Estate Finance (Retained Search)

Jobot
Chicago, IL Full Time
POSTED ON 4/8/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 5/16/2026
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Job details:
Relocation Required (this role is located in the Twin Cities) High Autonomy Visibility High Growth Highly Stable Company Entrepreneurial Environment!

This Jobot Job is hosted by: Chelsea Piekarski
Are you a fit? Easy Apply now by clicking the "Easy Apply" button
and sending us your resume.
Salary: $190,000 - $250,000 per year


A bit about us:

Relocation Required (this role is located in the Twin Cities)

We are a scaled, publicly traded consumer platform with a national real estate footprint across owned, leased, and developed assets. The business is asset-intensive, capital disciplined, and growth-oriented, with hundreds of millions deployed annually across new development, asset reinvestment, and portfolio optimization. Finance is deeply embedded in strategic decision-making and plays a central role in how capital is allocated, returns are measured, and long-term value is created.

This role sits within a sophisticated corporate finance organization that partners closely with real estate, development, construction, accounting, treasury, and executive leadership.


Why join us?
  • Managing capital decisions impacting hundreds of millions in annual investment
  • Opportunity to shape and mature a real estate asset management discipline
  • Exposure to complex, high-stakes real estate and capital allocation decisions
  • Direct partnership with senior leadership on long-term growth strategy
  • Clear path to expanded leadership responsibility as the organization continues to scale


Job Details

This is a senior finance leadership role at the intersection of commercial real estate, FP&A, capital allocation, and asset management. The Sr Director serves as the primary finance partner to the Real Estate and Development organization and acts as the lynchpin between corporate strategy and real estate execution.

While new development remains an important component of the role, the broader mandate is capital stewardship across the full real estate portfolio. This includes evaluating, allocating, and managing capital across ground-up development, leased assets, maintenance, reinvestment, and improvement initiatives, with a disciplined focus on return on invested capital over both near-term and full lifecycle horizons.

This is a strategy-forward leadership role with an expectation of hands-on involvement when needed. There will be periods where the Sr Director is required to go into the details to evolve financial models, assumptions, and deliverables as the business changes. The expectation is not long-term execution in the weeds, but the ability to step in, elevate the work, drive better outcomes, and transition ownership back to the team.

Success in this role requires deep understanding of site-level real estate economics paired with the ability to align diverse stakeholders around an evolving strategy. Influence, judgment, and credibility are essential.
Key Responsibilities

Capital Allocation & Portfolio Strategy
  • Lead capital planning and allocation across a large, multi-category real estate portfolio, balancing new development, leased assets, maintenance, modernization, and improvement investments
  • Evaluate competing uses of capital to ensure resources are deployed to the highest-return opportunities
  • Assess site-level economics, return on invested capital, and long-term asset performance across the full life of each property
  • Support go/no-go investment decisions through disciplined financial analysis and clear executive-level recommendations
Asset Management Financial Leadership
  • Shape and mature a real estate asset management capability from a financial perspective
  • Oversee asset-level FP&A, forecasting, and performance tracking for existing properties
  • Monitor capital deployment and reinvestment strategies to optimize asset performance and returns
  • Evolve site-level business models and assumptions as member mix, usage patterns, and operating dynamics change
  • Partner with operating and development teams to ensure financial insights translate into action
New Business & Development Financial Planning
  • Lead financial modeling and site-level business planning for new real estate investments, including ground-up development, leases, and acquisitions
  • Build and maintain detailed site-level pro formas reflecting development costs, lease structures, operating economics, and return profiles
  • Support evaluation of lease versus build decisions, sale-leaseback considerations, and other complex real estate structures
  • Partner closely with development and construction teams throughout the full development lifecycle, from feasibility through stabilization
Cross-Functional Leadership & Influence
  • Serve as the finance bridge between development, construction, accounting, treasury, corporate FP&A, and executive leadership
  • Translate complex financial analysis into clear narratives that support alignment and decision-making
  • Connect corporate strategy to real estate execution in an environment where priorities, assumptions, and market dynamics continue to evolve
  • Build trust and credibility across technical and non-technical stakeholders
Team Leadership
  • Lead and develop a high-performing FP&A team supporting real estate and capital planning
  • Elevate analytical rigor, business acumen, and storytelling capabilities across the team
  • Lead by example, balancing strategic direction with the ability to step into detailed analysis when needed to unblock progress or reset expectations
  • Build a team and structure that does not rely on sustained hands-on involvement
What We’re Looking For
  • 10 years of progressive experience in FP&A, commercial real estate finance, or asset-intensive businesses
  • Direct experience with ground-up development, leased assets, and complex real estate structures
  • Strong understanding of site-level economics, return on invested capital, and full development lifecycles
  • Proven ability to build and interpret site-level business plans and real estate pro formas
  • Strong capital allocation and asset management mindset
  • Advanced financial modeling skills with the ability to synthesize insights for senior audiences
  • Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and align diverse stakeholders
  • Prior experience leading and developing analytical teams
  • Comfortable operating at multiple altitudes, from executive-level capital strategy to hands-on analysis when required
  • Thrives in complex, fast-paced, and evolving environments

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Salary : $190,000 - $250,000

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