EDITOR’S COMMENT It feels weird getting ready to write what I’m about to write here after last week’s call to action that we all need to do more when it comes to diversity and inclusion.
Why? Well, because this week I want to use this space to celebrate Avison Young’s coup in bringing former Homes England chief executive Nick Walkley into the business. It feels weird because here I am celebrating the promotion of another white man into a position of power in real estate.
But, as anyone who has ever met Walkley will know, he isn’t just “another white man”. He’s an ally, he’s a changer and doer of things. He’s unapologetically outspoken and will always, to the best of his ability, support and encourage the very best.
He transformed Homes England, bringing in private sector specialists, boosting affordable housing figures, striking deals with innovative housebuilders in an attempt to power up adoption of modular housing, and introduced key diversity policies for the government body and its suppliers.
Walkley will undoubtedly bring a lot of this focus on change, collaboration and inclusivity to his work at AY, just from the other side of the table.
For AY, Walkley’s appointment is a move that does bring diversity into its business. Not in gender or in ethnicity, but in what I believe is one of the most difficult forms of diversity – thought.
They have tempted a man with some two decades of experience in the public sector into the private sector. They’ve brought in a man who has been chief executive of two London boroughs – Barnet and Haringey – and of the government’s housing agency into a role that will see him advise across the business, bringing a very different viewpoint to the agent’s investment advisory, consultancy, planning and, of course, its public sector work. I guarantee that Walkley’s brain and thought processes will not be the same as a large majority of the AY workforce or, in fact, the commercial real estate sector as a whole.
AY, of course, hopes that the hire will bring the public and private sectors closer together – something that we all know is needed if there is any hope of ever really levelling up the UK – and give it a little something different in the changing and competitive world of consultancy. It believes it is a “transformational” hire, which will turn it into a “sophisticated” adviser.
It will certainly be an interesting transformation to observe. How will Walkley transition from public to private? From never claiming expenses to being able to be wined and dined? From not having to bite his tongue every time a minister says or does something stupid, if indeed he has much of a tongue left?
Talking of not biting our tongues. This week EG is asking you open up and share your experiences of and thoughts about race diversity in real estate as we launch our second survey trying to understand the issues of racism and discrimination in the sector.
The survey, which is anonymous and takes less than 10 minutes to fill in, will not only help us here at EG formulate our own policies but will enable the industry at large to get a clear picture of the work that we all still need to do to stamp out racism in real estate.
An overwhelming majority of you are dedicated to doing so. Let’s start now.
Click here to take part in the survey >>
To send feedback, e-mail samantha.mcclary@eg.co.uk or tweet @samanthamcclary or @EGPropertyNews
