The Number Cruncher: The JLL Powerhouse on Her BBC Deal

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Ms. Kiell, who has done transactions for Toyota, United Health Group and the New York City Housing Development Corporation, inked a 450,000-square-foot renewal sublease for Skadden Arps at 1440 New York Avenue in Washington, D.C., this April after a brief search throughout the city.

Working with her JLL (JLL) Beltway colleagues, Ms. Kiell said she considered relocating the venerable law firm to a yet-to-be-built commercial development project in D.C. in which they had an opportunity to be the building’s anchor tenant. Ultimately, however, the firm decided to renovate and renew in its space at 1440 New York Avenue. Skadden will “refresh” its attorney offices during the renovations, said Ms. Kiell.

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“[JLL had] the landlord upgrade the building, including a rooftop terrace with a view of the White House,” Ms. Kiell wrote in an email.

Ms. Kiell grew up one of five children in Mountainside, N.J.

Although both of her parents practiced medicine—her father is a psychiatrist and her mother is a medical technician—it was at their behest that Ms. Kiell eventually chose to attend accounting courses at Emory University in Atlanta.

The young professional’s accounting career, however, was short-lived.

It was in her first several years as an accountant for Coopers & Lybrand, in fact, that she discovered her true calling as a real estate broker.

She spent her first assignment in Allentown, Pa., auditing AT&T while spending her nights cooped up in a Red Roof Inn hotel. It was while auditing real estate clients back in New York that she discovered an industry that, to her delight, embraced collaboration among its personnel.

“I liked the tangible asset of it,” she said about real estate. “With accounting, I enjoyed the service aspect, and I think that is one of my strengths, which is just being a good advocate for my clients. When I worked in public accounting, I found that I liked what my clients did, not necessarily what I was doing for them.”

Her intrigue led to career transition, first with a position in the leasing department for LCOR in Jersey City, where she worked by day. At night, she attended classes at New York University, where she earned her master’s degree in real estate development.

She would eventually land at the Galbreath Company, snatching up assignments for small law firms and fashion companies that, at no greater than 5,000 square feet, were insignificant for more experienced brokers yet substantial enough for a hungry Ms. Kiell.

“They were small deals that weren’t going to make much money, but they were just opportunities for me to learn the business,” said Ms. Kiell.

“And I was earning a salary.”