A Property Management journey from London to Texas

As a Director of Property and Asset Management in JLL’s London office, Maggie Georgieva knows something about managing change — and now she’s undertaking one of the greatest changes of her life and career.

After nearly a decade at JLL, rising from intern to senior leadership overseeing some of JLL’s premier properties in the city, the native of Bulgaria and long-time London resident is managing her own move — to Fort Worth, Texas, nicknamed Cowtown for its cowboy culture.

The daughter of a Bulgarian real estate developer, Maggie came to the U.K. to attend college, first at Aston University, then earning her master’s at the University of West of England. Real estate wasn’t her first professional stop post-graduation — instead, she became a credit risk analyst at a major investment bank. But she quickly realized she wanted an industry and a corporate culture where she could make a more direct contribution.

“I started researching the real estate industry, and JLL stood out to me,” in large part because of its consistent ranking as one of the world’s most ethical companies, she recalled. (Earlier this year, JLL recently earned the distinction for the 17th consecutive year.)

So determined was she to join JLL that she really didn’t apply to any other real estate companies. She joined the firm as a summer intern on the residential valuation team, but leadership quickly saw her potential on the management side. From there, her career has grown from entry level to senior director in less than nine years, working with great mentors and industry leaders, including Phoebe Geake and Catherine Thomas, the Co-Heads of Central London (her current team).

Today, she supervises a team of 14, as she focuses on the asset management of some of the most prestigious properties in JLL’s U.K. portfolio, including 78 Saint James and 22 Bishopsgate.

“I like the variety, the fact that I can help clients and tenants,” she says. “But I also cherish the people management side of that role. I like to help my team to ‘Achieve ambitions,’ to ‘See a brighter way,’ much like JLL’s past and present mottos!”

78 Saint James’s combines both the historic, with parts of the building dating from the 1840s, with the modern amenities needed for today’s tenants, including basement amenities such as a wellness suite, the multi-purpose Collab space, hotel-style changing rooms, showers and lockers as well as EV charging.

JLL took on 22 Bishopsgate in 2016, charged by its developers to create a vision for the long-delayed new construction and to co-lease and market the building. Separately, Property and Asset Management created and implemented a management strategy and completed the transfer from construction to management in 2020.

Overseeing all of that means a lot of meetings with a lot of investment clients, beginning at 9 a.m. and continuing through the day. Because of her success, another move beckoned.

“I’ve been in the U.K. for 13 years. I’ve done everything experience-wise here,” she said. “It’s time for a new challenge. There’s more to learn and experience, so when an opportunity presented itself, I just had to take it.”

JLL’s global presence made that possible. Maggie met her boyfriend, a Fort Worth native, online, then learned of a potential job transfer to Dallas. At the end of August, she relocates to Texas, where she will begin her new role as a Senior General Manager on September 3. JLL’s Global Mobility Team made a complex process a lot easier, she notes.

“Moving to the U.S. in general is very difficult. I even ended up emailing Stephanie Hyde, our CEO for Markets Advisory, U.K. and EMEA,” she observes. “But once I had a job offer, JLL’s Global Mobility Team put me at ease. Everyone in the JLL U.K. Property and Asset Management team were also incredibly supportive and were cheering me on the whole time. I don’t think any other company would have gone through all that to help me.”

The Global Mobility Team remained in constant communication, easing a stressful time.

“They outlined each step of the relocation process, provided me with helpful tips, answered my many, questions and also organized the initial meetings with the relocation specialists, tax advisors and immigration lawyers,” she continues. “The process was a lot more complicated that I could ever imagine, but the Global Mobility Team have been amazing at making everything seem easy to do.”

The move, while exciting, is a bit bittersweet. A yoga and Pilates enthusiast, Maggie noted that she’ll miss the Tuesday yoga classes at her office. But she’s also looking forward to seeing what European sustainability initiatives can be brought to the U.S. and helping to grow JLL’s property management business. On a personal level, she’s excited to explore the American Southwest and take advantage of big Texas homes to add to her household.

“I have a whole new country to explore,” she said. “And now that I’ll have more space than I did in a London apartment, I’m finally going to get a cat.”

All of that help, and all of the opportunity ahead more than justifies her belief that JLL was the right — the only — fit for her years ago.

“Colleagues tell me all the time that I’m a JLL lifer,” she says. “I don’t see myself working in any other company other than JLL.”