TRAINING
tend to do things in-house.” But simply doing training in-house doesn’t mean it’s better than what’s available elsewhere. He says some of the corporates’ programmes lack depth – “they give their staff the basics when they go in, but there’s not always much ongoing development.” On the other hand Winkworth
readily accepts that training has to be delivered continuously. James says “We want to get our people to be the best in the market – and that means not just getting them up to that level but also improving standards all the time.” A common theme is that agents
learn best from trainers who have actually worked as agents before going into the training field. James Trimble says, “People get inspired by people that have been there and done it. Being taught by a man standing at the front of the room with a slideshow who doesn’t really understand the intricacies of estate agency doesn’t cut the mustard.” Only an agent can deliver training that is in-depth enough to address specifics in a way that will really boost performance – and convince those attending the course that it’s worth paying attention.
Thriving Through Training You might think that the current state of the housing market would discourage investment in training. Phil Bowden says that past vicissitudes have certainly had an impact; “A lot of training has gone out of the industry during the recession.” But it seems that right now, business is doing well. Peter Bolton King says NFoPP’s short course booking is doing particularly well. Numbers dropped significantly in 2009, but even though housing sales dropped again in 2012, the number of people attending NFoPP courses went up. 2011 has seen demand at the same level; NFoPP has already delivered 86 open courses to the end of June, as well as 13 in-house courses, and plans roughly the same level of provision for the rest of the year. Peter Knight also says business is thriving. Adam Walker believes the
industry divides down the middle
I don’t know where training starts and finishes to be honest,
the edges are blurred.” PeTer KnighT The ProPerTY aCaDeMY
when it comes to training budgets. “If you look at people like Romans, KFH, Knight Frank, who have come through the downturn unscathed, all of them spent a significant amount on training – and continued to spend on training through the downturn.” He believes that training is increasingly where the best firms differentiate themselves; “They are increasing the gap between themselves and the other firms at a cracking pace.” Meanwhile, though, there is a
significant underbelly of firms which are not spending on training, and are seeing below average productivity and profitability as a result. “It makes me sad,” he says, “that so many firms have gone bankrupt as the result of management making very basic mistakes.”
Measuring value The cost of training is easy to assess; measuring its value is more difficult. Phil Bowden says when he was developing the Countrywide training scheme, he asked blue chip companies and accountancy groups how they valued their training, “No one could really come up with a
People are assets, that means you spend a bit of money on them.’
payback.” But he believes the absence of hard financial data doesn’t mean training is not valuable. “If you had two estate agents, one where you had skilled and competent people and one where you didn’t, which do you think would earn more money?” Other trainers take a more
disciplined approach to measuring the benefits of training by measuring its output in terms of business improvement or changed behaviour. It’s the output, not the input in terms of cost, training hours, or numbers of people trained, that is important. Peter Knight mentions one firm
where lettings conversions went from the low 80s to 90 per cent after a targeted training course, and another where the instruction/ valuation ratio improved from 45 to 65 per cent. “At £5,000 a pop, that’s a major return,” he says. However, he admits there is a self-select bias – managers who sign up for the kind of coaching that The Academy delivers are already likely to be the more innovative and more likely to implement the ideas they hear. Adam Walker helps his clients
achieve similar business benefits. He points out that he’s delivered training for a valuer who was winning £300,000 of business every year, with a 40 per cent strike rate. Increasing the win ratio to 41 per cent would give that valuer £307,500 of work – so the payback is £7,500 from a £150-200 investment in a one day course. “The return on investment on it is astonishing,” he says, “yet so few firms make that connection.” Phil Bowden points out that
whether or not you can demonstrate a financial payback, training is still worthwhile. No one seriously questions spending money on having an expensive car serviced, or maintaining their branch in tip top shape – in the same way, having spent money hiring staff, agencies should ensure their staff say in top performing shape. “People are assets that you develop,” he says, “and that means you spend a bit of money on them.”
Add your own opinions online at:
www.propertydrum.com/articles/train
PROPERTYdrum SEPTEMBER 2011 45
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