Duncan Gilkey heads up leasing for the Davis Cos.’ 2.8 million-square-foot commercial real estate portfolio. Vacancy rates spiked across Greater Boston in 2009, but the Davis portfolio is 98 percent leased. The firm executed leases totaling 263,000 square feet last year, success Gilkey attributes to tenant loyalty. The company retains tenants by being creative, maintaining flexibility and building relationships.

“In these kinds of economies, there’s more stress [for tenants],” Gilkey said. “They’re making harder decisions. It’s not a good feeling. When you’re a landlord, if you can help in that process by making it an easier decision and making it less painful, you’re helping them, and that goes a long way.”

Duncan Gilkey

Title: Senior Vice President of Leasing and Asset Management; The Davis Cos., Boston

Age: 46

Experience: 15 Years

How would you describe your approach to your portfolio?

It’s relationship-based. We are proactive. You’re not just reacting to today. We spend a lot of time working on those relationships and securing that trust as best we can. We’re going through the process together, trying to work on that natural adversarial relationship between tenant and landlord, so you’re solving problems along the way. I really refer to our tenants as clients. I think tenant has a negative connotation in some respects. They’re our partners, and without them, the assets would be worthless.

In these kinds of economies, there’s more stress. In a lot of ways, they’re scared or they’re unable to make decisions, or the decisions are much heavier. They’re making harder decisions. It’s not a good feeling. When you’re a landlord, if you can help in that process by making it less painful, it goes a long way. It goes back to common sense. It really does. If you stay in touch with them, you see things coming. If you don’t have the relationship, it’s a cookie cutter approach, then you’re going to have some surprises, you’re going to be reactive, and it’s not going to be as positive a solution.

The notion of being proactive and relationship-based – where does that come from?

Jon [Davis] would probably tell you he hired me because I’m a good relationship guy. That said, he can pick up the phone and call any single tenant in any of his buildings and they know him. It’s part of the culture here. It’s how he operates. He’s hands-on. We all are.

What’s your perspective on blend-and-extend type deals (in which a tenant agrees to a longer-term lease extension at a lower rent)? How does it compare with the rest of your peers?

I would hope we’re out there before they are. I believe the sooner you’re out, the more value you have to add. Very simply, if you have six months left on your lease, it’s only six months I can add value. If there’s a year and a half left, there’s a lot more value I can add. When you have a property that’s 100 percent full, you have good cash flow, and you’re not in a position where you’re worried about making your loan payments, you have the ability to be as flexible as possible. We have to be responsible to our investors, too. Everybody’s not getting the same package, but it never works out that way.

It feels like the focus in the industry has returned to asset management, rather than flipping properties and making money through appreciation. Do you do better in a cycle like this?

We haven’t sold a lot. We have a long-term strategy. We hold our assets. It’s our core business. We never lost sight of that. It goes back to being proactive. I always try to work harder than the next guy. I honestly believe I’m working harder every day. Whether it’s a good economy or a bad economy, you’re just working differently. In a good economy, the transaction time is so much shorter. In a bad economy, it’s a lot longer, but the transactions are much more complicated.

How intriguing is the acquisition potential in this market?

We’re all excited. We’re looking at a Class B building in Boston about to go up for auction. It’s not all that dissimilar to the building at 200 High St. in Boston that we own, and I am super-pumped. It has maybe 30 percent vacancy. The tenants are probably nervous. I don’t know that it’s been well-managed because of the financial situation. I see that as such a great opportunity for us. The tenants, the brokers and the marketplace all know us. And if they don’t know us, we can come in to that building and meet all the tenants and give them tenant references, broker references, and we can get them comfortable very quickly. In that situation, we can add value really quickly. And I think we can lease it up as quickly as anybody.

Gilkey’s Top Five Ways To Remain Successful In Any Economy: 

• Work harder every day.
• Don’t accept no as an answer.
• Solve problems by being more creative.
• Add value to everything you do.
• Love your job.