CFO Studio Magazine with Robert Falzon, CFO, Prudential

E very morning, when Michael Berman gets up, the 58-year-old CFO of Chicago- based General Growth Properties, Inc. (GGP) is eager to get to the office. “There are an unbelievable variety of issues,” says Berman, who oversees the capital markets, finance, accounting, tax, and external communications functions of GGP. He joined the publicly traded real estate investment trust—which owns, develops, and operates mostly high-end regional shopping centers across the United States— inDecember 2011. Routinely ranked as one of the largest REITs in the world, with a market capitalization of more than $20 billion, GGP has a portfolio that includes high-end shopping destinations like Honolulu’s AlaMoana Center and Las Vegas’ Fashion Show. Of course, Berman deals with the usual frustrations and challenges that publicly held companies face—costly and increasingly complex SEC reporting and Sarbanes- Oxley (SOX) requirements among them—and there are marketplace challenges also, including millennials’ online shopping habits. Retail real estate is capital-intensive, so CFOs like Berman are particularly sensitive to interest rates. But he brings an investor’s eye and deep experience to all these concerns. Regarding interest rates and the potential for an increase, he says, “We approach each property’s financing issues separately. If it’s a new property that’s being financed, we may look for a floating rate with some rate protection. If it’s a mature, stable one, we may seek financing with a 10-year maturity, so our total debt rollover—and interest rate exposure— is about 10 percent a year.” Berman’s educational Tending to Growth Malls are facing challenges, but General Growth Properties CFO Michael Berman can’t stop seeing the potential 14 WWW.CFOSTUDIO.COM Q2 2017 BY MARTIN DAKS FEATURED CFO Systems & Processes