GREENSBORO, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Bell Partners (the “Company”), one of the nation’s largest apartment investment and management companies, today announced that Kate Byford has joined the Company as Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), and Lisa Tully-Lavian has joined the Company as Senior Vice President, Customer Experience. Both roles are new positions created as part of the Company’s updated strategic plan to support its continued growth. Ms. Byford and Ms. Tully-Lavian will both be based in the Company’s Alexandria, Virginia corporate office.
“As we prepare for the future, the CAO role will help centralize some of our corporate services to enhance efficiency and focus, which should drive stronger results,” said Lili Dunn, CEO and President of Bell Partners. “At the same time, the new Customer Experience function will deepen our knowledge of our current and prospective customers, so we can transform ordinary interactions into extraordinary experiences.”
“Kate is an industry leader in developing efficient, scalable solutions to manage growth and optimize team performance and processes,” Dunn added. “Lisa’s experience in the hospitality sector will help Bell Partners elevate our brand management, marketing, and customer focused initiatives, all supporting the key theme driving our strategic plan, our Residents. With their additions, I am also proud that almost 60% of our Officer team identify as women.”
As Chief Administrative Officer, Ms. Byford’s responsibilities include oversight of the Company’s Human Resources, Information Technology, Procurement, and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives. She will also help lead other strategic and corporate initiatives to support the CEO and President, and will serve on the Executive Committee to guide the Company’s strategic direction, business policies and investment decisions. Ms. Byford has over 20 years of experience in the multifamily industry, including the past seven years at Capital One where she last served as Managing Vice President: Head of Multifamily Agency Finance. Ms. Byford was at Freddie Mac for 10 years, where she last served as Senior Director: Multifamily Capital Markets, Head of Pricing. She led the team that received GlobeSt.’s Multifamily Influencer Winner: Agency Finance Team in 2023 and 2022, and received GlobeSt.’s Woman of Influence Award: Finance Executive in 2021. Ms. Byford is a graduate of West Virginia University.
As SVP Customer Service, Ms. Tully-Lavian’s responsibilities include overseeing the development and implementation of systems and processes to support a differentiated customer experience, leading efforts related to Bell’s insights into its current and prospective customers, and overseeing the Company’s marketing initiatives. Ms. Tully-Lavian brings over 20 years of experience in lifestyle and brand marketing, digital media and data analysis to her new role. She was most recently Chief Marketing Officer at Sentral, an innovator in residential hospitality, and was Executive Vice President, Marketing at Highgate, a leading hospitality investment and management company. Her extensive experience also includes senior marketing roles with American Express and in the luxury hotel sector. Ms. Tully-Lavian is a graduate of Manhattan College.
About Bell Partners
Established in 1976, Bell Partners Inc. is a privately held apartment investment and management company focused on quality multifamily rental communities throughout the United States. The Company manages approximately 85,000 apartment homes in 12 regions across the U.S., including communities in Seattle, San Francisco Bay Area, Southern California, Denver, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Austin, Atlanta, Central and Southeast Florida, Charlotte/Raleigh, Washington, D.C., and Boston. With over 2,000 associates and ten offices, Bell Partners offers an extensive full-service vertically integrated national platform of expertise in property management, acquisitions, construction, financing, accounting, risk management, and related support functions. Led by a senior management team with an average of 20+ years of experience, Bell Partners has invested throughout all phases of the real estate cycle and has completed over $11 billion of realized apartment transactions since 2002. For more information, visit bellpartnersinc.com.
