PROFILE
OUt iN thE fiEld “Comparisons,” said my grandmother, “are odious.” I never really understood what she meant but I think she said it when my mother dared to compare my schooling achievements with those of my sister; but Landmark’s client base demands comparison, in the most positive sense. Young’s Chartered Surveyors in
Northumberland has operated in the North East of England since 1879. The estate agency aspect of their business advises on the sale and purchase of rural property, estates, farms and commercial property. They also offer a letting and leasing service with a management portfolio of over eighty clients. Graeme Bruce is one of four partners
at Young’s; he believes that getting the ‘back office’ function right is vital for any business like his. Young’s use Landmark software in three offices running centrally from a terminal server. All property details are entered into the
system and bespoke templates are generated for each client. Reliability is of great importance,” he says. “Keeping on top of red tape and increased bureaucracy is a challenge for any business but not having a solid system in place is no excuse. Clients expect us to be on the case for things such as gas, fire safety certificates and energy performance certificates. The diary feature on Landmark’s KEY Property allows us to plan ahead and determine the best tactics when it comes to issues such as rent reviews, notices, maintenance and general property management.” Before using Landmark, the business
had used a MS-DOS (the old Microsoft universal software platform) product but found it increasingly inflexible. “We looked at other products in the market but they simply did not tick all the right boxes or were too expensive. Feedback from ‘the coalface’ resulted in us asking if certain features could be introduced or extended. We were pleased when they were brought into the system quickly.”
‘Keeping on top of red tape and increased bureaucracy is a
challenge for any business but not having a solid system in place is no excuse.’ GRAEME BRUCE YOUNG’S
business at Belvoir and, as historical information is added, to use trend management skills to predict patterns and activities in each of the business units.”
Belvoir Castle, mixed country portfolios and listed follies. What do they have in common? They all use Landmark Systems.
COMpUtERiSEd CRYStAl BAllS Computerised trend management is the crystal ball of the twentieth century; and where better to use it than in the depths of rural England. Another Landmark client wanted to be able to guesstimate how the weather would affect attendance at their garden openings; enabling them to recruit sufficient staff and, subsequently, to know how staffing levels affected their turnover and profit and plan for the next year. Reverting to another age-old method of
MANAGiNG thE CAStlE Other Landmark clients, such as Belvoir Castle, internally manage their 15,000 acre Leicestershire estate. A review of its management and financial systems led to Landmark being asked to integrate four sets of accounts in different locations. Nigel recalls, “Belvoir is a large estate and we had to find the answer to providing good summary reporting on eight separate business divisions without losing the facility to drill down to cost analysis on individual enterprises.” The Castle’s businesses
include being one of three hosts of the famous CLA Game Fair (the world’s largest country sports and outdoor pursuits event) along with the regular Castle visitor management, shooting parties, weddings and corporate entertainment as well as the management of its let properties. Belvoir Castle’s CEO, Donald Lambert
says that the software enables him to have all the information he needs to “tell the Duke and Duchess exactly what financial contribution has been made by the
predicting the future, Landmark has found its way into the production of tea leaves, providing software for another quirky client in Cornwall. Truthfully, quirky isn’t the word for the Tregothnan estate; exotic, established and entrenched would be a better description of this working estate that has been in the same family, the Boscawens, since 1335. Family estates such as this do not, traditionally, change on a whim. Careful research and detailed discussion preface any development and so their commitment to Landmark is a real indication of the firm’s versatility and customer service. Tregothnan grows rare plants on its estate on the Fal Estuary, near Truro (very near Madonna’s new house!). Its most recent success is the launch of its homegrown tea, in a range of styles with designer packaging and prices to match. I can testify that it is quite lovely, as is the estate. The last example of software diversity has to be labeled The Sensible Folly. One estate uses Landmark software to manage its Follies. Why? Because some Follies are listed and they have to be preserved and managed accordingly. This estate (we can’t tell you
where it is, that would be madness!)
has a fair few Follies, so inspection dates and associated reporting and maintenance has to be logged. This is just one other interesting use of ancient lands and buildings needing modern management, it’s no folly, it’s fabulous.
www.landmarksystems.co.uk
Add your own tips and techniques online at:
www.propertydrum.com/articles/landmark
PROPERTYdrum SEPTEMBER 2010 37
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68