Assessing corporate real estate management strategies and their impact on corporate development: A case study of Kampala City, Uganda

Abstract

An organized approach to Corporate Real Estate (CRE) decisions that is; a CRE strategy may add value to a company in many ways. The decision to own or lease is a vital part of the strategy. What factors are decisions to own or lease CRE based on, the author seeks patterns in decision factors for different industries. Identified patterns will provide an understanding of the companies’ CRE management (CREM).

The aim of this study is to assess corporate real estate management strategies and their impact on corporate development in Kampala city. A deductive approach was used and this was followed by an empirical research which gave the qualitative and quantitative data from which conclusions were made. The variation in how companies are managing their CRE is large. Some companies have a working CREM strategy, others are currently developing one and others don’t have. Overall, companies tend to view CREM as more important today than before. Several factors that influence the decision to either own or lease CRE have been identified. They seem to be company specific than industry specific. CREM strategies should consequently be company specific than industry specific.

Despite the lack of sufficient knowledge and awareness of the benefits of CREM strategies to corporate companies, the importance of CREM is likely to increase in the future due to stronger market competition and globalization, which will make it essential to handle CRE as a strategic resource.