There was a time when property management (PM) was all about collecting the rent on time and making sure facilities such as toilets were working properly. Not anymore.

Hive of activity: ‘meet the bees’ days are among the range of events CBRE organises at properties it manages

These days, property managers are engaged in ever more imaginative activities aimed at engaging tenants and improving customer experience. So how is the PM role evolving and what value do landlords get from enhanced management?

One developer and landlord that has long seen the value in active management is Hines. The company has always had an integrated PM business for its US operation and decided to go down the same route in Europe a few years back. In the UK, that involved acquiring PM specialist Helix two and a half years ago.

Amy Soar, former chief executive of Helix and now managing director of the business within Hines, says the firm manages about 220 properties throughout the UK, 70% of them owned by third-party clients, with Hines’ own assets making up the balance.

The whole structuring of property management has changed
Amy Soar, Helix

Since the Covid pandemic, there has been a shift towards more active PM as companies seek ways to encourage staff back into workplaces.

But Soar says post-pandemic working patterns have not been the only driving force. “It started happening as lease lengths started getting shorter,” she says. “When I came into the industry, my leases tended to be 25 years. They then shortened to 10 years and then again to five, with three-year breaks. At that point, landlords started to realise they really needed to look after buildings and have the right operators.”

The arrival in the UK of flexible office provider WeWork – and its offer of high-quality space in prime locations on flexible terms – also gave the industry a shot in the arm. WeWork may have run into financial difficulties in recent years, but Soar says its influence in terms of active PM is undeniable.

“People had a choice; they could go to a space that was fully managed and take on leases a month at a time,” she says. “The whole structuring of PM changed again to try to work with those occupiers and help support their workforce by putting on events and trying to create communities.

“Also, post-pandemic, these buildings tend to be empty on a Friday, so it’s really about working closely with occupiers to look at how we’re managing buildings using technology.”

Robert Stark, Senior Executive Director – Head of Clients, at property manager MAPP, says employers increasingly realise they need to provide attractive and dynamic workspaces. For MAPP, this includes providing regular food and retail pop-ups across its managed portfolio, as well as running giveaways of trial products.

Recent activities it has helped to run include a charity abseil down a central London office and a circus event with performers, carnival stalls and games at a large business park.

“People want a similar experience to what they can get elsewhere in life,” he says. “A lot of it is driven by the fact that organisations need to ensure they can attract talent. They need to attract the best people, and the space they’re going to work in is a key part of that.”

Getting to know occupiers

Stark says it is no longer enough to provide a safe, secure and clean environment. “Now, particularly in the office market, it’s around placemaking and the activation of spaces and engagement with occupiers,” he says. “It’s about understanding what drives staff to sites and speaking to the key occupiers.”

It is about understanding what drives staff to sites, speaking to key occupiers
Robert Stark, MAPP

PM teams can also help occupiers and landlords achieve their ESG goals. John McHugh, senior director and head of place and community at CBRE, says some initiatives he and his team have come up with tick both the ‘E’ (environmental) and ‘S’ (social) boxes, citing the introduction of beehives on 10 buildings as an example.

Village people: the TBC London development overlooking Tower Bridge will have an urban village hall

“It’s good for biodiversity,” he says. “But we also do five or six ‘meet the bees’ days in the summer. People bring their kids into the workplace. They put beekeeping suits on. So, we’re doing a good thing from a sustainability point of view, but we’re also engaging people, and then the honey gets sold for charity. It’s little things like that that probably five to 10 years ago weren’t on the agenda.”

One size does not fit all

Soar cautions against adopting a one-size-fits-all approach to the types of activities held in buildings. She says her firm runs a training session called the Hines Experience Academy that gives a calendar of events throughout the whole year and provides examples of activities that managers could put on in their buildings, as well as guidelines.

But the responsibility sits with the building or property manager to ensure activities are appropriate for occupiers. “Even in London, occupiers’ requirements are really different in terms of things like pop-up events and what they want to see,” says Soar. “It’s about getting to know occupiers and providing a bespoke service and offering.”

Basil Demeroutis, managing partner at developer and landlord FORE, agrees, saying the values of the building need to align with the values of the people who are there.

In central London, FORE has appointed Savills as property manager of TBC London, the 110,000 sq ft office development overlooking Tower Bridge. The building is due to be completed at the end of October and will feature what FORE describes as an “urban village hall” available to occupiers and local community groups alike.

What occupiers want will continue to evolve, and we will have to react to that
Richard Hart, Workman

“It’s bringing back this concept of a village hall, which has disappeared across the country,” says Demeroutis. “I think that’s what great buildings do – they don’t connect people to place necessarily, but they do connect people to people. It’s then about how you curate that space. We’re going to do things like charity events and after-school reading clubs and art exhibitions with the local art college.”

Savills director Tom Morris-Chippendale says selecting the right general manager for the building will be key to the success of the urban village hall.

“The people who are running these spaces tend to do well if they come from a retail, leisure or hospitality background,” he says. “With TBC London and the urban village hall, you can set a creative agenda and influence how you engage with the community and have a personal impact. That’s really attractive. It’s a really exciting time to be in PM.”

Property managers are clearly going to ever greater lengths to curate buildings and provide ever more bespoke services. But could the trend go into reverse? After all, the more services are provided, the greater the cost. Soar is emphatic. “No way,” she says. “We’re going in the opposite direction. Occupiers’ expectations are changing all the time.”

Richard Hart, head of PM at Workman, also believes the flight towards quality will continue in the market. “I initially thought it would last maybe two years after the pandemic, but I don’t see it changing,” he says. “We see it with our own employees in terms of what they expect from the office. What occupiers want will continue to develop and evolve, and we will have to react to that to help our clients.”

Moreover, adds McHugh, landlords increasingly view active management as vital for the bottom line. “How asset managers are using it as part of their strategy has massively increased over the past five years,” he says. “They don’t just see it as an added extra; it’s very much part of their strategy to drive rents, reposition assets and attract new occupiers. That investment actually has a return – it’s no longer optional.”

Costa Del Croydon

Over the summer, Centrale shopping centre in Croydon, south London, created an “urban beach paradise” on the top floor of its multistorey car park to help attract customers.

The ‘Costa Del Croydon’ attraction featured a giant sandpit, beach huts, trampolines and a splash zone, as well as activities such as bingo, table tennis, mini go-karts, dance workshops and trampolines.

A Centrale spokesperson says in a statement: “The idea was born from the desire to create an event that is not usually accessible in a town centre location. Costa Del Croydon brought a slice of the seaside to the heart of south London for the first time.”

The initiative was spearheaded by the centre’s marketing manager, who worked in partnership with the commercialisation manager. They received support from the asset team at Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, which owns the shopping centre.

Centrale says the event proved a success. More than 30,000 visitors attended Costa Del Croydon over 28 days, with footfall 3% higher compared with the same period the year before and tenants reporting a 10% increase in sales compared with July 2024.