We have seen addition of Client Business objectives alignment with project management objectives alignment in standard practices of Project Management. It’s high time now that project management practitioners look little beyond. Just like in designing a shopping mall, we think of the shop owner's business and, its brand projection, in Real Estate Projects we need to think about the end user projection of developer/ client brand.
With a flurry of re-development projects in cities like Mumbai, we
see lot of developers in the growth phase of their organization and business.
During this phase it is very likely that they slip to foresee customer
perception of their organization down few years or, couple of projects.
Architects and Engineers do support them but, majority part of customer perception
are formed by the Delivery, Construction practices, Post purchase services,
Governance & Maintenance post possession and, living hardships & costs
the customer have to suffer from. Project Management can come to the rescue.
First and foremost correction is the stakeholder analysis. End
user is one of the major stakeholder and, decider of the client company
(developer) brand creation. They are the source of impact publishing of the
client company core values and product/ service. If the product is hurting somewhere,
all the hard work, risk taken, investments and, designing are going to fall
flat. Hence, manner in which the product delivery reaches end user (which he is
observing through sales-construction-completion) is as important as any of the
functions mentioned hereinabove. Let us remember the principle of residential
unit’s sale –
A person lives in one room of the house, other rooms are occupied
by his ego.
Yes, we sell ego in most of the cases and most of the rupee price
that we fetch. Let’s deliver to service his ego correctly. We also need to
address the ‘Need’ correctly. Being a subject of right experience and intent,
the need is - known to customer added with lot of things that are not known to
customer. One have to deliver both as, while using the product, the end user
will come to know which he doesn’t know at this time. Surely a good brand is built
around the wholesome satisfied experience of the end user in a longer period.
What next important step is - Scope of Project Management –
Include Servicing during possession phase (supporting CRM), Fit out activities
by end user, Documentation of contract Closures/ warranties to handover a good
status to end user and, Governance - Established and documented. Testing of product,
functionality and governance for fitting product and liveability to the end
user community gives the right learning for next project. One should not
hesitate to take corrective actions as, the final delivery will speak for
itself during further years to come. One should provide sufficient contingent
costs for this phase. Hence, what we are saying is – the project ends post
defect liability period including Good, sufficient and complete handover of the
created infrastructure. Of course, it has to exceed the promises made during
sales and, promotion.
At Cillages, we continuously learn and include what is necessary
in the project management scope however, in the case of Real Estate projects,
it takes more than standard practices. Like – no two projects are same, no two
real estate clients are same. Hence the only way is to be probing Needs and not
stop at stated Wants by the client at the assignment award stage. To succeed in
client relationship, we need to go beyond a stated, printed and practiced
standard scope statement and yet, be prepared to fail in writing the most accurate
scope statement. It is advisable to keep a variable component and elaborate
Exclusions segment, in the fee proposal for Real Estate clients to avoid
misunderstandings in future.
In a nutshell, Project Management now has to include the stretched
scope elements and duration for a Real Estate Project to end. Also one should
better understand the client organization brand value needs to decide the right
approach for - fitting design management to governance. We need to be brand
partners rather than a project partner with the client. That is why we at
Cillages mix a Marketing and Branding expertise in our Real Estate Project
Management.
