User:Cabbagepatch1/sandbox

Strategic Group is a private commercial real estate company. Their portfolio includes office, retail and apartment properties Canada-wide. . Strategic Group’s mantra – “Creating value others can’t by seeing what others don’t” is meant to reflect an unconventional and creative approach to real estate. The company operates on a code of values based on people, community and business:


 * People want to learn, grow and have fun
 * Community commitment is impact, legacy and pride
 * Business is about growth, sustainability and longevity

With over $1 billion in assets, real estate is Strategic Group’s main focus but it also owns businesses in other industries across North America including construction, building services, oilfield services, telecom, pet care, agriculture, technology and corporate finance.

History
Established in 2001, Strategic Group was founded by Riaz Mamdani. Before becoming the founder and CEO of Strategic Group, Mr. Mamdani worked as a pharmacist, a lawyer and created and supported many start-up ventures. While working on these start-up ventures, Mr. Mamdani noticed a need for office spaces which prompted his entry into commercial real estate and the birth of Strategic Group. Starting with 13 properties in 2001, Strategic Group has gone on to expand across Canada owning real estate from coast to coast. As of December 2014, Strategic Group owns over 150 properties and continues to grow and expand across Canada.

Business Model
Alberta-based Strategic Group is one of the largest privately-held real estate companies in Canada. The company is vertically integrated in that the company owns, manages, leases, develops, re-develops and re-purposes their portfolio on their own, for themselves.

Corporate Governance,


 * Chief executive officer – Riaz Mamdani
 * Chief operating officer – Randy Ferguson
 * Chief Financial officer – Graham Garner

Community Involvement
Strategic Group is involved in the support of over 70 organizations, charities and events. The company is involved in the Calgary arts scene, shown through their support of organizations such as Theatre Calgary. CEO Riaz Mamdani’s passion for supporting Calgary’s art and culture community has resulted in a three-year partnership with the Calgary Opera, which has been renamed as the Mamdani Opera Centre. The new name is a reflection of Mamdani’s generosity in offering the Calgary Opera a space rent free for the next three years. As well, Strategic Group runs annual campaigns for the Calgary Food Bank and the Project Warmth Society of Alberta.

Strategic Group has also recently become involved in helping with the surge of refugees coming to Calgary, Alberta. CEO, Riaz Mamdani will be doing whatever it takes to provide housing to Syrian refugees coming to Canada. Mamdani was a child refugee from Uganda in the 1970s and is committed to help. His family immigrated to Canada during a difficult time and he wants to give back.

Notable Upcoming Projects
Strategic Group is currently redeveloping the Barron Building. By June 2017, the building will be a mixed-use space containing retail, restaurants and office space. The company has expressed their desire to respect the historical significance of the building while creating a modern feel to the building.

A new building named ONE will be constructed on the corner of 1st Street S.E. and 10th Avenue. ONE will be a mix of office, residential and retail space. Strategic Group plans to complete this project by the end of 2017. ONE will be a 32-storey tower consisting of 277 apartments and 100,000 square feet of office and retail space. With an economic downturn in Alberta, CEO Riaz Mamdani has changed the company’s focus on building rental apartments instead of commercial properties. Currently, there are 700 rental suites under construction and 500 will be constructed in the next six months.

Environmental Initiatives
Strategic Group has implemented a number of green initiatives to help reduce their environmental impact such as energy reduction and water conservation technologies and recycling programs. Strategic Group has also received their BOMA BEST (Building Environmental Standards) certification across 50 buildings in the Calgary area.19 The BOMA BEST program was launched in 2005 by BOMA Canada and targets: Energy, Water, Waste Reduction and Site Emissions and Effluents, Indoor Environment and Environmental Management System.