The Government Property Agency has appointed an interim chief executive to replace its current boss, Stephen Boyd, who is stepping down from the role later this month.
Mark Bourgeois will take over from Boyd – who has been chief exec since June 2019 – at the end of November.
The GPA also recently recruited Lisa Commane, who was the chief operating at officer at Ofwat, as its COO.
The agency said Bourgeois’s focus in the role will be “maintaining momentum on [the GPA’s] work to deliver a smaller, better-connected, better-quality and greener government property estate”.
Bourgeois has more than 30 years of experience in strategic and operational leadership across investment, development and asset management within commercial real estate, including: managing director for the UK and Ireland division at FTSE-listed developer and investor Hammerson; and executive director at Capital & Regional.
He also has recent experience in the public sector, having acted as interim corporate director for city development at Liverpool City Council for nine months until February this year.
Pat Ritchie, chair of the GPA, said: “People are at the heart of what we do and Mark’s expertise in championing customer focus, demonstrating social impact, and inspiring teams will guide the agency’s development and next phase of this transition.
Since launching in 2018, the GPA – an executive agency of the Cabinet Office – has grown to manage nearly 1 million sqm of the government’s property portfolio. It is also responsible for the Government Hubs Programme, which is relocating civil servants from small offices into up to 50 large joint hubs located in cities across the United Kingdom..
Recent milestones for the programme have included the opening of the Peterborough hub earlier this year, and the announcement last month of the site acquisition for the new Darlington Economic Campus.
Ritchie thanked Boyd for his “drive, determination and leadership, as well as the significant contribution he has made to establish the GPA since joining us in 2019, providing firm foundations for the next phase of the agency's journey”.
“Steven has made great progress in joining up the government’s office estate, delivering the Hubs Programme, making major changes to the London estate, and leading the introduction of interoperable property technology to enable civil service productivity,” he added.
However, MPs warned last year that the government's hubs plan is being hampered by out-of-date IT systems, poor data collection and a lack of ambition.
The GPA said it will begin its recruitment process for a permanent chief executive in early 2024.