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The former head of Sam Zell‘s Equity International is launching a new private-equity shop and consulting business, following his departure from Mr. Zell’s firm last year that surprised many in the real-estate industry.

Gary Garrabrant was chief executive of Equity International, which buys real-estate-related companies in emerging markets. He co-founded the firm with Mr. Zell in 1999, and the two worked together for more than two decades. But they had a falling out last summer over the size and strategy of the company and Mr. Garrabrant’s compensation, say people familiar with the matter.

Now Mr. Garrabrant aims to raise $100 million for a new private-equity firm, known as Jaguar Partners, which plans to invest in emerging-market companies. His partner on the venture is Thomas McDonald, Equity International’s former chief strategic officer who left the same time as Mr. Garrabrant.

Jaguar intends to look beyond real estate, investing in retail, health care, consumer finance, entertainment and other companies growing alongside a deepening middle class. Mr. Garrabrant believes many of these industries offer more opportunity than property investments in the developing world, say people familiar with his plan.

Mr. Garrabrant expects to begin discussions with institutional investors in the fall. Parts of a noncompete agreement he negotiated when he left Equity International will expire Sept. 1, say people familiar with the matter.

Mr. Garrbrant and Mr. McDonald are also running a consulting firm called MG Advisory Group, say people briefed on the business. The firm advises U.S. companies looking to establish or expand their business in emerging markets.

Since the top departures, Mr. Zell has told Equity International investors he is spending more time on the firm, which raised about $2.1 billion through five funds to invest in places like Mexico, Brazil and Eastern Europe. He brought in Thomas Heneghan, a longtime Zell employee, to take over as chief executive in February. Mr. Zell, 71 years old, remains chairman of the firm.

—Craig Karmin

REITs Set to Sail

In recent months, businesses that don’t look like real-estate businesses at first glance—like owners of casinos and billboards—have petitioned government regulators to become real-estate investment trusts in a search for tax savings. Now, companies owning only boat marinas may join the club.

The Internal Revenue Service recently approved a request by an undisclosed apartment REIT to count the boat slips attached to its multifamily rentals as real estate. In the new ruling, the IRS reasoned that the REIT’s lease agreements with tenants renting slips at the docks matched those used in real-estate deals. That includes requiring a security deposit, monthly rent payments and a landlord’s right to repossess the boat slip upon a rent default. The tax regulator made a similar ruling on boat slips in the 1990s.

In theory, this means a REIT could be set up owning only marinas, experts say. The REIT structure is a big draw because companies generally pay no corporate taxes as long as they pay their taxable income out as dividends. “It makes sense because this property has a rental-income stream,” says Paul Adornato, a REIT analyst at BMO Capital Markets. Property owners are “searching for ways to participate in the REIT industry by seeing if their properties can fit the mold,” he says.

—A.D. Pruitt

A version of this article appeared May 1, 2013, on page C6 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Plots & Ploys.

By CRAIG CHAPPELOW AND JEAN BRITTAIN LESLIE

Mid-career derailment can happen any time, but in today’s economy there is no room for complacency. With job opportunities harder than ever to find, it’s a particularly rough time to be fired or demoted or to hit a career plateau. You can reduce your risk for derailment by paying attention to your value and effectiveness and by focusing on interpersonal skills, adaptability, team leadership and bottom-line results.

Getty Images

Based on the Center for Creative Leadership’s ongoing study of executive derailment with clients around the world, here are 10 ways to avoid these pitfalls:

Ask for instant feedback. When walking out of a meeting, ask a colleague, “I think that could have gone better – what could I have done differently?” Listen to the response. Don’t defend or justify your actions and don’t interrupt. Sean Fowler, assistant vice president with insurance company IAT Group in Cold Springs, Fla., uses feedback from his co-workers as a reality check. “You have to develop a bit of a thick skin,” Mr. Fowler said. “Once you get past the initial shock, you really come to appreciate it. It’s a long-term effort made up of small steps, not a leap.”

About the Authors

CCL

CCL

Craig Chappelow and Jean Brittain Leslie are senior faculty members at the Center for Creative Leadership and co-authors of the CCL guidebook “Keeping Your Career on Track.”

Increase self-awareness. Become a student of your own behavior. Take stock of how you feel about your work and how you react when you are pushed outside your comfort zone. Explore the values that matter most to you and use them as an anchor during times of change, transition and stress. Amy Gillard, owner and operator of Gillard Enterprises, an event-management business notes that selecting work which is not the right fit will only create challenges with clients down the line. “Self-awareness is key in my business. You have to know who you are and what you have to offer,” she said.

Pay attention to organizational culture. To stay aligned with your organization as it morphs and changes over time, you need a clear understanding of the prevailing culture. Analyze how decisions get made and think about the underlying assumptions that guide the organization as it responds to challenges and opportunities.

Use empathy. Your direct reports, your peers and even your bothersome boss are all human beings worthy of your respect. Listen without judging. Take the feelings and perspectives of others into account. Don’t use humor inappropriately and always keep private conversations private. You’ll end up with stronger relationships.

Learn to listen. Hearing isn’t the same as listening. Turn away from your email and concentrate on the person talking to you. Don’t be passive. Ask questions to make sure you understand. Stay in the moment and take notes to help you remember key points. Show people you’re really hearing them. Air Force Col. Trent Edwards, Commander of the 28th Mission Support Group at Ellsworth Air Force Base, learned to listen differently in response to feedback from his team and his family. He realized he was using a “war zone” mentality in non-war zone settings. With tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, Edwards describes his previous approach as “very action-oriented. Everything was always go, go, go. Now I try to listen with more patience, with an open ear to try to hear what is being said and also what is not being said.”

Collaborate. Try to not be the Lone Ranger. Be open and willing to disclose your decision-making process to others, along with important facts and feelings. Your influence and effectiveness will increase.

Deal with problem employees sooner rather than later. If a direct report’s behavior or lack of skills threatens the success of your team, confront the problem head on. Don’t let it fester. These kinds of problems almost never heal themselves. Document specific shortcomings and either dismiss the employee or create a development plan for improved performance. The cost of carrying poor performers can have a ripple effect across the organization – destroying morale and dragging down productivity.

Delegate authority. Don’t keep your employees tied down and stuck in the same roles and responsibilities. Allow them to test their wings. Assign stretch projects you think they can handle. As they prove themselves, increase the complexity of the assignments. Give adequate guidance and follow up to see how they are doing. Debrief shortfalls and use them as a learning opportunity. Above all, acknowledge positive outcomes.

Focus on the task at hand. While it’s great to have a development plan and to work on skills you will need down the road, don’t forget that your main job is just that – your main job. Organizations value managers who get work done. Focus on what you need to accomplish each day. Bring jobs to a close. Tie up loose ends. Document outcomes. Get closure, and…

Break out of a rut. Learn from the mistakes that you and others make. Stop talking about how things were done in the past. Bring a new idea or solution to the table. Break away from your lunch cliques. Identify a rut you are in and get out of it.

Become known for your skill at adjusting to change, building strong relationships, leading effective teams and getting results. Your colleagues will appreciate it – and you’ll reap the professional rewards.

By SARAH E. NEEDLEMAN

Ever wonder what exactly goes on behind the scenes when you apply for a job? While the recruiting process varies by industry, company and even department, the end result is the same: One person out of many receives an offer.

Indeed, last month there were 6.4 unemployed persons for every job opening, according to the Labor Department. For those who aren’t hired, understanding what happened to their candidacy along the way can be a mystery. Not every firm notifies applicants that they have been rejected, and few say why. But knowing what goes on in the hiring process may give prospects the inside track for a job.

Bruce Macpherson

Many employers start filling vacancies below the executive level by using a team of recruiters or human-resources personnel to weed out applications that fail to meet a job’s basic qualifications. “They should only be removing candidates who are a clear miss,” says Peter Leech, chief marketing officer for Onlineshoes.com, a small Seattle e-commerce company.

How this is done, the time it takes, and the number of applicants selected to go on to the next step varies, but there are some patterns. Some screeners eyeball every submission that comes in, while others search for certain keywords among applications. Likewise, there are screeners who consider cover letters in their evaluations and those who ignore them. Career experts suggest erring on the side of caution. Submit a carefully written cover letter and insert keywords—must-have qualifications usually found in the job posting—with every application. Job hunters should expect to wait anywhere from a few days to several weeks before receiving a response to an application, if at all. A recent survey of 56 companies with at least 500 employees found that just 27% have a formal process to decline every external candidate they consider for an opening, reports CareerXroads, a human-resources consulting firm in Princeton, N.J.

If you’re worried that your application never arrived, wait five days and call the employer to ask for confirmation, suggests J.T. O’Donnell, a career strategist in North Hampton, N.H. Express humility and appreciation since it is likely that several other job hunters have made the same inquiry, she adds. Use the opportunity to inquire if there are any time frames as to when candidates might hear if they were selected for an interview, she adds.

General Mills Inc.

sends email confirmations only to job hunters who complete an online application for a specific opening at the Minneapolis-based company, says Stephanie Lilak, vice president, chief staffing officer. What’s more, recruiters will only review applications that show a person meets a job’s basic qualifications, based on screening questions, she says.

One common exception many firms make: A job hunter who is referred by an employee or other trusted source. A referred candidate may be given immediate attention, potentially speeding them to the interview stage. Michelle Vasquez, 43, says she landed a phone interview for a senior marketing job last month thanks to a referral from a friend of the hiring manager. Ms. Vasquez, who has been out of work for the past year and a half, was later invited to interview with several of the company’s senior managers, though she later found out she didn’t get the job. “I didn’t have to fill out an online application,” she says. “I went straight into the interview pool.”

The next step is often to have human-resources staff, hiring managers—or both—narrow down applicants to those whose skills and work histories closely match the job description. If they are unsure, they might reach out by email or phone to learn more. In the end, they will typically have a list of candidates, usually no more than 20, to interview. However, as new applications come in, it is possible that the list will grow, especially if several of those initially selected fail to pass the next round, which is usually a phone interview.

Often human-resources personnel, but occasionally hiring managers, will first interview candidates over the phone to save time and cut costs associated with on-site visits. Those calls last anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour or more. In general, the purpose of the phone interview is to make sure candidates understand the job and that it lines up with their salary expectations, says Jo-Ann Gastin, senior vice president, human resources, for Lockton Cos. LLC, an insurance brokerage firm in Kansas City, Mo. If it doesn’t, “there’s no point in going any further,” she says, though on rare occasions exceptions may be made for candidates who name salaries above the maximum for a job. “They’d have to wow us,” she says.

Phone interviews may be used to get deeper information about a candidate’s background to help determine if the person is a strong fit. Candidates also may be evaluated on their communication skills. In Ms. Gastin’s case, “We look to see if they can establish rapport on the phone because we are a customer-service company,” she says.

Sometimes hiring managers will reach out to candidates for a second call before scheduling an on-site meeting to dig deeper. And some firms require candidates to complete personality or competency tests benchmarked according to what an employer considers to be key traits for success in a particular role and are therefore difficult to game. Candidates who don’t cut it are typically informed within a day or two.

Some firms do bring candidates in for face-to-face meetings right after reviewing their applications. Among them is Boston Consulting Group, which mostly hires upcoming college and advanced-degree graduates, says Mel Wolfgang, partner and head of Americas recruiting. The firm assigns teams of up to three recruiters to assess applicants from more than 30 U.S. schools. “We look for well-rounded individuals whose interests and life experiences suggest that they would adapt well,” says Mr. Wolfgang. “We look for evidence that they have led and been empathic with a team or challenging situations.”

Up to six applicants are typically granted first-round interviews per opening, which involve meeting with two company consultants for about 40 minutes each. Of these, about half go on to second-round interviews with up to four company partners. During the meetings, candidates are asked about their work history, career goals and other relevant topics, plus they are expected to participate in role-playing exercises. “You spend a significant time discussing a business problem that the interviewer has actually worked on,” says Mr. Wolfgang, adding that client names and other details are kept anonymous. “It’s a way to explore how you would approach a similar problem.”

At most firms, once interviews are done, hiring managers will convene with colleagues who met the finalists to get their opinions on who should get an offer. “But in the end, it’s still the hiring manager’s call,” says Mr. Leech of Onlineshoes.com. That decision often comes down to fit and level of enthusiasm. “You’re making sure that you pick someone who is pumped up about the role,” he says.

Write to Sarah E. Needleman at sarah.needleman@wsj.com