Senior Director, Real Estate & Development

ACES•San Diego, CA

20h•$150,000 - $180,000•Hybrid

About The Position

ACES is on a mission to enhance lives and help more people reach their potential by improving access to high-quality autism therapy for families across the country. As we continue to grow, we are building a best-in-class team to help ACES manage the footprint we have, enter new communities, launch new locations and scale all of it sustainably. Expanding into new communities allows ACES to bring high-quality autism care to more families. The Director, Real Estate & Development, is responsible for real estate planning, searches, transactions, lease administration and facilities across ACES rapidly growing footprint. You will help shape the pace of ACES growth while strengthening the systems and discipline required to execute footprint expansion at scale.

Requirements

8+ years of progressive experience, including at least 3 years managing people or programs, across corporate or healthcare real estate, multi-site development, construction, and facilities operations for a geographically distributed portfolio.
Demonstrated success building and scaling real estate and facilities functions in a growth-oriented, multi-state organization.
Proven record leading site selection, lease transactions, design/construction programs, capital planning, portfolio optimization, and delivery of 15+ new locations per year in a relevant multi-site environment.
Strong understanding of lease structures, landlord negotiations, TI allowances, free rent, work letters, renewal and expansion options, assignment/change-of-control rights, and risk terms.
Experience partnering cross-functionally with operations, clinical, finance, legal, compliance, IT, credentialing, payer relations, and people teams to deliver new site openings.
Experience leading internal teams and external brokers, architects, contractors, project managers, consultants, landlords, and service providers.
Bachelor’s degree in real estate, business, finance, engineering, construction management, architecture, or a related field.
Ability to travel approximately 40-50% to markets and sites; valid driver’s license required.

Nice To Haves

Experience with outpatient healthcare, pediatric, education, or childcare facilities and related licensing, zoning, life-safety, ADA, environmental, workplace-safety, and facilities compliance requirements strongly preferred.
Private equity-backed or high-growth experience, including real estate diligence and acquisition integration, preferred.
Advanced degree or credential such as MBA, CCIM, PMP, or FMP preferred.

Responsibilities

Develop ACES’ real estate and facilities strategy, roadmap, operating plan, budget, decision gates, and executive reporting in partnership with Finance and senior leadership.
Lead market planning, site searches, diligence, financial analysis, LOIs, lease negotiations, renewals, expansions, relocations, dispositions, and portfolio optimization.
Own end-to-end clinic development, including design, permitting, landlord coordination, construction, FF&E, technology dependencies, commissioning, turnover, and opening stabilization.
Build prototypes, playbooks, SOPs, project controls, dashboards, stage gates, cost benchmarks, quality standards, and performance metrics to improve opening capacity, speed, cost, schedule, and risk management.
Oversee maintenance standards, work-order governance, vendor performance, landlord relationships, inspections, permits, business licenses, COIs, annual fire inspections, and fire/life-safety requirements.
Ensure compliance with applicable laws, leases, company standards, OSHA guidelines, accessibility requirements, licensing-related facility needs, and other facility-related regulatory obligations.
Manage critical dates, rent/CAM reconciliations, landlord charge audits, TI allowance collection, capital planning, forecasting, reporting, and portfolio risk mitigation.
Partner with Operations, Clinical, Growth, Credentialing, Payer Relations, Compliance, IT, People, Legal, and Finance to align construction, licensure, payer enrollment, hiring, technology, staffing, and billing readiness.
Select, lead, and hold accountable internal team members and external partners, including brokers, architects, engineers, contractors, project managers, consultants, landlords, and service providers.
This leader is expected to bring structure, urgency, and disciplined execution to a growing function while balancing speed to market with quality, compliance, cost control, and long-term portfolio health.