Cleo Folkes Kaushik Shah
Why training provision is essential
When the economy and property markets are storming ahead, training budgets are increasing. When markets are suffering, and cash flows with it, becoming less generous, many employers tend to reign in spending. However, this is a false economy. Let us explain to you here why training, and investment in your ‘human capital’ is essential in the bad times even more than the good times.
Boost the performance of your business
Human capital, i.e. the investment you make in the skills and knowledge of your staff throughout their careers, is what makes businesses thrive and grow. To grow as a company you need productive, effective staff performing at the top of their game, remaining relevant.
For most companies staff is their biggest expenditure, so to boost productivity for the firm you need to boost the performance of your staff. On-the-job training is slow, requires supervision, demanding time from managers and colleagues, leads to errors and lower performance than could have been. A better quality of work being delivered keeps clients and stakeholders happier, too. Training provides skill and knowledge, reduces the need for supervision and time wasted, improves client satisfaction and boosts performance & returns.
Attract staff, boost staff morale and retention rates
Good staff is hard to get and keep! Offering training can help attract new staff and retain those already in place. When an employer invests in their staff through training, staff feels appreciated, valued and invested in, as well as more confident in what they are doing and why they are doing it. The workplace is offering a better environment to staff. Increased employee motivation boosts morale in general. Increased job satisfaction in turn can lead to improved staff retention. This lowers recruitment costs and loss of productivity when a new hire is found and brought up to speed.
Employers’ challenges in providing learning experiences in today’s world
Firms are facing structural shifts from the aftereffects of the pandemic. What kind of workforce model to adopt for the hybrid working environment, how to deal with remote management & monitoring, balancing the needs for flexibility with requirements of productivity, dealing with company culture, collective responsibilities and accountability and crucially, how this impacts staff learning and development.
Firms are mindful of skills shortages, tight labour markets and wage increase pressures. Equally they know that more needs to be done for retain good people, increase productivity and have a more engaged workforce.
Employees’ challenges in being ready for today’s work requirements
Staff remain concerned that changes in the ways of working will mean less opportunity to gain knowledge and experience for collaborative interactions in face to face working groups, review meetings and peer group discussions. In addition, the benefits of informal mentoring, coaching and learning is lost in the remote world.
Many new entrants to the sector miss out on ‘on-the-job training‘ and feel that whilst they may not have the requisite qualifications, they are missing out on skills development such as getting a holistic understanding of the real estate industry and how it operates.
Equally others feel that individual specialist (in-depth) or tailored training needs are not identified that are necessary to upgrade or improve their skills, help them with job mobility and career development.
Part of ‘learning by working’ means knowing the ‘jargon’, being able to handle information, create business plans, interpret outcomes, make judgements on risk & return, understand what client need, to be able to argue a business case, make important decisions and many other facets that training alone cannot achieve – however, structured training from property industry professionals can help you in that.
Managers need to make sure such needs form part of the staff appraisal and career development process.
The best training solutions:
Best forms of training as workforce investment
- Seek out training courses that offer a flexible approach – online or face-to-face learning
- Seek out training that suits workforce needs – a comprehensive overview of the property sector with fundamental grounding & understanding or an in-depth look specific areas & segments or offers bite-sized learning programme.
- Seek out training that is practitioner led – learn from experienced real estate professionals so that it is valuable and practical
- Seek out training that delivers value – it is affordable, and staff feel they get to be more confident, knowledgeable, credible and act professional
The advantages of providing an in-house course
Your employees will have different backgrounds and levels of knowledge. Providing an in-house course will ensure everyone has the same essential knowledge base. Employers typically like to hire someone with the right aptitude and teach them real estate, rather than getting someone with property sector experience not necessarily having the right characteristics required to excel at their job. Providing tailored training helps boost their productivity over and above inefficient on-the-job training.
Quality external training providers offer real value
The benefit gained by providing training to staff is directly related to the relevance and quality of the training provided. Using a company, like Property Overview, that has decades of broad-based real-life sector experience, not from a text book alone, can offer training content that is most relevant to your staff and your company.
Why is it best to hire an external training company like Property Overview?
Tailor-made courses raises efficiency whilst an external training provider offers a training environment in which staff feel safe to ask their questions and explore topics.
Even the best companies in the property sector are doing are not set-up to deliver the best training course by themselves. Senior staff who have the required insight and aptitude won’t have the time to put detailed courses together, the opportunity costs would simply be too great. It would be difficult to coordinate amongst various colleagues and specialities to get a rounded course together offering insight and the all-important bigger picture. Besides lack of time, not every senior staff member is suited to be a trainer by nature. Trainers at Property Overview are extremely experienced, knowledgeable, approachable, patient and friendly, able to break complex topics down into simple concepts that are relevant to the attendees roles.
Through Property Overview we are able to offer tailor-made in-house courses or standard courses open to individual bookings with content that suits all, either online or face-to-face, whatever suits you best. We are keen to work with you to deliver the best possible content. Our ethos of excellence and enthusiasm feeds through in all that we do.
We provide consultancy and training to those working in or with the property industry in the UK and abroad.
Registered in England & Wales
Company registration no. 11006326
VAT no. 285 9645 43
Address
Property Overview c/o Crunch Accounting
The Knoll Business Centre, Unit W8A,
325 Old Shoreham Road,
Hove,
East Sussex,
BN3 7GS