One recurring concern about real estate private equity, particularly higher-yield strategies, is that “it just doesn’t scale.”
We return to this idea often, especially as several of the leadership roles we are hiring for are fundamentally about building and growing platforms at scale. But there are many challenges to finding leaders who can do this effectively:
- First, very few private equity platforms, apart from Blackstone, Brookfield, and now Ares, have truly achieved scale. Even within those firms, it’s difficult to attribute that scale to any single leader (and Jonathan Gray isn’t available).
- Second, many real estate equity investors are inherently resistant to structure. They prefer to operate as nimble sharpshooters, leveraging relationships and information asymmetry to secure deals. This mindset often comes with a loosely managed, transaction-focused culture where success is measured almost exclusively on deal-by-deal basis.
- Third, the industry itself is evolving. Leadership today requires more than just acquisition chops. Strategic thinking, product development, capital formation, and organizational design have become essential. Building a sustainable business now demands multidimensional leadership and not just a strong track record.
- Finally, the next generation of leaders simply is not ready yet. While rising talent is increasingly focused on generating recurring revenue and growing fee income, most have remained in the $1billion to $2 billion AUM range. While they have raised capital, they haven’t yet proven they can scale. It will take years to see their track records mature.
So why bring up real estate credit?
Real estate credit platforms are built and measured differently. They typically operate with defined account coverage, clear origination expectations, and structured teams that separate origination and underwriting.Internal checks and balances, rigorous portfolio management, and market accountability are the norm. These businesses are designed with scale in mind, supported by layers of leadership, clear metrics, and institutional discipline. This structure doesn’t just enable growth, it demands it.
Just as important, credit businesses must think critically about how to deploy team resources. They require real team management across functions, disciplines, and geographies, in a way that is often absent in equity platforms. Origination is a team sport, and execution depends on coordination, accountability, and process. That necessity creates a culture of collaboration and builds leadership muscle across all levels of the organization.
Take, for example, two credit professionals who successfully transitioned into broader leadership roles:
- John Klopp, who led Capital Trust as CEO before taking over Morgan Stanley’s real estate business post- financial crisis.
- Jonathan Pollack, who ran real estate credit at Blackstone before becoming President of Starwood Capital. While still early in his tenure, the market has high expectations for his skills and breadth of his experience.
What sets these leaders apart is not only their investment acumen but also their ability to lead complex, scalable organizations. Today, we’re seeing more C-suite executives with experience in credit, capital markets, and product, rather than solely in acquisitions. The common thread is their ability to shape both capital strategy and organizational design.
If you can build a best-in-class business, develop differentiated products, deliver them to a broad investor base, and scale with discipline, you’re hired.
At Highridge Search, we help real estate platforms find the leadership talent they need to scale with discipline. If you’re building a platform and need operators who understand structure, execution, and culture, let’s talk.
