The summer run of work experience has started, and I did not escape its clutches. Emily, my niece, had the dubious pleasure of shadowing me last month.
It turns out that I use far too much jargon, as I “capped my exposure”, while delivering “yield compression” through a “marriage value” deal. But as ever, trust the young bright minds to come up with the pertinent question. Emily’s was simple, the answer less so. She wanted to know, with the benefit of my (longish) experience in real estate, what key lessons I would share with a graduate coming into the industry today. In response, and fitting as this is my last column for a while, here’s my list of top tips.
• Start big to get the best training and then go for small and/or a rapidly growing businesses for great experience. For me, qualifying with PwC stood me in good stead, but then I was determined to go to a smaller business where I could understand the bigger picture and, by being thrown in at the deep end, could progress more quickly.
• No one expects you to know everything – after all, it is only knowledge, not intelligence. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Emily proved to be a great tool in diffusing any embarrassment on this, as John Badman of RTKL coined the phrase of the week “for Emily’s benefit”. So while he was busy educating us on creating financially viable, first-class, build-to-rent accommodation, I ended up learning more about rights of lights “for Emily’s benefit” and other planning challenges than your average town planner.
• And this one I have discovered the hard way: the good times are fun, but it is in the challenging situations – whether they are driven by people, deals or a global financial crisis – that teach you the most. So embrace those moments too. The year 2009 is etched on my memory. Bringing a property business back from trading at option value, that year was the toughest of my working life, but by far the most rewarding. At those times you also realise the importance of being surrounded by a great team. Thank you, Robert Fowlds.
• When people say the market is set to keep rising indefinitely because it is different this time – it is not! Cycles exist and at some point asset values will crash. Create resilience to ensure you can flourish through it, as does Tony Pidgley.
• Aim to never walk away from a relationship leaving a bad taste, be it a job or a deal negotiation. You never know when you will bump into people in the future. The same goes for emails. Never press send immediately on that vitriolic one – always sleep on it.
• Network like crazy. My first chairman, Nigel Ellis, said I should be out with investors and banks for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. I did what I was told, and so got rather podgy. These days you can definitely swap lunch for a business meeting in the gym, Marc Gilbard-style.
• Finally, property is fascinating. It is a privilege to be part of it. Embrace work with a positive attitude and grasp all the opportunities available to get involved. Cycle to Cannes on the back of a tandem with John Forbes. Get dressed up in rubber with Damian Wild. But most importantly, enjoy yourself.
Rebecca Worthington is chief financial officer for Countryside
