The panel explored the benefits of property technology and how to determine the right operating model that will enable agile businesses and teams, the ROI of proptech and mapping out an effective data strategy and how to embrace customer-centricity as a mindset when deciding on technology solutions integration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How can companies use proptech to enhance their business?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ve already completed digitalising the customer journey from the marketing websites to the online leasing to the tenant sub-service and online payments \u2013 every process in real estate, whether it\u2019s residential, retail, commercial or even coworking, it is digitalised in our platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut what we have been witnessing in the market is that clients and customers are gathering their data from different places without keeping an eye on having a strong data foundation. A strong data foundation can be utilised for AI, predictive analysis and the future of their business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBased on each factor, for example, if I want to increase rent or reduce rent, the KPIs and predictive analysis we receive from AI can help us make the right decisions. So, we believe having a strong data foundation in place and aggregating this data will help companies be more productive and make better decisions in their future operations,\u201d expressed Haider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why do you think the market is seeing a surge of diverse portfolios?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\u201cCustomers are diversifying their real estate portfolios to reduce risk and to improve their return on investment \u2013 especially after the pandemic when they saw it hit specific real estate verticals more than others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo typically, we used to see a company focus on retail or commercial with maybe a few residential assets. Now we\u2019re starting to see they\u2019re breaking down this vertical. Now when we talk about commercial, we talk about traditional commercial office space as well as coworking or shared office space. When we talk about residential, we traditionally talk about build-to-sell, but we\u2019ve started to see more build to rent \u2013 and within that, we\u2019ve started to see a rent-to-own concept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs you want to grow your economy, as you want to grow your real estate investments, you must have a diverse selection of real estate within your portfolio. If anything happens again in the future, we know that not all verticals will get hit on the same level \u2013 and in addition to that, we\u2019re starting to see more demand coming into housing with single family rentals,\u201d explained Haider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What is Yardi doing to support the changing demands in real estate?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\u201cWe are working hard to make sure we release new products and solutions that can support the requirements of our clients that keep changing on an annual basis. As the market changes, the business requirements change, which puts stress on technology to make sure it\u2019s flexible and can adapt to any changes in business processes and business operations. We\u2019re excited as 2023 has begun strongly for us and we believe we\u2019ll end the year in a good place as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Al Futtaim Malls and Yardi Collaborate to Advance a Wider Digital Transformation Journey<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2023\/02\/Blog-Client-Success-AFM.jpg?w=1024\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nAfter the panel, Yardi\u2019s recent client success story was presented with Gratiela Duciuc, regional retail analyst for Al Futtaim Group<\/a> and Swapnil Kulkarni, senior consultant for Yardi<\/a>. The success story focused on how Yardi\u2019s technology automated data collection and analysis on revenue sources and saved time during planning cycles<\/a> while promoting user accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDuciuc opened the showcase by explaining the challenges, \u201cAt Al Futtaim, we want to provide an exceptional experience to all of our guests as we tend to be the destination mall of choice in all regions we operate in. However, we used to rely on excel spreadsheets and different sources of data. We have various assets in various regions and would rely on our employees from those assets to give information, compile data sets and send it back to us \u2013 you can already see the problem with that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Solution<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\u201cAl Futtaim Malls were looking for a solution that wasn\u2019t just flexible, but also scalable. As the business is dynamic, it needed a solution that would support them in the future as well,\u201d said Kulkarni.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe focused on what was important \u2013 it needed strong reporting and automation \u2013 especially reporting for management as it needed a clear budgeting cycle and forecast of the next 10, 15, 20 years,\u201d explained Kulkarni.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYardi\u2019s software helps capture information at various stages in the business lifetime. So, all those modules be it, lead, proposal, live, executed, speculative environment \u2013 they all talk to each other and can transport data between each other \u2013 that sounds pretty cool, but that\u2019s not everything,\u201d expressed Duciuc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe other solution Yardi offered allowed us to promote unique user accountability in our portfolio. So, let\u2019s say at the beginning of the year, you have specific team management KPIs \u2013 with the help of this feature, you can easily see who worked on the budget or forecast, who modified it and when \u2013 and it can also help in audit trails,\u201d Duciuc continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo, we simplified processes, we automated them, we removed the labour-intensive spreadsheets \u2013 but what does that actually mean? It means we simplified the process and can now see exactly what the output cycle would be like. Now I have a clear view of how the data is transferred into the system, how the system populates my various models of budget or forecast and how that information is transferred into a very accurate revenue calculation, which is one of the most important aspects of the software,\u201d said Duciuc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
See how Yardi helped Al Futtaim Malls save over 30 hours of data gathering and strategic planning<\/a> through an end-to-end solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCustomers are diversifying their real estate portfolios to reduce risk and to improve their return on investment \u2013 especially after the pandemic when they saw it hit specific real estate verticals more than others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo typically, we used to see a company focus on retail or commercial with maybe a few residential assets. Now we\u2019re starting to see they\u2019re breaking down this vertical. Now when we talk about commercial, we talk about traditional commercial office space as well as coworking or shared office space. When we talk about residential, we traditionally talk about build-to-sell, but we\u2019ve started to see more build to rent \u2013 and within that, we\u2019ve started to see a rent-to-own concept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs you want to grow your economy, as you want to grow your real estate investments, you must have a diverse selection of real estate within your portfolio. If anything happens again in the future, we know that not all verticals will get hit on the same level \u2013 and in addition to that, we\u2019re starting to see more demand coming into housing with single family rentals,\u201d explained Haider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What is Yardi doing to support the changing demands in real estate?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\u201cWe are working hard to make sure we release new products and solutions that can support the requirements of our clients that keep changing on an annual basis. As the market changes, the business requirements change, which puts stress on technology to make sure it\u2019s flexible and can adapt to any changes in business processes and business operations. We\u2019re excited as 2023 has begun strongly for us and we believe we\u2019ll end the year in a good place as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Al Futtaim Malls and Yardi Collaborate to Advance a Wider Digital Transformation Journey<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nAfter the panel, Yardi\u2019s recent client success story was presented with Gratiela Duciuc, regional retail analyst for Al Futtaim Group<\/a> and Swapnil Kulkarni, senior consultant for Yardi<\/a>. The success story focused on how Yardi\u2019s technology automated data collection and analysis on revenue sources and saved time during planning cycles<\/a> while promoting user accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDuciuc opened the showcase by explaining the challenges, \u201cAt Al Futtaim, we want to provide an exceptional experience to all of our guests as we tend to be the destination mall of choice in all regions we operate in. However, we used to rely on excel spreadsheets and different sources of data. We have various assets in various regions and would rely on our employees from those assets to give information, compile data sets and send it back to us \u2013 you can already see the problem with that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Solution<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\u201cAl Futtaim Malls were looking for a solution that wasn\u2019t just flexible, but also scalable. As the business is dynamic, it needed a solution that would support them in the future as well,\u201d said Kulkarni.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe focused on what was important \u2013 it needed strong reporting and automation \u2013 especially reporting for management as it needed a clear budgeting cycle and forecast of the next 10, 15, 20 years,\u201d explained Kulkarni.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYardi\u2019s software helps capture information at various stages in the business lifetime. So, all those modules be it, lead, proposal, live, executed, speculative environment \u2013 they all talk to each other and can transport data between each other \u2013 that sounds pretty cool, but that\u2019s not everything,\u201d expressed Duciuc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe other solution Yardi offered allowed us to promote unique user accountability in our portfolio. So, let\u2019s say at the beginning of the year, you have specific team management KPIs \u2013 with the help of this feature, you can easily see who worked on the budget or forecast, who modified it and when \u2013 and it can also help in audit trails,\u201d Duciuc continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo, we simplified processes, we automated them, we removed the labour-intensive spreadsheets \u2013 but what does that actually mean? It means we simplified the process and can now see exactly what the output cycle would be like. Now I have a clear view of how the data is transferred into the system, how the system populates my various models of budget or forecast and how that information is transferred into a very accurate revenue calculation, which is one of the most important aspects of the software,\u201d said Duciuc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
See how Yardi helped Al Futtaim Malls save over 30 hours of data gathering and strategic planning<\/a> through an end-to-end solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nAfter the panel, Yardi\u2019s recent client success story was presented with Gratiela Duciuc, regional retail analyst for Al Futtaim Group<\/a> and Swapnil Kulkarni, senior consultant for Yardi<\/a>. The success story focused on how Yardi\u2019s technology automated data collection and analysis on revenue sources and saved time during planning cycles<\/a> while promoting user accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Duciuc opened the showcase by explaining the challenges, \u201cAt Al Futtaim, we want to provide an exceptional experience to all of our guests as we tend to be the destination mall of choice in all regions we operate in. However, we used to rely on excel spreadsheets and different sources of data. We have various assets in various regions and would rely on our employees from those assets to give information, compile data sets and send it back to us \u2013 you can already see the problem with that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAl Futtaim Malls were looking for a solution that wasn\u2019t just flexible, but also scalable. As the business is dynamic, it needed a solution that would support them in the future as well,\u201d said Kulkarni.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe focused on what was important \u2013 it needed strong reporting and automation \u2013 especially reporting for management as it needed a clear budgeting cycle and forecast of the next 10, 15, 20 years,\u201d explained Kulkarni.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYardi\u2019s software helps capture information at various stages in the business lifetime. So, all those modules be it, lead, proposal, live, executed, speculative environment \u2013 they all talk to each other and can transport data between each other \u2013 that sounds pretty cool, but that\u2019s not everything,\u201d expressed Duciuc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe other solution Yardi offered allowed us to promote unique user accountability in our portfolio. So, let\u2019s say at the beginning of the year, you have specific team management KPIs \u2013 with the help of this feature, you can easily see who worked on the budget or forecast, who modified it and when \u2013 and it can also help in audit trails,\u201d Duciuc continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo, we simplified processes, we automated them, we removed the labour-intensive spreadsheets \u2013 but what does that actually mean? It means we simplified the process and can now see exactly what the output cycle would be like. Now I have a clear view of how the data is transferred into the system, how the system populates my various models of budget or forecast and how that information is transferred into a very accurate revenue calculation, which is one of the most important aspects of the software,\u201d said Duciuc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n See how Yardi helped Al Futtaim Malls save over 30 hours of data gathering and strategic planning<\/a> through an end-to-end solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Solution<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n