Real estate project management improves bottom line.

AS corporate America deals with the dynamics of a changing economic landscape, an age-old truism still exists: Following human resources, real estate represents a company's largest investment.

Looking at ways to cut costs, companies often turn to experienced real estate service providers to help them negotiate favorable lease terms. But beyond rent savings, companies often overlook the fact that they can realize even more significant savings if they think strategically and adopt a "project-centric" rather than a "transaction-centric" approach.

If you're a corporate executive in charge of facility management, chances are that you're looking to maximize the use of your office, warehouse or R&D space. Perhaps you want to relocate, or perhaps you want to reconfigure your existing space to increase productivity and improve morale.

In planning a move or a design and construction project, a typical question is: Should I hire a project manager? If you want the project to be delivered on time, on budget, and without risk to your company's bottom line, your answer will likely be "yes."

Let's assume that your company needs help with one or more of the following: strategic facility planning, budget/ schedule development and coordination, building evaluation, space programming assessment, benchmarking studies, move-in coordination, and overall project supervision and quality control. How can you plan ahead to ensure that you select the right project manager?

Corporate real estate advisors, or tenant rep firms, work hand-in-hand with project managers in their firm, striving to ensure continuity, efficiency and accountability. These firms advocate only on behalf of corporate space users, so there is no potential for conflict of interest with the landlord.

Once you decide on a general direction, you will want to zero in on the perfect fit for your company. Make sure that:

* The firm and specific project manager you're considering has excellent references.

* The firm you're hiring has strong relationships with general contractors, movers, telecommunications firms, and other vendors.

* The project manager has excellent people skills and is a good listener, not just a talker.

* You're hiring a proven team leader who knows how to motivate and how to communicate, which means keeping you apprised of the project status, including problems, should they arise.

* You're selecting a professional who has a proactive versus reactive approach, which will result in greater piece of mind so that you can focus on other important matters.

Overall, a good project manager will set the tone from the onset. This includes mapping out the project's objectives and the expectations of all players involved.

Indeed, a good project manager will inspire confidence and will make everyone's job much easier.

In the final analysis, the right project manager can mitigate risks, reduce your time involvement, and improve your ROI.

An integrated, start-to-finish approach to your real estate needs, with site selection, lease negotiation, and project management, will help navigate around the thousands of potential pitfalls and bring savings every step of the way.

BY BLAISE BOZZELLI, ADVISOR, CRESA PARTNERS