In his first interview since taking office as the new regional managing director of RICS Europe, Russia & CIS, Maarten Vermeulen FRICS talks to PropertyEU about the challenges that lie ahead.
In his first interview since taking office as the new regional managing director of RICS Europe, Russia & CIS, Maarten Vermeulen FRICS talks to PropertyEU about the challenges that lie ahead.
Maarten Vermeulen FRICS took up the position of regional managing director of RICS Europe, Russia & CIS in May. A longstanding member of the RICS, he was previously director for Europe with boutique investment management firm Composition Capital Partners where he oversaw the firm’s investment portfolio in Europe.
PropertyEU: What motivated you to leave a boutique investment management firm for a global standards organisation?
Vermeulen: Since I joined the RICS in 2004 as a member I have always been actively involved in its activities, both at a national and an international level. I strongly believe in what RICS stands for and what it tries to achieve on a global scale. In today’s world, there is a growing need for consistency across the globe, e.g. in measurement (IPMS) and valuation (Red Book) but also in the way we do business (Code of Conduct). This demands an integrated approach that focuses on membership, products & product development and regulation. RICS is the only organisation that is able to implement such an approach across the property sector globally.
Another thing I highly appreciate about my new role is that it offers the right balance between being commercially active and working for the public good. After having been active in commercial property and private equity real estate during most of my career, I now felt it was time to shift focus and give something back to society as well.
Finally, this job offers me the opportunity to contribute to really making a difference in Continental Europe, Russia & CIS when it comes to improving the property sector in terms of integrity and professionalism.
PropertyEU: How will your experience ‘in the field’ benefit you in your new role?
Vermeulen: As a result of both my experience as a professional ‘in the field’ and as a member I trust I can bridge the gap that sometimes exists between what members expect from RICS and what RICS can offer. RICS is a global membership organisation, based on a democratic structure. Therefore RICS as an organisation executes and implement what the members want at a global level. This does not necessarily always tie in with what members expect from the RICS at local level.
However, my experience is that a lot of issues can be sorted out as long as we are willing to listen to each other and try to understand where the other is coming from. In the end we all share the same goal.
PropertyEU: What are your priorities as new regional managing director of RICS Europe, Russia & CIS?
Vermeulen: It is too early to talk about priorities now, but in any case what we will do is to make an assessment of every country in my region and identify for each country what is needed in terms of membership growth, recognition, education and stakeholder engagement to achieve the goals that are set globally.
PropertyEU: What are the biggest challenges ahead?
Vermeulen: From all the conversations that we have had as an organisation we have learned that consistency is the biggest challenge going forward and again consistency in the way we measure, value and behave as well the opportunity to monitor and regulate this on a global scale.
PropertyEU: How do you plan to go about bridging national differences across Europe in the areas of ethical and professional standards, property measurement and valuation?
Vermeulen: In the end RICS cannot really force people/members to do something; therefore you have to convince them of the fact that what you are proposing will benefit them. This starts with educating people, sharing real life examples, discussing the different ways forward and offering solutions for the issues that are being addressed. This is not an easy process and it will take time, but if we believe in what we stand for, and that is what we do, we will be able to succeed.
PropertyEU: Do you expect more markets to adopt mandatory VR after the UK and Netherlands?
Vermeulen: Yes, as in the UK and the Netherlands, there is increasing demand in other parts of the world (last year we assessed 14,000 registered valuers worldwide) and therefore our plan is to roll out Valuer Registration globally. Although we do not have a confirmed date yet, we will be promoting the scheme with members and other stakeholders in key markets.