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A few years ago I stood on the corner of Parliament Square outside H.M. Treasury with 3 people in suits. I had put signs round each of their necks saying respectively, Lawyer, Accountant and Surveyor. I then invited willing members of the public to give me their perceptions about each of these professional people while the whole exercise was being filmed.
The Lawyer and Accountant didn’t come out of this well but at least people had clear views about them, their work incomes and lifestyles. When it came to the Surveyor there were many blank faces and much umm-ing and ahh-ing. The best I got was “well he’s an Estate Agent” or “he wears wellies”.
In reality all 3 were Surveyors and it was my first day working as the Global Head of Brand at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). I wanted to make a point or two to that organizations leadership about brand recognition and the challenges facing them, their staff and the wider member-base.
So started one of the most difficult, challenging and rewarding periods of my career. I learnt how to be patient, how to talk to members in committee meetings, how to build new bridges between members and staff groups – faculties, marketing, policy and public affairs, education and the commercial operation to name a few of their 37 departments – between the Institution and other organizations (including central Government), between regions (UK and worldwide) and about how to carefully gain advocacy for, engineer and implement brand change despite powerful resistance from some influential quarters.
RICS is now truly worldwide. It has close to 200,000 members across 136 countries, representing over 180 diverse designated professions (including Estate Agents and welly wearing Land Managers). It has one of the most accomplished education and CPD programmes in the world, influences many governments and provides critical and impartial world leading advice on some of the worlds most pressing issues – property, environment, regeneration, sustainability, population and economics.
It has changed from being an introspective Institution solely devoted to meeting the demands of its members, into what I passionately believe all professional bodies should be – something that serves and clearly benefits communities and populations, through its members, programmes, actions and communication. It is there for the public good. Rather than benefiting directly from RICS, members now benefit from the position that RICS (and their association with it) have in the minds of the public, business, governments and the world. It is distinct from its members but serves them much more effectively as a result.
I am proud of the work achieved with RICS. I am equally proud of the development work we are currently doing with another great and historic organization – The Royal Institution of Great Britain. The context is different but the challenges and opportunity to really make a difference to people are much the same.
I have recently read many Strategic Plans from many professional bodies. I sincerely hope that the good intent shown in these is driven forward into sound and sustained reality. Their members, public and history deserve to see and benefit from these changes.
I also hope to play a part in working with some of these organizations to help them achieve their aims and build on them in the future. If this sounds like a plea for work, I make no apology.
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