Consulting services

Corporate real estate becomes a strategic business lever when organisations use it to drive three outcomes simultaneously: cost optimisation that releases capital, sustainable practices that meet regulatory and investor expectations, and workplace experiences that attract and retain talent.

• Cost as capital reallocation: Portfolio optimisation does not just reduce occupancy costs—it releases capital that can be reinvested in technology, talent, or growth. JLL's work with a global financial services firm generated $120 million in annual savings by right-sizing its portfolio based on integrated attendance and occupancy data.
• Sustainability as risk management and value creation: Buildings account for roughly 40% of global carbon emissions. Organisations that decarbonise their portfolios reduce regulatory exposure, qualify for green financing, and attract ESG-conscious investors and tenants.
• Workplace as talent strategy: The physical workplace directly influences recruitment, retention, and daily productivity. Organisations that design their workplaces around employee experience gain a measurable competitive advantage in talent markets.

JLL's integrated consulting approach connects workplace, location, and portfolio decisions through a shared data foundation, a sequential analytical framework, and coordinated execution — ensuring that each strategic decision accounts for its downstream impact on the other two disciplines.

• Data unification: JLL's consulting team begins by integrating the client's occupancy data, lease portfolio, financial performance, headcount projections, and market intelligence into a single analytical environment.
• People-first strategy development: Before evaluating locations or portfolio composition, JLL examines how people in the organisation work—collaboration patterns, space utilisation, hybrid behaviors, and employee experience needs.
• Scenario modeling across disciplines: JLL models portfolio scenarios that simultaneously account for workplace requirements, location constraints, and financial outcomes.
• Coordinated execution: When the strategy is approved, JLL's consulting team transitions to execution in partnership with JLL's leasing, project management, and facilities management teams.

Justify real estate consulting to the CFO or board by presenting a cost-benefit framework that quantifies the savings potential against the consulting investment—and by framing consulting as risk mitigation for the organisation's second- or third-largest operating expense.

• Quantified savings opportunity: Benchmark the organization's current occupancy costs against industry standards. For most organisations, occupancy cost reduction of 10–25% is achievable through consulting-driven optimisation.
• Fee-to-savings ratio: Consulting fees typically represent 1–3% of total occupancy costs. If a $200k engagement delivers $5 million in annual savings, the ROI is 10x in year one.
• Risk of inaction: Quantify the cost of the status quo: lease expirations approaching without a strategy, underutilised space, ESG non-compliance, and competitive disadvantage in talent markets.
• Non-financial returns: Include employee experience improvements, ESG score enhancement, data infrastructure value, and organisational agility.