Lee Schaffer ’01 is an Executive Director at J.P. Morgan Asset management, where he oversees a portfolio of wholly owned and joint venture commercial real estate investments across the U.S. Lee eared a Bachelor’s degree in Policy Analysis and Management from the College of Human Ecology in 2001. A few weeks ago, Lee visited campus to speak to current PAM students about his experience at Cornell and his career in Asset Management. I had the pleasure to follow-up with Lee after his visit to learn more about his Human Ecology experience and any tips he would like to share with students who were unable to make the meet and greet. Below are his responses
How has your Human Ecology education prepared you for your career in Asset Management?
Human Ecology provided a broad-based foundation in a number of disciplines that are essential in my career. From economics to market analysis, and policy research to statistics, the PAM courses I took provided a toolkit for every role I’ve had since graduation. I also took a number of classes in the DEA major which are directly related to the design and sustainability aspects of my real estate investment role. The various disciplines under one roof in the College of Human Ecology are bound together by a common mission of improving the human condition, and as applied sciences, they provide students a skill set with immediate practical application in the real world. In the Asset Management field, we are charged with identifying assets, in my case real estate properties and developments, that are undervalued relative to their intrinsic value or as compared to other similar investment opportunities. The PAM curriculum readied me for thoughtful analysis of capital markets, geopolitical, and other factors that may affect the real estate investments we own.
Have you always known that this was the career you were interested in? If not, how did you find out?
As an undergraduate, I was the President of the Cornell Pre-Law Society (likely one of the few who did not go on to law school) and did not know that I would ultimately go into a career in finance. I did however, have an interest in real estate from an early age which was fostered by a mentor. On a humorous note, as children, my cousins and I started a mall in our parents’ basement complete with fake stores and mock currency, so it’s ironic that I ultimately chose to focus on the commercial real estate area. Today, I work as a Wall St. investment manager in a group that invests across various types of commercial real estate on behalf of Institutional clients including pension funds and endowments and foundations. I love what I do, and though I didn’t go into the legal field, I do work with attorneys every day on real estate deals we acquire, on leases, and on joint venture negotiations, so in some sense I’ve come full circle. As with many things in life, figuring out what you want to do in your career is a process of ongoing trial and error. Some jobs are well suited to certain personalities, but for the most part, my advice is to do something in a field of interest and you will enjoy your work.
Do you have any recommendations for students who are interested in real estate and/or asset management?
Real Estate investment is a people-centric business. Even with modern technology, people ultimately buy properties from other people, and reputation and ethics are very important when negotiating transactions. Real Estate, and Asset Management in general, require a curiosity in capital markets, a command of numbers, creativity, and oftentimes courage to defend an investment thesis when it’s contrarian or the minority view. Financial modeling skills and Excel are important to learn, but equally as important is the ability to think differently and come up with creative solutions when investment strategies don’t go exactly as planned. Students should not only seek internships, but also be voracious readers of industry publications. There are limited spots for coveted internships, but anyone can pick up a copy of the Wall St. Journal or attend a real estate industry event or panel. Lastly, investing one’s own portfolio on any scale is great practice for the Asset Management discipline.
What is a typical work day for you?
A typical work day might mean spending a few hours visiting a ground-up development construction site (hard hat required!) where we’re building a new property, meeting with a leasing broker to review prospective tenants for a vacant space, reviewing a financial model for an investment opportunity or a property upgrade or large capital expenditure, touring a submarket or neighborhood where we own or are trying to own investments, negotiating a contract for the sale of an asset that’s at the end of our underwritten hold period, or speaking by phone with joint venture partners. I am expected to be a product and geography expert so I also spend a fair amount of time keeping our Portfolio Managers abreast of any relevant developments or newsflow about their investment holdings.
What are the positive and negative aspects of your job?
There is no job in the world (even the CEO’s job) that doesn’t have some frustrations. There is a lot of travel involved, and though I genuinely enjoy visiting my properties, I do not enjoy airport delays and traffic. There are also some reporting aspects that aren’t always exhilarating, but by and large, the positives far outweigh the negatives. Creativity, problem solving, strategic thinking, and cooperative teamwork keep things interesting. I am always amazed at how many new things I learn by going to visit a property and “kicking the tires.” Real estate investment is a hands-on, roll up your sleeves job in many respects.
How important was networking in terms of finding your career path?
Networking is important in any career but particularly in real estate since, as I mentioned, it is a face to face people business. Knowing the right contacts in various roles can make the investment process much more efficient and effective. Networking doesn’t mean having the most LinkedIn contacts of anyone you know, but rather developing deep, meaningful connections and symbiotic relationships where you can be of assistance to someone and vice versa.
What advice would you give a student who isn’t sure what career path to take with a PAM major?
The PAM major is versatile, and students can go in a number of different directions. The best way to learn about a particular career path is to try it out, or at the very least, research the type of assignments involved. Class projects, industry specific research papers, and volunteer work in a related field are often forgotten, but are very effective ways to figure out your compatibility with a particular type of job. Don’t forget to stress this “classroom experience” in your job interviews as well. For instance, if you participate in a student investment club, you should market this to a potential employer. The Human Ecology urban semester program is a great way to combine studies with real world practical work experience. PAM students are particularly attuned to policy matters, and government and economic policies are central drivers of any industry so the knowledge base is broadly applicable