Consolidating Internal & External Data For Faster CRE Operations
The commercial real estate industry is famously behind in embracing new technologies, and nowhere is this more true than in the realm of data aggregation and analysis.
Brokerage firms are drowning in data due to an overflow of anachronistic storage systems, complete with old-fashioned spreadsheets and applications, with no real-time information updates for their brokers. Lack of timely information leads to an abundance of inconsistencies along the lines of out-of-range data, duplicates, even simple misspellings, preventing employees from obtaining immediate access to requisite data and analysis.
Scattered, disorganized data is unfindable data; unfindable data leads to an incomplete picture of a firm’s clients, opportunities and markets. As a result, too many companies presently operate on fragments of the data they actually have, inhibiting their capacity to leverage data to its full potential.
Part of this solution is to streamline employee operations. The system in place must be able to delegate roles and grant permission to necessary staff members in order to maintain governance over the firm’s data flow. The most effective strategy to boost and simplify the flow of data in CRE firms is to cater to each company’s individual needs.
In keeping with the theme of simplification is the consolidation of siloed data chunks in addition to staff activity. Modern brokerage firms require a practical, straightforward user interface with the ability to access up-to-date information in one go and provide a single, homogenous platform aimed exclusively at CRE businesses.
Such a platform allows firms to derive more value from internal data, aggregating disparate research data across all departments, with information on leases, sales, listings, availabilities, ownership and more.
“[This type of platform] helps brokerage firms reach their full potential by finally being able to utilize all of their internal data,” says Jake Edens, co-founder and CEO of commercial real estate platform REscour.
Brokerage companies are further recognizing the immense value of integrating external research into their own analyses in order to compare and assess the state of properties against local, regional and national markets.
A number of top CRE management platforms are beginning to offer the ability to layer this public information—on more than 10 million properties—over a client firm’s internal data. The resulting market insight enables real estate businesses to greatly increase productivity.
This speeds up the pace at which brokers can synthesize data, create reports and report back to clients. In an industry where “time kills all deals,” the value of such a tool cannot be underestimated.
This is where a firm like REscour—specifically dedicated to empowering firms by automatically analyzing internal and external data—comes in. The 21st century CRE business should be able to answer questions before they are even asked, meaning the resources they exploit must not only be as up-to-the-minute as possible, but remain accessible 24/7. Mobile applications allow for easy access both in the office and on the road, enabling a deeper, more personal relationship with clients than ever before.
To learn more about Bisnow partner REscour, click here.
