Chief Development Officer

CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

Home Ownership Providing Energy Inc. (HOPE) is a state-owned commercial enterprise of the Government of Barbados created with the mission to fill an important social need through the construction and sale of houses at affordable prices to lower-income earners.

HOPE’s housing solution comprises both house and land which are sold at below-market prices. These prices are significantly supported by earnings generated from Photo-Voltaic (PV) panels. Our model allows HOPE to give the homeowner land in exchange for the placement and use of PV panels on their rooftop.

Summary Description

The Chief Development Officer (CDO) will be responsible for implementing the Company's vision by creating capacity for innovative, efficient, and effective project development. The CDO will formulate the Company’s strategic planning to achieve the objectives of the business plan with the aim of maximizing return and minimizing risk for the Company.

The CDO will help identify and assess potential development projects, oversee design and construction, supervise consultants as designated, including design, commercial, construction, and financing specialists. The CDO will work closely with the CEO, HOPE Staff, Board members, Ministry of Housing, Lands & Maintenance representatives, partners, consultants, and stakeholders.

Essential Functions

• Oversee acquisition, development, and redevelopment opportunities of new affordable housing in Barbados on time and on budget to produce attractive properties that serve HOPE’s mission.
• Oversee the competitive, bid, negotiation, selection and contracting of third-party services to produce quality results.
• Develop systems and protocols to control and standardise the development process; including the appropriate gateways for Board approval for developments to progress in an efficient and controlled manner.
• Produce timely and cost-effective performance from the project team, including architect/engineer, specialty consultants and general contractors.
• Supervise the overall development process from site selection and acquisition to completion of housing construction including assisting with the coordination of land use and entitlement approvals, securing permits, completing construction documents, overseeing construction and rehab.
• Create and maintain comprehensive project schedules and checklists with milestones for entitlements, financing, permitting and construction. Coordinate team responsibilities to meet deadlines and goals, fulfil reporting requirements and provide updates to the HOPE Board and other relevant parties.
  • Provide focused leadership and expertise in project design, construction, and cost containment.
  • Establish ongoing, constructive working relationships with peers, contractors, financiers (equity and debt), regulatory entities, community leaders and government partners.
  • Participate in public presentations, leverage financial, political and community support for projects. Coordinate stakeholder input, resident, and neighborhood engagement in order to secure regulatory approvals and maintain HOPE’s reputation as a good neighbour.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 15 years of real estate development and project management experience, preferably including large scale housing projects
• Track record in developing successful real estate projects on budget and on time.
• Education and/or extensive experience in construction, design or engineering is strongly preferred, including a working knowledge of architectural plans, mechanical and building systems, new-construction and multi-family construction, construction costs and site plans.
• Proven capacity to supervise a talented team of real estate professionals and to get high performance from consultants.
• Team player with a can-do attitude who can work effectively with a wide variety of people, including, Board members, civic leaders, realtors, lenders, investors, government, staff, contractors, consultants, suppliers, and development partners to achieve organisational goals.
• Focused, efficient, and results-oriented. Strong organisational skills and self-directed work habits, able to anticipate deadlines, able to review complex legal documents and identify key business points and to manage multiple complex projects, often with overlapping deadlines.
• Knowledge of housing finance preferred, including local housing programs. Capacity to oversee the development and critically analyze and manipulate complex financial models.
• Strong oral and written communication skills. Ability to make compelling presentations to Government, financiers, civic leaders and diverse citizen groups.
• Committed to the mission of affordable housing.
• Proficiency in computer software, including Word, Excel, Power Point and Outlook.

Salary and Benefits

Commensurate with the experience required for the role. HOPE offers a competitive benefits package.

Please submit your resume and cover letter to The Chairman of the Board of Directors, Home Ownership Providing Energy Inc. 

PLEASE NOTE THAT UNSUITABLE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE ACKNOWLEDGED.