Oxford North

The Client and Brief

MRG was approached by Stanhope and Savills to lead the campaign for an Estate Director to preside over Oxford North,   a new innovation district for Oxford, delivering over one million sqft of labs and workspaces for science and technology companies, in addition to 480 new homes, a hotel, nursery, amenities and three new public parks. The development is delivered by Oxford North Ventures GP LLP, a 50:50 joint venture between Thomas White Oxford, the development company of St John’s College with Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Stanhope. The first phase of commercial development is targeting practical completion in Q2 2025.

Overcoming Challenges

This was an exceptionally intricate role which highlighted the importance of being able to adapt and change the spec to the needs of the client and site during the campaign, taking feedback on board in order to produce the required result.

Our Process

MRG worked closely with Savills and Oxford North’s Marketing Consultants, Spacecraft Consulting, to design a dual-branded candidate brochure, visual marketing tile and branded advert. The candidate brochure was incredibly well received across social media channels, reaching over 1500 views. Upon launching across MRG’s LinkedIn channels, the posts were viewed across over 7800 profiles.

Initially, MRG produced a detailed Longlist of over 130 candidates to be considered. We produced a set of key competencies which the candidates would be scored against when interviewed. The campaign ran smoothly with a high calibre of applicants given the prestigious nature of the role. We conducted a comprehensive market analysis to identify key individuals and made in excess of 150 confidential approaches to inform them of this unique opportunity. After a robust screening process, 20 candidates were shortlisted with fully anonymised competency reports provided and all personal details removed from CVs to ensure a D&I compliant process whereby candidates were selected based on skillset and proven capabilities.

During the first round of interviews, it was decided by Stanhope and their stakeholders that the role required a more senior leader. MRG worked closely with Stanhope and Savills to provide a new JD for a Managing Director of the site and new competencies. The candidates were subsequently re-evaluated before progressing to the next stage, and additional candidates with the right level of seniority were sourced to complement the panel.

The Outcome

After three rounds of interviews, including key stakeholders, negotiations were completed, and the new MD for Oxford North was appointed.

The Campaign in Numbers

1500 +
Flipingbook views
7800 +
Linkedin Impressions
130 +
Longlisted candidates
150 +
Approached Candidates
20
Shortlisted Candidates

Oxford North – Estate Director