EDITOR’S COMMENT Change. The world’s scariest word and its most exciting. Action. The world’s hardest word and its easiest. Whichever adjective you choose to describe those words depends very much on your outlook. Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re probably right.
When it comes to our world of real estate, change is happening right now. Big change. The world in which real estate operates, how it operates, even what it is, is changing faster and more dramatically than ever before. The world that so many of our professionals trained for – not even that long ago – is transformed. Traditional real estate still exists, of course, but does it lead? Is it the future? Is it where growth lies? Is it where the fun stuff is going to happen? Unlikely.
Change can be terrifying. I feel that fear myself as I write my penultimate Editor’s Comment here. But change should be overwhelmingly exciting. An opportunity for difference. To push boundaries and to succeed.
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EDITOR’S COMMENT Change. The world’s scariest word and its most exciting. Action. The world’s hardest word and its easiest. Whichever adjective you choose to describe those words depends very much on your outlook. Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re probably right.
When it comes to our world of real estate, change is happening right now. Big change. The world in which real estate operates, how it operates, even what it is, is changing faster and more dramatically than ever before. The world that so many of our professionals trained for – not even that long ago – is transformed. Traditional real estate still exists, of course, but does it lead? Is it the future? Is it where growth lies? Is it where the fun stuff is going to happen? Unlikely.
Change can be terrifying. I feel that fear myself as I write my penultimate Editor’s Comment here. But change should be overwhelmingly exciting. An opportunity for difference. To push boundaries and to succeed.
Take CBRE’s acquisition this week of the remaining stake in flex operator Industrious. CBRE has owned a sizeable slug in the business for some time, having swapped its in-house flex working business for a 40% stake in the business in late 2020. But its full takeover of the company isn’t about just buying a flexible office operator, it’s about embracing change. It’s about understanding what the future of real estate is.
Full ownership of Industrious has enabled CBRE to create a new division in its business. Building operations & experience will bring together property management, workplace experience and building operations, creating an opportunity for CBRE to offer “future-ready” solutions for offices, data centres, warehouses, and a range of other asset classes.
It is a move that sees CBRE continue its move away from the “big green giant” that has held the moniker of “world’s biggest agent” for decades into a full-service real estate company. Its acquisition of a 70% stake in Turner & Townsend last year was a strong statement of intent that it would be taking full ownership of the real estate universe. It has backed that up with Industrious. No doubt there is more to come.
Outside of big deals, the firm has also been quietly restructuring, putting new heads of and specialist advisers front and centre in the business, turning away from “agent” and closer to “management consultant”. From the outside looking in, it is embracing change fearlessly.
We see that too from our listed chief executives. SEGRO’s David Sleath, British Land’s Simon Carter and others are embracing change on the stock exchange. Yes, life has been hard and share prices have not reflected the value of many of our major propcos, but that market offers just as many positives as it does challenges. Embrace that, follow your action plan and the strong will get stronger.
To convert change from something terrifying to something invigorating, action is essential. Now is the time for everyone in this industry to face the fear and do it anyway. Standing still is not an option. As the economy slips backwards, we must step forward. A read of Better Buildings Partnership chief executive Sarah Ratcliffe’s new vision for the future tells you just why. Last year was the first year that global temperature increases topped the 1.5C threshold. The impact of that could – and likely will – be devasting if we don’t take real action now. Real estate has a vital role to play here and cannot take its responsibility lightly.
“With sustainability targets set, we urgently need to turn commitments into action,” says the BBP’s Ratcliffe. “Many of the solutions the industry needs already exist; the challenge now is to scale uptake and accelerate progress.”
This week also saw prime minister Keir Starmer outline some big ambitions for the UK in its adoption of and leadership in AI, claiming that it will drive “incredible change” in the country. “In a world of fierce competition, we cannot stand by,” he said. “We must move fast and take action to win the global race.”
Nothing could be truer for this sector. In its adoption of AI, for sure, but in so much more. Real estate is transformed, and it continues to transform at a rapid pace, those who can’t keep up will not survive. Those who at the very least try, who take that first step to action, will undoubtedly win.
