Driving Business Value in Property Services

As an ex-CFO for an international Property Services business I am often asked by business owners and directors of these businesses one simple question

How do I drive real value in my business ?

I usually respond by saying would you like the short version or the more complex version ?

The short version is "People". Afterall true value is created and maintain by a high performance team (or is it ?)

I would rather detail the long version as it highlights eight key value drivers that owners and directors of property services businesses must truly understand if they are to create real value:

1. People - the team and its connectivity is critical

2. Leadership - the business should have an extraordinary leader at the helm.

3. Diversified Revenue Streams - aim for a good spread of different types of revenue (sales, leasing, advisory, valuation, management etc)

4. Recurring Revenues - the higher the recurring revenues the lower the overall risk profile

5. Diversified Client Base in terms of industry, geography and size of revenues.

6. Compensation Systems - Well developed individual and team compensation systems to drive reward for performance and long term retention.

7. Organisation & Corporate Governance - well defined organisation structure is a must with good corporate governance practices including a functioning advisory board and/or formal board.

8. Profit - the underlying/maintainable EBITDA will of course be an important number in the mix.

The logical next question is "How do I know where we are at ?"

Well maybe its time for a full Business Checkup

Take a look at a recent post that details how we approach a Business Checkup or email James O'Brien

* James O'Brien is a Director at High Street Partners and has over 15 years experience in senior commercial, CFO and general management positions with a focus on strategy, people and leadership. He was also a regional CFO for CBRE Asia Pacific. Contact him at [email protected]