Global Real Estate Services Manager

Brady Corporation•Chicago, IL

12d

About The Position

Brady Corporation is seeking a Global Real Estate Services Manager. This role is responsible for the strategy, execution, and lifecycle management of the company's global real estate portfolio, spanning owned and leased office, manufacturing, warehouse, and distribution facilities across multiple countries and business units. This role has taken on increased scope and urgency following a recent carve-out acquisition that materially expanded the company's global footprint, headcount, and site count. The position leads site selection, lease negotiation and administration, design/build and fit-out project management, real estate-related capital planning, and third-party broker, architect, and contractor relationships. The role serves as the primary point of coordination between the business, outside real estate service providers, and internal stakeholders in Legal, Finance, IT, and Facilities on all real estate matters, and represents the company in negotiations with landlords, developers, and design/build contractors worldwide.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute the global real estate strategy in support of business growth, cost efficiency, and post-acquisition portfolio integration, including rationalization of overlapping or redundant sites.
Lead site selection, lease negotiation, renewal, and termination activity across all regions, working with local brokers and outside counsel to protect the company's commercial and operational interests.
Own end-to-end program management of active build-out and fit-out projects — including scope, schedule, budget, and contractor performance — from design/build contract execution through occupancy.
Manage the design/build contractor and general contractor relationships for major capital projects, including contract negotiation, milestone tracking, and change-order review.
Maintain and regularly report a global real estate portfolio database covering lease terms, expirations, critical dates, occupancy costs, and utilization by site.
Partner with Finance on real estate capital and operating budgets, lease accounting (ASC 842 / IFRS 16) data needs, and occupancy cost forecasting and variance analysis.
Coordinate with Legal and outside counsel on lease and construction contract review, risk allocation, and approval workflows, escalating material terms that fall outside standard risk tolerance.
Serve as the internal point of coordination for real estate integration workstreams arising from mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, including newly acquired or carved-out sites.
Manage relationships with brokers, landlords, architects, engineers, and facilities service providers globally, and lead competitive selection processes for major engagements.
Ensure real estate transactions and site build-outs comply with local regulatory, zoning, environmental, and safety requirements in each jurisdiction.
Support space planning and workplace strategy in partnership with HR and business unit leaders, including headcount-driven expansion or consolidation needs.
Provide regular reporting to executive leadership on portfolio status, active projects, key risks, and capital deployment.