Lendlease chief operating officer Denis Hickey is leaving at the end of the month after 10 years with the Australian developer.
The company announced the departure of its COO and CEO of the Americas on Wednesday. Chief executive Tony Lombardo will assume some of Hickey’s global responsibilities, including creating uniform processes and simplifying operations.
Claire Johnston, managing director of Google Development Ventures, will ascend to the CEO of the Americas role in November. Johnston also ran the military housing portfolio on behalf of the US Department of Defense.
Lombardo credited Hickey with shaping the developer’s operations in the United States, increasing assets under management to $16 billion. Hickey also created a development pipeline greater than $28 billion, including the Google development partnership.
Hickey joined the company in 2012, becoming the leader of the development business in Australia. Two years later, he relocated to the United States and started spearheading operations in the country. He took on additional responsibility in 2021, when Lendlease named him global chief operating officer.
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Sustainability was a major part of Hickey’s activity at the firm. In an interview with The Real Deal this year, Hickey said said his work included a net-zero initiative to have Lendlease at carbon neutrality by 2040.
No reason was given for Hickey’s departure. Lendlease declined a request for comment.
As of February, Lendlease had more than $100 billion in development projects around the world, including a project at 1 Java Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. The firm is also developing a $600 million office and residential property in Los Angeles and a 15,000-unit housing venture with Google in the Bay Area.
Lendlease still serves as a general contractor as well, building notable projects like 432 Park Avenue and One57.