With over 20 years working in companies that range in size from start-ups to publicly-traded corporations, I know from experience that finding the right talent can be hard...and hiring tech talent can be even more challenging. In a tight labor market where companies are in growth mode, talent is at a premium. The United States job market was continuing to experience slow, steady and strong employment growth as of February 2020, which means hiring likely remained competitive. A recent survey from Manpower Group (via CNBC) found that almost 70% of employers reported talent shortages in 2019. While many companies are struggling to attract quality talent that will help drive efficiencies and growth for the business, commercial real estate (CRE) was late to the game and is now finding it increasingly difficult to attract high-potential candidates.
The good news for commercial real estate? Employees from other industries are starting to take notice of the growth in CRE and the market's potential, and workers are indicating a willingness to make bold career moves. Even companies such as JLL are tapping into Silicon Valley's talent pools in order to deliver more technology-driven service offerings.
What Is Tech Talent?
In a 2019 report, CBRE defined tech talent as "highly skilled technical workers who create and enable the software and devices that are integrated into nearly everything we do." These are people who understand emerging technology and how to strategically leverage it in order to drive meaningful business outcomes. Traditionally, these workers were in roles such as data scientist, developer or technical engineer. In recent years, the term "tech talent" has expanded to include roles in most every department, including finance, marketing and research. According to the CBRE report, the tech talent labor pool currently includes over 6 million highly skilled workers across North America and has increased 16% in the past five years, adding jobs to the U.S. economy at a pace that is more than double the national average.
Why Commercial Real Estate?
In my experience, the commercial real estate sector is both historically and notoriously slow to adopt new technology, and these firms and investors now face significant learning curves when it comes to catching up. But new innovations are becoming increasingly necessary in order to adapt to shifts in the market, exceed investor expectations and boost firm efficiencies. While the pool of tech talent is still relatively shallow and certainly competitive, 2019 CBRE data showed that about two-thirds of tech workers studied were employed in industries outside of high-tech software and services. With regard to commercial real estate, many people I've spoken to are waking up and realizing that the CRE industry offers growth potential and the opportunity to make a lasting impact in the sector. And as the market increasingly embraces technology, I expect there to be greater demand for innovation, scalable systems, analytics and digital transformation. Here at my company, we are definitely experiencing this within our own network and hearing feedback from customers — they want greater accessibility, better data and more insights. Firms should remain agile and effectively adapt to market transformation. And now, investors may increasingly assess whether firms are leveraging tech and tech talent in order to be future-ready.
Where Are The Skills Gaps?
Technology today can help with most aspects of a business, including engaging and communicating with clients, building and maintaining relationships, facilitating investments and transactions, managing risk, assessing the state of the market and even running day-to-day operations.
According to a 2018 Gartner report (download required), 87% of senior business leaders say that digitalization is a priority, but only 20% of employees think they have the skills they need for their current roles and future careers. And only 30% believe they have even mastered the skills needed for their jobs today.
What Are The Next Steps For Forward-Thinking Firms?
One way to help bridge that skills gap is to leverage technologies that can automate some of the processes involved in your business. (My company, RealCrowd and AvidXchange are just a few that offer CRE tech solutions.) Other trends, such as predictive analytics, property intelligence, modeling and machine-learning, require both the right tooling and tech-savvy employees to effectively drive business outcomes.
How Can You Acquire The Right Tools?
Look for technology platforms that address the following questions:
• Will the technology be able to solve my biggest pain points and challenges?
• Does the tool or vendor have experience in my specific industry, or is it a one-size-fits-all solution? Which is better for me?
• Will the new tech be able to drive efficiencies and productivities across the firm?
• Can the technology support the front-, middle- and back-office processes I'm looking to improve?
• Can the platform help my firm meet and then exceed investor expectations?
How Can I Attract Tech-Savvy Talent?
Keep these tips in mind as you grow your firm:
• Build a current, relevant tech stack. Ninety-three percent of millennials polled in a Microsoft and SurveyMonkey poll (via a 2016 CIO article) cited modern and up-to-date technology as one of the most important aspects of a workplace.
• Ensure work-life balance. Develop flexible policies around work hours and locations — and prioritize allowing employees to contribute regardless of physical location.
• Examine your firm's values. I've found that today's tech talent is looking for a culture that encourages innovation, collaboration and optimization, as well as opportunities to continually grow and learn.
• Integrate the tech. It's one thing to have access to a few tech tools, but it's another to make technology (and tech workers) a core and lasting aspect of your business strategy.
At the end of the day, for industries such as commercial real estate and investing, I believe that investing in technology and tech talent is no longer a luxury — it is a necessity. The future success of your firm could depend on your willingness to adapt to the 21st-century ways of doing business.
