Avoid the Trap of Bad Data
There is a push for more technology in commercial real estate, but be careful. The tech guys at RealShare Southern California said that bad data is everywhere.
To explain “bad data,” Zrimsek used the example of guest cards. He said that many times, review cards are returned with false information, and it makes it impossible to engage with the customers. “Leasing is the thing that drives apartment space,” he said. “If someone fills out a guest card, it only works if we follow up with them.”
In addition to bad data, the panelists also discussed the flood of data that you see today as a result of technology. “A lot of the data has been available, but we haven’t known how to use it,” he said. Klein agreed, saying that there are a number of mediums, and users need to test the technology that works for individual needs. His firm uses personal devices, like smart phones, to capture data for employees. He believes that understanding different mediums is important to using technology successfully in an organization. “That is the first step,” he added. “At the end of the day, it comes down to providing a good opportunity. You have to test things out and see what works and what doesn’t.”
MRI Real Estate and Deloitte Consulting are developing open software that provides flexibility and access for the workforce. “Most of what Deloitte does on the front end is to find where you can improve, said Shtofman. He wants data, which generally sits in a centralized database, to be an ecosystem that several people can access and use. Zrimsek equally wants their software to provide flexibility, so they allow clients to work with other innovators with different specializations so that his firm can focus on what they do best. There is no one-size solution, and he believes that technology should focus on where it is most valuable.