Y P S

Gilbert Yule  ·  YPS Advisory

Property & Estate Operations Advisory
for the People Who Own the Outcome

For the developers, investors, public bodies and occupiers accountable for how their estate operates and the outcomes that follow. Twenty years on the client side of that table, across the UK, Europe and the Middle East, from a single building to a 367 sq km giga-project.

Built. Led. Advising.

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20+ Years
Client-Side Experience
£26bn
Portfolio Pipeline Managed
367 km²
Largest Project Scale
8
Major Developments

Why YPS Advisory

YPS Advisory has always operated client-side. That means knowing what good looks like, what value for money means in practice and what providers promise versus what they deliver.

The decisions that matter most in property operations rarely come with a clear answer. They require judgement built over time, relationships earned through delivery and the confidence that comes from having been accountable for the outcome. That is what YPS Advisory brings to every engagement.

The Experience

Over 20 years of client-side delivery across the UK, Europe and the Middle East. Operating models built, supply chains negotiated, budgets held and boards reported to at some of the most complex developments on the market, from King's Cross to Qiddiya City. Including executive-level governance and Stage Gate Review Panel membership across eight diverse asset classes, from masterplan and design review through to operational delivery and asset divestment.

The Difference

Most advisory firms have studied property operations from the provider side. YPS Advisory has run them from the client side, at every scale from a single landmark building to a 367 sq km giga-project across the UK, Europe and the Middle East. Every client gets the benefit of those learnings, whatever the scale of their project.

The Model

Senior practitioner expertise on a defined project or advisory basis, without the overhead of a permanent hire. All engagements are delivered by YPS Advisory as a business, with qualified associates available where scope or timing requires it.

Qiddiya City, Saudi Arabia

At Qiddiya City, Gilbert Yule served as Executive Director of City Operations for a 367 sq km Vision 2030 giga-project. From masterplan and design review across all stages of development through to leading the operational framework and city operations function. Those learnings are available to every YPS Advisory client.

Services

Operational Expertise Across the Full Property Lifecycle

Your buildings are going up. The commercial strategy is set. But operations is where risk lives going forward for the 50-year operational lifecycle of the development.

How do you mobilise from day one? What is the right operating model? How do you know your budgets are realistic? Who challenges the provider pitches? What does good actually look like when you are accountable for delivery?

The Developer's Lens

YPS Advisory brings the developer's lens. Not the providers' pitch. Not the consultant's framework. The actual experience of being client-side across the full operational lifecycle.

Across the Full Lifecycle

  • → Estate strategy
  • → Mobilisation & transformation
  • → Governance & ESG
  • → Technology platforms
  • → Exit strategies

Operational Readiness & Mobilisation

Getting your estate ready to perform from day one

The challenge:

You are nearing the end of construction. On the client side, the operating model, the supply chain and the mobilisation plan are not yet where they need to be. That is the gap YPS Advisory closes. Ideally the conversation starts earlier, at the design stage, where operational thinking shapes what gets built.

What we deliver:

  • → Design for operations review, embedding operational requirements before construction begins
  • → Operating model design and implementation, grounded in performance data from comparable estates
  • → FM & PM procurement and contract structuring, balancing cost control with service quality
  • → Mobilisation planning, KPI frameworks and sequenced soft landings
  • → Governance frameworks and service charge structuring

Typical engagement: 3–9 months

Recent delivery: Operational readiness and mobilisation strategy for Brent Cross Town (180 acres, £7bn)

Performance Optimisation & Transformation

Driving value from your existing estate operation

The challenge:

Your contracts are live but performance is not where it needs to be. Costs are rising, the provider relationship has drifted and you need change without putting operations at risk. YPS Advisory has restructured supply chains and reset performance frameworks at some of the UK's most complex estates.

What we deliver:

  • → FM & PM contract review, re-procurement and commercial renegotiation
  • → Performance diagnostics identifying root causes and driving operational efficiency
  • → Service delivery model design and transformation without operational disruption
  • → Health, safety and resilience governance
  • → Customer experience and place management

Typical engagement: 4–12 weeks

Delivered: Estate performance improvement at King's Cross (67 acres)

Strategic Advisory & Governance

Senior expertise when and where you need it

The challenge:

A board decision, a portfolio review or a new market entry. You need someone who has sat on the client side of that table. Not a consultant presenting a framework but a practitioner who has been accountable for the outcome.

What we deliver:

  • → Senior operational advisory at Director level, supporting leadership teams through strategic decisions and capability gaps
  • → Board and leadership team advisory on operational strategy and governance
  • → Estate transfer, transition and exit strategy advisory
  • → Middle East and GCC operational advisory
  • → Estate commercialisation and income stream development

Typical engagement: 3–12 months

Recent delivery: Estate strategy and FM & PM supply chain governance across Lendlease Europe £26.4bn pipeline (Milan, London, Birmingham)

GCC Market Entry & Vision 2030 Projects

Operational expertise where GCC meets international standards

The challenge:

The GCC is unlike any other market. Scale, pace and cultural context require a different kind of adviser. One who has actually delivered there. Gilbert Yule served as Executive Director of City Operations at Qiddiya City, one of the largest development programmes on earth. That depth of experience is as relevant to a single asset as it is to a portfolio.

What we deliver:

  • → Market entry strategies combining UK/European operational frameworks with GCC adaptation
  • → Giga-project operating model development for unprecedented scale and complexity
  • → Local partner and FM & PM provider evaluation with UK performance benchmarking
  • → Cultural and regulatory navigation for international operators

Typical engagement: 6–18 months

Recent delivery: Executive Director City Operations, Qiddiya Investment Company (367 sq km, teams of 250+)

Track Record

20+ Years of City-Scale Delivery

YPS Advisory is a specialist property and estate operations advisory, client-side throughout. Over 20 years of delivery across the UK, Europe and the Middle East, from masterplan and RIBA stage design review through to operational delivery and asset divestment. Working across mixed-use developments, public realm, commercial, retail and residential at every scale.

YPS Advisory is led by Gilbert Yule, whose career spans some of the most recognised developments in London and the GCC, including King's Cross, Greenwich Peninsula, Stratford Cross and Qiddiya City. Gilbert serves as Non-Executive Director at EdCity Development, White City, and holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of East London. A network of experienced associates is available where scope or timing requires it.

The track record below demonstrates client-side delivery at the highest level, across developments that have set the benchmark for large-scale mixed-use operations in the UK and the Middle East. The same rigour and depth of knowledge is brought to every engagement, whatever the scale.

Gilbert Yule, YPS Advisory

Gilbert Yule  ·  Founder

Career Highlights

2020 - Present
Non-Executive Director
EdCity Development, White City
Mixed-use development for Ark and Hammersmith & Fulham Council
Strategic oversight and governance
arkonline.org/programme/edcity
EdCity Development
2025 - 2026
Executive Director - City Operations
Qiddiya City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
367 sq km Vision 2030 flagship project
Operational strategy and city-scale operating model development | Infrastructure, mobility, security and public services frameworks
Stage Gate Review Panel member across eight diverse asset classes | Masterplan and design review from concept through to operational delivery
qiddiya.com/about
Qiddiya City
2020 – 2024
Head of Estate and Customer Experience
King's Cross, Related Argent, London
67-acre site | 4.25m sq ft commercial | 1,750 homes
Estate strategy and customer experience | Operational excellence and contract management
kingscross.co.uk
King's Cross
2022 – 2024
Head of Estate and Customer Experience
Brent Cross Town, Related Argent, London
180-acre site | 3m sq ft commercial | 6,700 homes | Workspace for 25,000 people
Mobilisation strategy and operational planning
brentcrosstown.co.uk
Brent Cross Town
2019 – 2020
Operations Director – Estates (Europe)
Lendlease Europe
£26.4bn urbanisation pipeline across multiple gateway cities
Portfolio oversight: Milan Innovation District, Milano Santa Giulia, Elephant Park, Euston, Silvertown Quay, Smithfield Birmingham, Stratford Cross
Estate strategy development and implementation | FM supply chain governance
lendlease.com/projects
Milan Innovation District - Lendlease Europe
2016 – 2019
Estates Director
Stratford Cross (IQL), Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
22 acres | 4m sq ft workplace | 333 homes
Strategic estate services | Financial and commercial governance
lendlease.com/uk/projects/stratford-cross
Stratford Cross
2008 – 2015
Head of Operations
Greenwich Peninsula, Knight Dragon / Lendlease
150-acre mixed-use estate
Estate strategy and cost framework development | Commercialisation and procurement
greenwichpeninsula.co.uk
Greenwich Peninsula
2005 – 2006
Operations Manager
Bluewater, Vita Lendlease, Kent
1.6m sq ft | 330 shops | £6m turnover
FM services delivery and compliance management
bluewater.co.uk
Bluewater

What Sets YPS Advisory Apart

City-scale delivery

Executive Director of City Operations at Qiddiya City — a 367 sq km Vision 2030 giga-project, one of the largest development programmes on earth. Stage Gate Review Panel membership across eight diverse asset classes. Masterplan and design review from concept through to full operational delivery and handover.

Multi-market fluency

Senior client-side delivery across the UK, Europe and the Middle East. Operations Director for Lendlease's European portfolio — £26.4bn pipeline across Milan, London and Birmingham. Operational advisory experience across GCC markets including the Vision 2030 programme.

Full lifecycle delivery

From masterplan and RIBA stage design review through mobilisation, transformation and long-term optimisation to exit strategy — across public realm, workplace, residential and retail. Every stage of the operational lifecycle managed and delivered client-side.

Commercial grounding

Budgets held, boards reported to at the highest level. Deep experience across JV structures, service charge environments, FM and PM supply chains, large-scale contract negotiation and commercial renegotiation in complex multi-stakeholder developments.

Board-level governance

Non-Executive Director, EdCity Development, White City — active board governance in a live mixed-use development alongside client-side operational advisory work. Experience of N-2 committees and Stage Gate Review Panels across multiple asset classes.

Founder-led, no delegation

Senior practitioner on every engagement. No junior staff, no delegation. Gilbert Yule takes personal responsibility for every client outcome, with a network of first-class associates available where scope or timing requires it. The expertise you commission is the expertise that delivers.

Get In Touch

Tell us what you are trying to achieve. YPS Advisory will tell you how.

Email
gilbert@ypsadvisory.com
Phone
+44 7878 267939
LinkedIn
linkedin.com/in/gilbertyule

Conversations are without obligation and treated in confidence.