- SMR Strategy, Founder
- Boğaziçi University, Executive MBA Program/Construction Engineering and Management Programs Part-Time Lecturer
- International Project Management Institute, Chairman
- Author of ‘The World Economy and Financial System: A Paradigm Change Offering a Sustainable Approach’ and ‘The Global Housing Crisis: A Sustainable New Home Financing Model’ books.
Dr. Levent Sümer is a finance and political economy scholar, strategist, and author specializing in sustainable investment systems and real estate finance. He is the Founder of SMR Strategy, an international investment and management consultancy, and teaches in the Executive MBA and Construction Engineering and Management graduate programs at Boğaziçi University.
Before founding SMR Strategy, Dr. Sümer held C-level leadership roles at major construction and real estate investment firms, overseeing large-scale development portfolios. Throughout his career, he has managed and contributed to projects exceeding 3 million square meters of construction area. He serves as Chairman and co-founder of the International Project Management Institute (UPYE), established in 2010 to promote global project management standards in Türkiye. He is a PMP® credential holder (PMI) and a professional member and assessor of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS).
Dr. Sümer is an active researcher, lecturer, and thought leader. He has delivered invited lectures and keynote speeches at numerous international and national institutions and has authored articles in leading academic journals and business publications. He also serves on the investment committees of multiple real estate and venture capital funds.
He holds a Ph.D. from Boğaziçi University, an M.S. in Construction Engineering and Management from the Illinois Institute of Technology, and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Istanbul Technical University. His doctoral and professional research proposes alternative, interest-free financing frameworks that integrate Islamic real estate capital markets with pension funds to support large-scale and socially equitable development.
Dr. Sümer is the author of two books published by Palgrave Macmillan (Springer): “The World Economy and Financial System: A Paradigm Change Offering a Sustainable Approach” and “The Global Housing Crisis: A Sustainable New Home Financing Model”. The Turkish edition of “The Global Housing Crisis” was published by Albaraka Kültür. He is also the co-author of “The Guide for Decent Housing for the Poor in the OIC Countries”. His research interests include real estate finance, project management, sovereign wealth and pension funds, Islamic financial systems, international construction contracting, and the political economy of sustainable development.
His work focuses on developing financially viable, socially grounded investment mechanisms that offer alternatives to the shortcomings of contemporary capitalist market models. Dr. Sümer is married and the father of his lovely daughter.
Research Areas: Project Management, International Construction Contracts, Strategic Management, Real Estate Finance, Islamic Finance, Pension Funds, Sovereign Wealth Funds, Sustainability, Political Economy
