Industry innovation: Let’s be better, together

The pandemic really flipped the script for the real estate industry. Over the past few years, so many new challenges have been introduced, meaning reactions needed to be fast yet calculated—and all parties across the transaction had to embrace change in order to keep the industry moving. However, despite so many challenges, the amount of PropTech and innovation that has taken place in over the span of just a few short years is really quite astounding.

Collaborative innovation has played an essential role in not only continuing the momentum, but also in overcoming both new and old industry challenges—often while employing creative solutions along the way.

While it has become necessary for all parties of the real estate industry to work together in times of need, doing so must remain a priority at all times to ensure the industry continues to advance. To further understand just how integral collaborative innovation is to the health and future of the real estate industry, we have to first understand what it is, and the role that data plays in it.

What is collaborative innovation?

Collaborative innovation within the real estate industry is the process of bringing all partners and key stakeholders together to propel industry innovation forward. This can be a daunting task, but we have learned that we don’t have to build everything ourselves. We recognize that it’s important to understand the needs of all stakeholders involved in the transaction, so we can build value for them.

It is critical that all parties within the industry work together to accomplish shared goals and build value. Doing so will allow various parties to look at the real estate transaction as a whole, enabling the group to determine where the key pain points are while being able to share ideas, design impactful solutions and create a process that serves everyone’s needs. However, it takes two important ingredients for this to be possible: trust and focus.

Breaking through barriers to propel innovation

The consumers of today—and of tomorrow—have far higher expectations than those of the past. Most stakeholders have recognized this and are working together to allow the real estate industry to be better positioned to meet consumer expectations, benefiting all parties.

However, in order for this to truly happen, data will be integral. To move forward and be able to use industry data to its full potential, three key steps need to be taken:

1. Data needs to be consolidated;
2. We have to find the appropriate use cases for it; and, most importantly
3. The information must be made available to those who need it.

That being said, there are barriers that are preventing this. It has been challenging to get all parties to understand the importance of sharing data—and how the information is going to be used—which is one of the biggest barriers we continue to see. To move forward, we need everyone involved to overcome these fears in order to bring the industry together. Only then can we talk about a different type of real estate transaction—one that meets all their needs.

Working towards a successful future together

Advancing the real estate industry goes far beyond simply working toward common goals to overcome the same challenges and meet similar needs, it requires meaningfully breaking through barriers and establishing trust among all stakeholders to propel innovation.

While it is clear that there is still work to be done, and some segments are more advanced than others, if all stakeholders work together there is no challenge that can’t be overcome to drive the industry forward.

At FCT, we strive to bring all real estate parties together and are continuously working to explore and collaborate with stakeholders to create a seamless transaction that benefits everyone involved. Real estate is one of the most resilient industries there is, and the sky truly is the limit to what can be achieved through collaborative innovation not just today—but every day.