Executive Vice President & Chief Information Officer, BRIXMOR PROPERTY GROUP INC
Helane Stein SVP & CIO, Brixmor Property Group — HMG Spotlight
For more information, please Visit https://hmgstrategy.com/ HMG Strategy is the world's leading digital platform for connecting ...
About Helane Stein
Helane Stein, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Brixmor Property Group, was recognized as an HMG Midcap CIO of the Year in September 2024. In an interview about the award, Stein discussed her approach to leadership and technology strategy. She stated that a visionary leader must understand the business and align technology with organizational goals, and that she reports quarterly to the audit committee on the company's cyber roadmap. Stein described Brixmor's approach to generative AI as using small cross-functional teams to develop proofs of concept, iterating on them, and moving quickly to larger rollouts or abandoning initiatives that fail. Stein emphasized the importance of partner relationships, noting that the SEC's cyber regulations have increased scrutiny on vendor management. She said Brixmor uses a robust vetting process to ensure contractual alignment and incident notification, and views partners as an extension of the team. On talent, Stein said she focuses on building a team culture with diversity in background and thought, which she stated fosters innovation and drives business success. She described leading with empathy as a sign of strength that creates a safe environment of trust, and said incorporating diverse voices into decision-making has led to increased creativity, better problem solving, and enhanced employee engagement.
Transcript (21 segments)
H
Hunter Mueller0:00
Welcome to the HMG Executive Leadership Spotlight. Here's our host, Hunter Mueller.
Hello and welcome to the HMG Spotlight. I'm Hunter Muller, founder and CEO of HMG Strategy. I'm here with Helane Stein. She's the Senior Vice President and CIO of the Brixmor Property Group. Helane, congratulations on being an HMG Midcap CIO of the Year.
H
Helane Stein0:18
Thank you, Hunter. I'm very honored to be receiving the award.
H
Hunter Mueller0:27
A challenging time right now, no doubt. When you think about visionary global leadership and leading the technology and cyber function for Brixmor, what do you think about regarding your leadership style on a global basis?
H
Helane Stein0:39
I think being a visionary leader, you need to understand the business and what levers increase revenue or reduce expenses. An ability to articulate the vision at all levels of the organization, a need to be an evangelist of change. You also need to be able to align technology with organizational goals, be involved with the planning process, and have a seat at the table — be a business leader that understands how to leverage technology to be an enabler of the strategy. And finally, you have to embrace change. People in IT are usually built to embrace change since the field is constantly evolving, partnering with the innovators within the organization to help enable change, and leveraging champions throughout the organization to create buzz that leads to adoption of new technologies.
H
Hunter Mueller1:30
Interesting. And part of when you implement technology is getting real user engagement and adoption, right?
H
Helane Stein1:37
Absolutely. We usually have a cross-functional team that we put together that become our champions and help evangelize. And it's a group of people who come from all backgrounds with all different skill levels, that also helps lead to adoption.
H
Hunter Mueller1:55
Tell us a little bit more about Brixmor and the size and scale of the business that you're in.
H
Helane Stein2:01
Brixmor is a real estate investment trust. We are a grocer-anchored retail asset class. We have approximately 362 shopping centers throughout the US, about 62 million square feet of retail, and about 500 employees.
H
Hunter Mueller2:20
So technology is more important than ever in every business, in every company. How is technology viewed at Brixmor?
H
Helane Stein2:26
Look, I think we have a growing demand of our teams. AI in the past was hype, but we're past the hype cycle. We have data, data, data — not all of it's good data. We're in a cycle of high interest rates, and there are growing cyber risks. So we still need to innovate in this environment with limited budgets and resources. We've been fortunate — we have a theory of crawl, walk, run. We do proof of concepts and pilots. An example is where we've been doing one in AI right now, in generative AI, where we create a small cross-functional team, develop a proof of concept, iterate on it. If we think it's something good, we go for a larger rollout. Again, if we need to fail fast if we're going to fail, and move on to the next initiative. We also like to train a group of early adopters throughout the organization who will be our evangelists and advocates.
H
Hunter Mueller3:30
Thanks for that, Helane. When you think of your partners, selecting partners, how important is it to get the right partner and build up the right relationship?
H
Helane Stein3:38
Partners are so critical. The SEC sort of put a spotlight on your partner relationships with their new cyber regulations. I mean, a failure of your partner could be a failure of yours. So we have a very robust vetting process that we make sure contractually we're in sync, our roadmaps are in sync, that we have the right to audit our vendors, that they notify us of any incidents they might have. But we also want to be their partner, and we want to share in understanding their strategy to ensure our go-forward strategy is in sync with theirs. We want to participate on their user panels so that we can have input into their roadmaps as well. And again, we view them as an extension of our team when it's a good partnership.
H
Hunter Mueller4:34
And you touched on cyber. Cyber matters more than ever. Are you reporting to the board on a quarterly basis on your whole cyber status and risk profile?
H
Helane Stein4:41
I do. I report quarterly to the audit committee on our cyber roadmap for the year, as well as any incidents that might be out there of interest to them. Not that we have had any incidents, but no.
H
Hunter Mueller5:00
Tell us a little bit more about your leadership style. How would you characterize your leadership style in building a high-performing team?
H
Helane Stein5:06
This is going to sound counterintuitive, but I think you need to be an empathetic leader. In today's world, conditions are changing rapidly. To maintain morale and agility is crucial. By leading with empathy, I ensure my team feels valued and supported, which in turn drives their commitment and performance. And results have been shown — being an empathetic leader is a sign of strength. It creates a safe environment of trust, which allows me to truly understand my team members' perspectives, challenges, and motivations. They know I have their back. I also make sure everyone on the team knows why and how they fit in. Knowing how their actions support the company is crucial for executing our strategy.
H
Hunter Mueller5:57
Great insights. I agree with you 100%. How important is recruiting and then, of course, retaining your top talent?
H
Helane Stein6:05
Well, it's all about the culture of the team. I've been fortunate to be able to recruit and maintain my top talent within the department, and that's I think because we have a diversity in background and thought, which is essential for fostering innovation and driving business success. And for all leaders out there, it's our responsibility to ensure all voices are not only heard but valued and acted upon. Even if that means sometimes calling people out a bit to ask their thoughts. There's a lot of introverts in IT that might need a little time to think through their ideas before they're ready to discuss. So once again, knowing your team and creating that space is crucial. Incorporating diverse voices into the decision-making process has led to tangible business results, including increased creativity, better problem solving, and enhanced employee engagement. By valuing and acting upon diverse perspectives, we drive better business outcomes and create a more inclusive and dynamic workplace.
H
Hunter Mueller7:12
Well said. I couldn't have said it better. Congratulations once again on being an HMG Global Leadership Institute Midcap CIO of the Year.
H
Helane Stein7:22
Thank you. I look forward to seeing you in Philadelphia in a couple of weeks.