Here we are again in a down cycle across the entire US and Global Economies. Companies and businesses have to continue to reinvent who they are and how they do it to survive. Green business has a great opportunity to grow and integrate more into production methods as companies look for new ways to do things. Business models in practically every industry has to be challenged, if not by our customers but by us in order for us to compete.

Having worked in business strategy and cost re-engineering for over two decades in all aspects of indirect and direct business cost/operations, we need to embrace this challenge, rise to it, and develop our talent and our thinking to find new opportunities and new markets.

Can green survive, I think yes in many aspects of real estate and of business. Technology is enabling a more remote work force. Less is the need to occupy a desk space. You can work from home and be connected and large companies can take millions out of their operating costs if they have the will and the expertise to implement flexible work plans and the appropriate infrastructure.

As prime business real estate in some markets become more cost prohibitive and the fight for talent and available work force to fill operations become more costly, a flexible workforce and real estate strategy is the only way businesses can continue to re-engineer costs.

At a residential level, I think builders needs to look at their materials and challenge production companies to find cheaper, greener, more responsible materials that will help reduce build cost, but can be done so in a way that it also improves construction times = reduced labor = reduced cost. A great example of this is in Norway where you can literally choose your home mass produced, and it is delivered in component form and built almost within a day on already laid foundations. GREEN and Cost Cutting can come together if only there is the courage to challenge business models and the product.

Having worked in corporate most of my professional life I fully understand “Spin”. Words are easy to say and print, but what is our EQ on the subject? EQ? what is that I hear you ask, EQ is “Executional Quotient”, our ability to deliver, deliver on the promise.

How many times have we purchased things based on the word of the sales person or the description given at time of order only to find that it is short of expectations. This is the delivery, this is the execution, this is the promise that we all make at various time in our lives and if we provide services to our clients we make promises every day. The question is, do we live up-to the promise? Is the customer perception of our services and the execution of our services the same as our own perception. In reality they are never the same, there are always gaps and differences.

All these are great questions and observations, what do we do about it?

Well the first is eliminate the barriers of communication between your customers and you, ensure you are regularly checking the pulse of your customers and solicit feedback, through surveys and measure your progress and improvements over time. This I refer to as a QUALITY principle.

Deliver on your promise, even if it is against your best interests to do so? A classical example of that is when times are tough and we are continually looking at our budgets, how deep into our pockets do we dive, if the difference is a great marketing campaign for our clients? This is INTEGRITY.

Exploit INNOVATION, In the world that we live today, technology is changing our lives, behaviours are changing quicker than our ability to keep track of them, all of which is fueled by technology. “Blog on” I hear you say……

These three areas are in summary are in reverse order are: Innovation, Integrity & Quality. At Holman & Holman our motto, our culture is principle of being  “Committed to Excellence Through Innovation, Integrity & Quality“ This is what I stand for, and our team stands for when we deliver to you, our customer.

Come and be our customer……………call now: 623 322 2850 email: Info@holmanandholman.com

Written By: Nathan Holman REALTOR – Holman & Holman Team, REALTY USA SOUTHWEST.

When you look at the banner on this site, you are reminded firmly just how beautiful the world is without the human population to mess things up.  Just the natural unchanged scenes that are available to us all, if only we just pause for a moment to marvel the beauty. In the ever increasing trend of increased consumption, it is not a small wonder to realize why the subject of “Green” has started to gain such significant political and social attention.

Practically everything we do, buy and consume has an environmental impact, from the cars we drive, the food we purchase, the homes will live in and the chemicals we use to keep things clean. From a home buying and building perspective more and more people recognize the simple fact that they have a choice, or more to the point are demanding one.

It is an interesting and growing trend on home building and development in AZ, in that people are looking for greener alternatives, both in the construction and the “Carbon Foot Print” that the home creates.  I.e. is the home built with sustainable and replenish-able materials?  Some woods e.g. OAK demanded in construction and the decoration of our kitchens or floors take over 100 years to grow into a tree that can be used for raw materials.  Is this truly a material that we can use without consideration to the consumption of it or the sustainability of it. The Brazilian Rain Forrest depletion for wood export, is another great example that is used largely in building construction.

So with the wealth of great intelligence of man, what is man doing to change it’s consumption behaviours and what are some Home and Real Estate developers doing to respond.  Well the best way to answer that is simply that there is promise on the horizon. Some developers are looking at their construction methods differently and materials used. As an example there is some growing trend in the use of precast concreate components to quickly construct home and building structures with less internal timbers. They are looking to the origins of their supply chain for improvements, and they are certainly looking at the end result in terms of efficiency in consumption of energy and resources such electricity and water, and develop homes that are more environmentally conscious. That is good right…..?

Well the challenge is that these homes are characteristically the higher end price tag homes and as such have a premium price tag to go with it. Mainstream has some way to catch up with the largest challenge of remaining profitable in a challenging Real Estate Market, and also remaining competitive when pitched against developers that persue a “lowest cost materials and construction approach” that is not environmentally focused.

We as humans in the end look at the “cash in or out” of our pockets. The question is “Are we ready as humans to start paying a higher price for the way we live now in the form of cash out of pocket, or are we more intent on paying a greater price of damaging our future and the beauty of the world”.  Time will be the test of that……

I live in hope that the great efforts of individuals trying to change government and corporation policy, will help in continuing to raise the profile of “Green”. As a REALTOR I am committed to that in the way I live and work, I am also committed to helping people find their Green Home in AZ.