All Things Urban

In 2011, The Class Foundation was founded in response to a growing student housing crisis in the Netherlands. This regional scope widened throughout the past decade but the core purpose remained; unveiling innovative solutions to the common challenge in solving the student housing crisis.

The 5 Basics:

• Be the face and voice of the leading think tank on student living and university-cities
• Elevate the think tank to the next level by strengthening our research, advisory and content
• Lead an ambitious, international and fun team
• Travel across Europe’s most exciting cities
• A fulltime position in a lively 12 people co-working space in the heart of Amsterdam

The leading think tank on student living in Europe is looking for a director-level real-estate investment and urban development expert to join the management team. Our foundation connects the international communities of real-estate industry, higher education and city development. We do so by developing and sharing knowledge. Together with Managing Director, you will lead the team and grow the community in shaping the knowledge eco-system.

Today we are the leading think tank and platform in Europe on student housing and related topics with over 85 partners and several thousand participants in events and conferences each year. We have an ambition for sustainable growth by initiating and executing research projects, publish on trends, advise on partnerships and collaborations, and organising industry events, training sessions and conferences across Europe.

To be a successful candidate for this challenging yet exciting position, you will have expertise in alternative real-estate investment, city/urban development and a true passion for growing with others. You thrive on fast-paced business development and have a very outgoing personality. The successful candidate for this role will be highly organised, engaging as a motivational leader, a great networker and storyteller, with the ability to seize commercial opportunities and respond to the needs and wants of different stakeholders.

You are responsible for the further development of The Class of 2020 platform, enriching our expertise with the team and presenting our foresight to the growing ecosystem of stakeholders. You will be the face and the voice of the organisation, leading the fruitful interaction with relevant partners and driving its ambition to become the world’s leading think tank with advisory services and partnership driven activities. The Class specialises in 4 distinctive yet connected expertise: research, advisory, events and training. This position focuses on the first two while supporting the organisation achieving excellence across all domains.

Your 5 priorities – lead the leaders of the industry:

• Be the thought leader and trend setter: Identifying the current trends within and beyond the industry and forecast the future of alternative investments
• Stay curious and stir curiosity: Investigating further to dig deeper into the potential impact and implications of the identified topics and trends
• Create relevance, urgency and importance: Initiating and deepening the conversation with the relevant stakeholders to showcase the shared value that can be created together
• Stimulate public-private partnerships: Connecting parties that can benefit from each other - investors, developers, operators, cities, universities, service providers, etc.
• Generate movement: Enhancing government, university and student housing collaborations and their abilities to attract and retain talent for university cities

5 things we look for:

• Critical and analytical thinker with 5+ years of proven experience in advisory, research, partnerships and team management with a strong capability to represent the organisation as an engaging story teller and conference host.
• Proven capability to quickly translate knowledge into actions; including experience with industry foresight and leadership development, quantitively and qualitive research, project and stakeholder management
• A start-up can-do mentality and the leadership skills to grow and coach a young, international and dynamic team in our Amsterdam HQ.
• Relevant MA/MBA level education or equivalent experience, preferably in real estate, urban planning, city policy making, investor relations or related fields.
• Fluent in English both spoken and written. Fluency in Dutch, German or Spanish is a plus

If you meet the requirements and are keen to join the Class of 2020, please send your CV and motivation letter to Ms. Yoony Kim via work@theclassof2020.org

We are looking to start this position as soon as possible.

We’re not fully sure whether this role is open to international candidates. If you would need visa sponsorship or work authorisation, we recommend checking directly with the employer before applying.