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Guide to Working at JLL 

Working at JLL

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Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated, also known as JLL, is one of the largest professional services companies in the world. JLL specializes in real estate and investment management — buying, building, and investing in commercial, industrial, retail, hotel, and residential real estate transactions.

JLL offers career opportunities in finance, product development, technology, engineering, and more. Ready to learn about working at JLL to see if it’s the right career path for you? In this guide, we cover: 

What Is JLL? 

Founded as LaSalle Partners in 1968 and incorporated in 1997, a merger with Jones Lang Wootton officially formed JLL in 1999. The company set out to shape the future of the real estate industry, and since then has grown globally through more than 110 mergers and acquisitions and by expanding its client base. 

In 2021, JLL’s success continued as its consolidated revenue rose 15% to $19.4 billion. Now, the company has over 102,000 employees and operations in more than 80 countries (including hundreds of office locations across the United States and Puerto Rico). 

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JLL has flourished in part due to its leadership. Christian Ulbrich took over as CEO after working in management positions at the company for over a decade. Since becoming CEO, he has prioritized innovative strategies such as investing in market-leading digital solutions. 

Student and New Graduate Opportunities at JLL

JLL has early career opportunities for students and recent graduates across its entire business line. For current students, the company offers full-time summer internship opportunities that begin in June and run for 8-10 weeks. 

For recent graduates, JLL offers a range of entry-level, full-time associate, analyst, and coordinator positions that the company recruits and hires for year-round. Securing an entry-level job guarantees access to a broad network, industry events, educational seminars, and a culture of technology and innovation. 

If you can’t find an internship or entry-level position immediately, you can join the early careers talent network to assist you in your search. On top of helping to speed up your application process, being a member of the talent network ensures you receive news and potential job opportunities. 

In addition, JLL hosts various events for students and new graduates, including onsite college-specific presentations and virtual emerging talent conferences, which provide networking sessions, industry deep dive panels, and question and answer sessions.

>>MORE: Check out Forage’s Ultimate Guide to Internship Application Deadlines.

JLL Careers and Salaries

JLL aims to provide a workplace with a diverse community, rewarding opportunities, and a culture of belonging, with job openings in seven broad categories

  • Brokerage
  • Capital markets
  • Engineering, operations, maintenance, and building management
  • Occupancy planning and management
  • Sustainability
  • Technology
  • Valuation advisory

Product and Project Management Jobs 

Product and project management teams ensure different projects and products make it from conception to reality. At JLL, product management works to improve technologies while project management monitors building and space-transforming projects.

According to Glassdoor, below are the average salaries for product and project management positions at JLL, based on reported salaries from employees with 0-1 years of experience:

  • Associate project manager: $71,300
  • Project manager: $92,100
  • Senior project manager: $98,700
  • Product manager: $112,800
  • Senior product manager: $153,500

Finance and Accounting Jobs 

From transaction management to creating real estate portfolios and researching financial analytics, JLL’s finance and banking team has a variety of opportunities.

As reported by employees to Glassdoor, these are the average salaries for early career professionals (0-1 years of experience) in some of the company’s financial positions:

  • Financial analyst: $71,200
  • Senior financial analyst: $93,100
  • Accountant: $57,300
  • Senior accountant: $75,500
  • Finance manager: $129,000
  • Transaction analyst: $64,200

>>MORE: Finance Career Path: Is It Right for You?

Technology Jobs

The technology team at JLL works on innovative solutions that help shape the future of real estate technology. Typical salaries for early career professionals include:

  • Mobile engineer: $81,500
  • Software engineer: $120,300
  • Senior software engineer: $146,400

>>MORE: Is Technology a Good Career Path?

JLL Benefits and Perks

Like most Fortune 500 companies, JLL provides traditional benefits, such as a 401(k) with matching and medical, dental, and vision insurance. It also goes beyond typical corporate benefits with other perks. Here are some of the benefits you can expect as a full-time employee:

  • Paid time off: Depending on your position and years of service, employees are eligible for anywhere from 18 to 28 days of paid time off between vacation time, sick days, and personal days.
  • Back-up care advantage plan: JLL helps employees care for themselves and their families. If an employee’s typical caregiver is unavailable, the company will accommodate and provide one. 
  • Parental benefits: JLL invests in new parents by providing employees with up to $10,000 per child for adoption and surrogacy assistance. Also, it offers six weeks of paid parental leave.  
  • Matching gifts: JLL matches charitable contributions up to $500 per year for employees who donate to a cause. 
  • Flexible work arrangements: The company offers flexible work arrangements to help employees find work-life balance.
  • Health rewards: Employees can earn up to $500 as a health bonus (plus up to $500 for a spouse or domestic partner).

How do employees rate these benefits? According to Glassdoor, employees give JLL’s benefits 3.9 out of 5 stars. On Comparably, perks and benefits get an A- score (79 out of 100). Seventy-eight percent of employees are satisfied with their benefits, and 44% say their office perks are “good.”

JLL Culture 

JLL’s goal of “shaping the future of real estate for a better world” seeps into its company culture. The company encourages prospective employees to build their own bright future with a real estate career and bases its culture of belonging on three core values: teamwork, excellence, and ethics. 

>>MORE: What Is Company Culture (and Why Does It Matter)?

JLL has won numerous awards and honors related to its culture and status as an employer:

  • Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index 2023
  • Ethisphere World’s Most Ethical Companies 2022
  • Forbes Best Employers for Diversity 2022
  • Disability Equality Index Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion 2022
  • Forbes Best Employers for New Graduates 2021

According to Comparably, employees give JLL’s company culture 4.6 out of 5 stars (an “A+”), with additional A+ scores for the team, work culture, leadership, retention, CEO, and executive team. The company’s culture score ranks in the top 5% of similarly sized companies. In addition, employees report the following:

  • 91% look forward to daily interaction with their team
  • 85% say the work environment is positive
  • 63% are happy with their work-life balance

JLL Values and Initiatives 

JLL prides itself on investing in its people, communities, and planet to pave the way for a brighter future. The company focuses on several initiatives and projects to achieve its goals:

  • Global Sustainability Program: In 2021, JLL had a 17% reduction in scope 1 and 2 emissions. It also averted over 65,000 metric tons of emissions through renewable energy projects. In addition, 45% of the company’s offices that are larger than 10,000 square feet have a sustainable building certificate.
  • Diversity and Inclusion: Investing heavily in diversity initiatives, JLL spent $1.97 billion with diverse suppliers in 2021, and 36% of the top two management levels are female. It also offers business resource groups that support 7,500 employees in 200 locations.
  • Giving Back: JLL contributed over $8.9 million in employee donations, corporate donations, and the value of donated employee time in 2021. 

>>MORE: How Can You Tell if an Employer Values Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace?

JLL vs. Other Top Companies

Do you want to work for a real estate company but are still determining if JLL is the perfect fit? Glassdoor and Comparably reviews and ratings show how working at JLL compares to working at other top real estate companies:

JLLSavillsKidder MathewsColliers CBRE
Comparably Overall Culture80 / 10055 / 10085 / 10073 / 10071 / 100
Glassdoor Overall3.9 / 54.0 / 54.3 / 53.8 / 54.0 / 5

How Does the JLL Application Process Work?

For intern and early career applicants, JLL provides the following advice for applying:

  1. Visit the job board frequently to stay on top of newly added opportunities.
  2. To search for an internship (juniors and seniors in college), either use the search term “intern” or click on “More,” “Job Type,” and “Intern.”
  3. To search for a full-time entry-level job after graduation, go to the job board and search for “analyst,” “associate,” or “coordinator.” You can also search for “entry-level” to find early career roles.
  4. A recruiter will contact you if your skill set is a good fit for the role.

In terms of interviews, early career professionals at JLL recommend that interviewees be themselves, research the role they’re applying for, and ask questions during the interview.

According to Glassdoor, 60% of JLL interviewees applied online, while 15% came in from an employee referral, 7% via recruiters, and 6% from campus recruiting. Sixty-one percent of interviewees report a positive interview experience, and the interview difficulty comes in at 2.7 out of 5 stars. 

The interview process takes an average of 27 days, and interestingly, interviews for intern and analyst positions receive the highest difficulty ratings. 

>>MORE: Interview Tips: How to Get the Job

Takeaways

  • JLL is a global commercial real estate services company involved in buying, building, occupying, and investing in real estate. 
  • Popular career paths at JLL include finance, product and project management, technology, and more. 
  • Summer internships and talent networks give students opportunities to learn more about JLL. 
  • Important initiatives include its global sustainability program, diversity and inclusion initiatives, and charitable causes. 
  • JLL interviewees rate the interview process as average difficulty, and most interviewees applied online.

Learn what it’s like to work at other top companies with Forage’s company guides.

Image credit: Marlon_Trottmann / Depositphotos.com

Erica started as a Content Writer Intern with Forage in January 2021; previously, she interned with The Borgen Project and wrote for HerCampus.