Bilingual Senior Administrator, Property Admin

Supports the end-to-end Accounts Payable and Lease & Property Administration processes. Provides guidance to resolve processing issues and meet service level and quality expectations in compliance with policies and procedures. Ensures the accuracy and integrity of property and leasing data (including critical dates and financials) and supports due diligence for acquisitions/dispositions. Provides ideas, advice, and recommendations on process improvements to improve quality and effectiveness.

• Acts as a subject matter expert for more complex accounts payable and lease administration issues.
• Acts as a point of resolution of escalated issues in absence of the Manager.
• Integrates information from multiple sources (AP systems, property & lease databases, spreadsheets, SharePoint) to enable more efficient processes, enhanced analysis and/or streamlined reporting.
• Builds effective relationships with internal/external stakeholders (e.g., landlords, tenants, vendors, attorneys, finance partners).
• Participates in the management of vendor and landlord relationships; works with parties to resolve lease and payment-related issues.
• Breaks down strategic problems, and analyses data and information to provide insights and recommendations.
• Monitors and tracks performance and addresses any issues; tracks critical lease notice/option/expiry dates to ensure time-sensitive actions are met.
• Employs systems (e.g., customized exception reports, tracking reports, property & lease databases) to manage information.
• Leads change management activities of varying scope and type.
• Leads in the design, implementation and management of core business/group processes (e.g., lease abstraction, AP workflows, acquisitions/conversions due diligence).
• Understands and adopts industry best practices.
• Ensures team contingency plans support the continuity of critical processes in various scenarios.
• Assesses and manages production issues to mitigate risks and exposures and provide solutions.
• Processes timely and accurate daily financial transactions (e.g., lease payables/receivables setup and maintenance, rent and related payments, terminations/dispositions).
• Executes routine tasks (e.g., service requests, transactions, queries, data updates) within relevant service level agreements.
• Collaborates with internal and external stakeholders in order to deliver on business objectives.
• Resolves processing issues in compliance with policies, procedures, and service level expectations.
• Supports the safekeeping and destruction of departmental financial documents; performs scanning, OCR, bookmarking and filing of leases/agreements and related property documents; maintains organized e-files and SharePoint folders.
• Organizes work information to ensure accuracy and completeness; captures, updates and validates key lease data (e.g., commencements, expiries, renewals, options, landlord/agent details).
• Analyzes and summarizes lease clauses to address inquiries from internal partners and external parties; supports reporting on expiries, rental rates, area occupied and other material provisions.
• Supports coded acquisitions/conversions by gathering, validating and entering property and leasing information; identifies and procures missing documentation; coordinates notices to landlords/tenants as required.
• Focus is primarily on business/group within BMO; may have broader, enterprise-wide focus.
• Exercises judgment to identify, diagnose, and solve problems within given rules.
• Works independently on a range of complex tasks, which may include unique situations.
• Broader work or accountabilities may be assigned as needed.

Qualifications:

• Typically between 4–6 years of relevant experience and/or certification in a related field of study, or an equivalent combination of education and experience; minimum 3 years in corporate real estate/lease administration or accounts payable is preferred.
• Professional accounting certification is an asset.
• Experience in accounts payable / financial concepts, practices and workflow.
• Extensive knowledge and experience with commercial/corporate real estate lease agreements (office, retail, ground), including related documents (e.g., declarations, easements, closing packages, environmental reports).
• Knowledge of the financial / accounts payable business and corporate processes and procedures.
• Knowledge of sales tax systems/legislation for the appropriate jurisdictions.
• Proficient with Excel, Word, Adobe Acrobat, SharePoint, OneDrive, Outlook; familiarity with property & lease databases (e.g., Horizon/MRI) is an asset.
• Ability to interpret (abstract) lease terms, critical dates and clauses to protect the Bank’s interests and ensure accurate documentation.
• Experience addressing landlord/tenant and vendor payment issues; participates in post-acquisition due diligence and notices.
• Technical proficiency gained through education and/or business experience.
• Verbal & written communication skills — In-depth.
• Collaboration & team skills — In-depth.
• Analytical and problem-solving skills — In-depth; strong attention to detail and organization.
• Influence skills — In-depth.
• Data-driven decision making — In-depth.
• Bilingual (English/French) — In-depth.