We have sought to make tremendous changes at RICS in the past year, but one aspect of our work has reinforced the fundamentals that have made us the kind of community our members can be proud of.
Defining our Future roundtables led to the formation of the Member Engagement, Experience and Value (MEEV) working group, comprised of members from all aspects of our governance bodies, specialisms and global markets. This working group has been established on the kind of member–staff partnership that has made RICS what it is over the years and will be crucial in rebuilding the kind of RICS that all our stakeholders demand.
Chaired by Rory Murphy (Commercial Director at VINCI Facilities), the working group has identified and supported staff in the delivery of key initiatives that will align a staff operating model with market plans driven by members and stakeholders in our global markets.
While maintaining our position as a global professional body, it is critically important that members of RICS are engaged in what our market strategies should be. All stakeholders should have a positive experience and find value from their interaction with RICS. The MEEV working group continues to focus on just that, with insights from all over the world and across our various sectors. The group is comprised of members that are new to the profession through to those that have been involved with the institution their entire careers.
Despite being a global professional body, what members want is:
- local relevance and context that comes from local support and local member involvement and
- provision of a mix of online and in-person engagement, with the introduction of free CPD.
In total, we rolled out 119 events,
engaging with 11,640 members.
RICS put additional member-engagement resources in place across UK and global markets in order to deliver increased levels of engagement.
Further changes to align our efforts to support members and drive local relevance collaboratively are underway as we move into late 2022 and early 2023.
Recommendations from the working group have included improving both online and offline experiences for members. With the forthcoming introduction of a new telephone platform, a completely new website and myRICS online communities, we expect to see additional improvements in service experience and peer-to-peer engagement.
A focus on younger members, with additional support for Matrics communities in the UK, has created more opportunities for young professionals to network and share best practice as their careers evolve.
In the first half of 2022, we engaged with 4,308 Matrics members through 49 events dedicated to the Matrics community of young professionals. The initial focus of this restart has been on the UK market, but the framework and intent are to drive Matrics globally.
Following on from the Bichard Report on purpose, strategy and governance, the work of the MEEV working group continues, albeit in a new incarnation. The working group will transform into the Member Services Steering Group and, ultimately, the Member Services Committee, which will continue to drive initiatives that enhance engagement, experience and value for our members globally.
From this new approach we will see reinforcement of what makes RICS the most sought-after professional status globally through a reimagined member–staff partnership.
This approach will:
- ensure local, sector and interest group relevance for our engagement activities
- drive continuous improvement in our service levels and member experience
- deliver value for money through association with a professional body and
- appropriately address the needs of its most important stakeholders.