Mark Bourgeois
Coach and Leadership Advisor
In 2022, inspired by a network of great leaders, and motivated by a purpose to make a positive difference to executive careers and organisational success, Mark set about applying his own real estate leadership experiences to a career in coaching and executive development.
Driven by the transformative experience of being coached, and having overcome several personal "internal blockers" during his career, Mark has a huge appreciation of the power of effective coaching in drawing out high performance.
Mark is interested in the more contemporary areas of personal development and executive high performance, and is training with The Coactive Training Institute (CTI) and Coaching Constellations, targeting professional certification in 2024.
Whilst coaching boundaries in the professional context must always be clearly defined, Mark understands the importance of addressing work challenges in a broader life context
Seeking his own balance and fulfilment, Mark lives and works between Yorkshire and London, is married to Elizabeth and they have three grown up daughters. Hobbies include setting (niche) cycling world records and playing drums in a rock band.
Real Estate Leader
Mark has over 25 years experience as a commercial real estate operator, with corporate grounding at FTSE Board/Executive committee level and latterly in local government place leadership. He has specialised in complex retail led multisite business operations, principally in UK and Ireland, developing great places where people and businesses thrive, managing through periods of disruption and change with a track record of inspiring, strategic leadership.
In the early 90s Mark began a career in finance at KPMG, from where he switched to real estate, becoming one of the youngest ever partners at leading retail property consultancy Donaldsons, then moving into a principal role at retail specialists Capital & Regional plc.
At C & R, Mark experienced the highs of building The Mall brand, a £3bn community shopping centre business in 25 locations, and the lows of dismantling The Mall post GFC. After a period of balance sheet consolidation, as Executive Director Mark was part of the leadership team that relaunched C & R in 2014 through a capital raise, effectively resetting C & R as a listed REIT.
Mark moved to Hammerson in 2017, as Managing Director UK and Ireland, accountable for £12bn AUM, across 30 prime retail locations generating gross income over £600m. Mark led the UK and Ireland business through a tumultuous period of Covid accelerated structural shifts in retail, an abandoned merger, two strategic reviews, organisational restructuring and a change of group leadership. Throughout, Mark fostered a strong can-do culture, maintained leasing and project momentum alongside positive stakeholder relationships.
In 2023 Mark completed a 12 month interim leadership role at Liverpool City Council. This first Velement assignment involved an intense, demanding albeit highly rewarding turnaround of a distressed corporate model. Marks energetic, decisive, commercial expertise, applied with kindness and respect, was noted by colleagues and stakeholders including politicians, corporate leadership colleagues and wider city partners
The Liverpool experience propelled Mark into the Interim Chief Executive role at The Government Property Agency. Mark bought stability after a period of rapid growth, then lead the Executive Committee to create and deliver an improvement plan for the next stage of GPA evolution.
Mark was President of Revo (formerly BCSC), and a founding member of the BPF Retail Board and currenty sits on the Grants Committee of LandAid. He has an extensive network of investors, operators, service providers, occupiers and local authorities and is committed to building diversity and inclusivity in the real estate industry.
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