Time to start marketing the standards

One of the great (small) challenges in business life is all the silos of data within an organisation. For example, the property information in the property management software that could be useful to have in your CRM system and through the growth of standards there may be a solution in sight. 

 

The hard work

However, standards don't just pop-up. They are the result of some serious hard work and timeless efforts to put them in place. A standard is an agreement between maybe 100s of counterparts that first of all not may be aware why they need it (!) or want it (software suppliers making it harder to switch supplier). That's a tough starting point. The second is that everyone is doing their business in an unique way making it hard just to have a common understanding of 'what is included in the rent?' or 'what type of area is it?". 

  

The organisations

Luckily for the property industry there are organisations driving the work of standardisation. The largest effort internationally is run by OSCRE, which is a merge between an US based organisation (OSCRE) and a UK one (PISCES) a few years back. Their effort is nowadays not limited to any particular country. See some of there larger projects listed here. A great interview with Stephen Spooner, the Executive Chairman of OSCRE, is found at crePodcast.    

 

In Sweden the equivalent effort is run by the fi2, which has been successful in the construction phases. (OSCRE has been more focusing on the investment & valuation phase.) 

  

Real solutions

Some examples on the benefits of standards.  

   

Case: Lease data

A great examples is from the large commercial real estate consulting firm JLL described in a PISCES case paper.

Jones Lang LaSalle has devised a lease administration system to manage its clients’ portfolios. Originally information was transferred to this system from lawyers using paper-based systems. This traditional approach required specialist staff to extract the data, was monotonous for those involved, and therefore prone to error.

      

In contrast, when the PISCES Lease Standard was developed it became possible to take lease data direct from law firms straight into the lease administration system. Using PISCES, ambiguities are minimised and the responsibility for data is more clearly defined. Definitions are often unclear with paper leases but with PISCES there is more precision, because the data standard defines that if a data field is populated in a particular way it carries a precise meaning.  

  

Case: Underwriting process

Found a video showing how standards are used in the underwriting process.  
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Find more videos like this on CREOpoint

 

Case: Making the data in CAD drawings searchable (In Swedish)

The fi2 has created a PDF with existing solutions at companies like ABB Fastigheter and Regionfastigheter.  

Next step

Why not sign up at www.OSCREiForum.org (hosted by CREOpoint) and join the discussion?  

   

My thoughts

The different standards have today reached the point when the main problem is not to make them work, but to convince firms to start using them (or demand suppliers to put them in place). This is a challenge of marketing and selling.

 

I believe the only way is to SHOW existing real time solutions (like the video above). Then also to focus the 'sales' towards the large investors & banks who then will show the benefits for (/put the pressure on) all other parties in the industry. Cause like always, money talks. 

 

Finally, to all you people out there working within the area; keep up the great work. 

 

Realcomm goes to London

There aren't to many conferences or events focusing on the benefits of smart use of IT in the real estate industry. But there are two,  Realcomm for the commercial part of the industry, and the Inman Connect Conference for the residential part. In a months time the Realcomm London will take place (20th October).

About the event

"Realcomm London is a networking and educational event for commercial and corporate real estate technology professionals. This unique “by invitation only” event will focus on global best practices that pertain to technology, automation and innovation in the property industry."

Agenda

The focus on the event will be “SHOW ME THE ROI: Using Technology to Increase Revenues and Decrease Expenses”. 

SharePoint: Real Property ITs Secret Strategic Weapon? 
Over the last 24 months, SharePoint has taken the world by storm, and the property industry is no exception. The versatile yet powerful platform has given organizations the ability to automate tasks never before considered while encroaching on applications traditionally developed by the vendor community. In this exciting session we’ll explore some of the new features of SharePoint 2010 and demonstrate some innovative applications for the property industry. 

The ROI for Smart Connected Buildings – Global Best Practice Update
Until recently the concept of a "connected" building was just emerging. Over the past year we’ve seen a significant number of positive signs in this space; major agreements signed, new multinational vendors joining the industry, vendor revenues matching GDP growth, but most importantly, a number of legitimate, quantifiable case studies. This update will showcase the most significant, smart, connected projects from around the world focusing on both the challenges and the ROI opportunities. 

Data Challenges for Global Property Organizations
It has become very apparent that large multinational firms with portfolios in different regions around the world have specific and complex needs. Issues such as master data management, integrating data from multiple property systems, and regional differences in data definitions often result in a lack of data transparency and costly, inefficient reporting processes. In this session we’ll discuss and debate options for building stronger transactional, management, and reporting systems in global property organizations. 

Leveraging Technology to Meet Carbon Reduction Commitment 
The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme mandated this past April will have a profound effect on all public and private property owners and investors in the UK. This mandate will require the half-hourly monitoring of energy consumption in buildings and will impact the cost of energy to both small and large portfolio owners. Managing energy in one building is complicated enough but the issues become even more complex as multiple buildings are added to the equation. This session will address the technologies required to manage the CRC processes and will also discuss the concept and implementation of a centralized command and control center. 

My thoughts

If you have the possibility you really should make it to this "complimentary “by invitation only” event that brings together commercial real estate practitioners to discuss and debate global best practices that pertain to technology, automation and innovation in the property industry".

I've been to four Realcomm events over the years and Jim Young and Howard Berger always manage to exceed my expectations. 

Unfortunately, I'll not be able to make the trip from Stockholm due the fact that I've a major release within days after the event. Will have go into crunch time the last week...