Table of Contents
Assignments……………………………………………………………………………………….....................................................23
Annexes………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..29
Week 1 - 2.
Daily activity journal
Week one.
Total amount of hours: 32
Tuesday May 3rd
· First day at Camelot Property.
· Talked to multiple people here at the office.
· Read a brochure and got explanations about the company.
· Made a small assignment which contained gathering information about the Battersea
Power Station and its development.
· Did my intern task. This varies every week and must be done every day.
Wednesday May 4th.
· Trained by Meghedi at the Sales and Marketing department.
· Getting familiar with the CRM program used by Camelot.
· Went to a property auction to promote our expertise.
Thursday May 5th.
· Searched the newspaper and magazines for BP’s and BPC’s and processed them with CRM.
· Visited two auctions for promotion.
· Attended the second auction in the Wembly Plaza Hotel.
· Updated my calendar with future auction dates.
Friday May 6th.
· Had telephone training in the morning along with the other new intern.
· Looked up the address details for future auctions and updated them onto my calendar.
· Processed some returned letters and called in order to check if the details were correct or not.
· Went to the other end of London to pick up a bunch of keys of a new property.
Week two.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday May 9th.
· Started a new database with Government property sales in the United Kingdom.
· Processed some BP’s and BPC’s.
· Did promotion work at an auction near Chelsea Town Hall.
· Daily intern task.
Tuesday May 10th.
· Attended the induction training from 09:30am till 01:30pm.
· Worked on my database, focusing on the South-West of the UK.
· Processed BP’s and BPC’s.
Wednesday May 11th.
· Processed BP’s and BPC’s.
· Went to an auction.
· Finished the database with the Public Property Disposals in South-East England.
Thursday May 12th.
· Today we had to go to two auctions. We actually attended the first one at the Millennium Hotel.
· Received a new task according to the finished database, and that is to check and add the information into CRM.
· Processed a list of Savills’ contacts and marked them as ‘Do Not Contact’.
Friday May 13th.
· BPC’s
· Updating the CRM database in preparation of converting to SalesForce.
· Made my first draft for the learning outcomes.
· Administrative tasks like answering the phone.
· Send out the brochures for the BP’s and BPC’s.
· Processed some returned letters.
· Weekly meeting with Ceri about coursework.
Reflective questions.
1. What is the name, size and location of the business/organization of your site? What is your job description? What are your responsibilities?
The company I am doing my internship at is Camelot Property Management. The business is located in London, not far from the city centre. The office has a few different departments like finance, maintenance and sales & marketing for example. Last one described is the unit I’m working at. My job description is just intern at the marketing and sales department. My responsibilities consists of several tasks. One of them is to go to auctions around London to promote Camelot. Since Camelot provides security for vacant properties, auctions can have lots of potential clients. Making and adding databases is important too, as well as working with the CRM system. This program contains all of the information about the guardians, properties and companies Camelot has to deal with.
Camelot puts a lot of effort in promoting and attracting new clients. One way is by sending BP’s and BPC’s. Those are brochure packs with an additional letter to congratulate or inform contacts. Magazines like Property Week and Estate Gazette and the newspaper are common sources for these contacts.
2. Define the purpose of your business/organization.
Camelot Europe is an ambitious, growing company with fifteen offices and nearly two hundred employees in six European countries. The main purpose and activity of Camelot is offering total vacant property management. The idea behind this management is providing a service to minimise the risk for vacant property owners. When a building is vacant, there are risks for vandals, squatters and/or dilapidation. Camelot Property provides protection & security, facilities management and live-in guardians. Those guardians are carefully selected and live or work temporarily at the vacant sites. This way, there are two parties who are satisfied next to the revenue made from both parties. The expertise of Camelot is very unique and a real hole in the market.
3. Describe the organizational structure of the business/organization.
4. Describe the country where you do your internship. What does it look like, how is it to live and work there, how would you describe the inhabitant? What are the differences with the Netherlands?
The country of my internship is the United Kingdom, more specifically the office is located in London, England. Last year when we went to London with school for a ´business trip´ I said that I would like to live in London for a while. For that reason I searched for an internship here, so I can live in London for three months to see if this is really what I want, increase my skills in English and learn from the whole experience.
London is naturally a city of the world and you notice that straight away. Not only has London five! airports, the city is massive and travelling time is longer than in Holland of course. For example, we have to travel for about 25 minutes to the office and that´s close-by in ´London terms´. Normally I could be nearby Utrecht in that amount of time, just to show the difference.
The people in England are slightly different than us. I think the English are way more polite to each other in both behaviour and language. For example: people aren´t bothered if you ask them for direction for instance and they really take the time for you in order to help you at best. The English say ´sorry´ all the time even when it´s not their fault when you walk to someone on the street or so. The people here at not as ´cold´ as we can be sometimes and I like that a lot. Same goes for the things they say: someone from England won´t say directly how he thinks about an assignment you made at work for instance, but says it in a polite way. This can be hard sometimes because think they say that you did good while they´re saying exactly the opposite. Examples are the words ´interesting´ or ´a pity´. I really like the English culture for what I have seen from it now and I hope to see and learn a lot more about it.
Week 3 -4.
Daily activity journal
Week three.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday May 16th 2011.
· Worked on the database in CRM about companies with incorrect details.
· BP’s/BPC’s.
· Checked information about upcoming auctions and uploaded them into my calendar.
· Made a bunch of brochures about Camelot.
· Attended the sales meeting in the afternoon.
· Went to the post office, which is my intern task this week.
Tuesday May 17th 2011.
· Today we visited and attended two auctions at the Park Lane Hotel near Piccadilly.
· During the few hours at the office I went through some databases and CRM.
Wednesday May 18th 2011.
· In the morning I processed returned letters.
· Did a few BP’s and BPC’s.
· Made a database about the BAA and their vacant properties.
· Around noon Joost, from maintenance, and I went to an estate for some things that had to be fixed, like a break-in, electricity and locks.
Thursday May 19th 2011.
· Worked on the ‘Motor dealer’ database.
· Attended the sales meeting.
· Checked dates for future auctions.
· Went to the Millennium Hotel to promote Camelot.
· Made brochures and did preparations for the event next Monday.
Friday May 20th.
· Checked and added details of the Public Property Disposals database so the contacts can be followed-up.
· Had an auction at the Radisson Blu Portman Hotel.
· Returned letters.
· BP’s and/or BPC’s.
· Worked on my portfolio.
·
Week four.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday May 23rd 2011.
· Today we had a business event that lasted the whole day. We took off around 07:45 am and were back in the office at 5 pm. The theme of the event was ‘ Homes from Empty Homes.’ During the day we attended several interesting lectures, handed out some merchandise at our own Camelot stand and talked with people.
Tuesday May 24th 2011.
· BP’s and BPC’s.
· Returned letters.
· Motor dealer database.
· Property Week database
· Portfolio.
Wednesday May 25th 2011.
· Auction at the Grand Connaught Rooms organised by Barnard Marcus.
· BP’s and BPC’s.
· Returned letters.
· Attended the weekly Sales meeting.
· Motor dealer database.
Thursday May 26th 2011.
· We had two auctions today so for the most part of the day we were out of the office.
· During the spare hours in the office we focused on the brochures and sent them.
Friday May 27th 2011.
· BP’s and BPC’s.
· Motordealer database.
· Marketing meeting with the director of the Dutch office of Camelot in Den Bosch.
· Coursework meeting with Ceri.
Reflective questions.
5. Describe the (in)effective mechanisms of organisational communication at your site .Support with specific examples and suggestions for modification.
Most communication inside the office is done by either phone or e-mail. Everyone has his/her own phone at their desk and everyone is included in the office index so you can easily can someone at his/her desk. You mainly use this function when you’ve picked up a call and you want to put the caller through to the correct person. Sometimes you call someone if you have a question as well.
The e-mail is a common used communication tool too here. You can either send a personal mail or a general one to the UK London mail account. If a client or guardian has called about a message he or she received from someone here at the office but he doesn’t know, you can send a general e-mail in which you ask if that person could return the call.
I think these communication mechanisms work very properly and I don’t see a reason to change this.
However, we have some ineffective communication as well. This occurs mostly when communicating with people outside the office, guardians for instance. There has been launched a survey last year about the satisfaction of our guardians. This survey included the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands. In the UK, the ssurvey was sent to 857 guardians. For a reliable outcome, the random sample was 80 responses. We received 97 filled questionnaire back producing a response rate of 11%.
The main focus of the survey was to seek customer opinions about their relationship with the different divisions of Camelot Europe as they pertain to the following areas:
· Customer interactions management
· Pricing
· Rules
· Communication
· The business concept
· Work procedures
Questions like ‘how would you rate the representative’s ability to help you or to get you to someone who could help you?’ and questions about the knowledge of our personnel and the helpfulness of the contact was listed ‘poor’ by over 50% of the questioned guardians.
Very remarkable is that both Ireland and the Netherlands score significantly better in almost all categories.
The feedback shows that the communication between Camelot and the guardians is insufficient and not effective. This might be due to the use of interns who speak worse English than the people who originally live here. An other reason might be the shortage of personnel on for example the guardian management department.
6. Discuss how the experience is or is not meeting your expectations. How will you apply yourself differently for the remainder of the internship? What factors would improve your experience?
After four weeks of doing my internship at Camelot Property I am still having fun in London and I still enjoy myself at Camelot. The internship itself is very different than the one I did last year. Not only is the office a lot bigger compared to the one of NEC, the people and my tasks differ a lot too. My tasks aren’t that much challenging but the office days vary from time to time, due to the auctions for example. The days in the office go very fast and the people here are very nice as well. There is always some time to have a chat or a laugh with the others around you. Sometimes you have to walk to finance, sales or another department and have a little chat with someone.
Going to the auctions scattered around London gives me the opportunity to meet potential customers, although we don’t talk a lot with them. One big plus is that you see a lot of the city, especially places you wouldn’t go to as a regular tourist. Attending the auctions, which we do sometimes, also very interesting and enjoyable.
Like I said, the internship here is very different than the one of last year and (bit due to my last internship) very different than I expected it to be. It is way better and I’m having a very good time here in London and at Camelot.
7. How is it to live abroad and on your own? How do you live, how do you cope, how (and what) do you eat? What is different if you compare it to your normal life?
Living abroad, and more specifically: in London, is fantastic. I live together with five other Dutch interns who work at Camelot too. Our house may not be the most fancy one, but it is great fun and we have everything we need nearby. Everyone has his own room and we all share a shower, kitchen and living room. The shared living room particularly is nice because you can choose being in your room if you want or be altogether in the living room. We all make our own dinner and sometimes we cook with two or three persons. The things we eat vary every day, so we don’t eat just pre-cooked meals. Doing my internship here and living in London is quite different than my life in Holland, naturally, and I like it very much. Main difference is that we live the student life-style(ish) and be all together in the same house. Besides all housemates are getting along with each other very well, we share the same circumstances and other things which makes it all good fun.
On top of that London is a fabulous city and the neighborhood we live in is all right too. Being in such a city is a big difference as well. I’m here now for several weeks and I don’t feel like a tourist anymore. I like London and my internship very much and so I really don’t want to go home yet.
Week 5 -6.
Daily activity journal
Week five.
Total amount of hours: 24
Monday May 30th 2011.
· Bank holiday.
Tuesday May 31st 2011.
· Brochures.
· Auction at the Kensington Town Hall.
· Administrative tasks.
Wednesday June 1st 2011.
· Annual leave.
Thursday June 2nd 2011.
· BP’s/BPC’s.
· Made about a hundred brochure packs for send out.
· Finished the motor dealer database.
· Searched for some information about a type of software.
· Post office.
Friday June 3rd 2011.
· Searched for a charity (further on to the marketing meeting last week).
· Updated my personal learning outcomes.
· Brochures.
· Portfolio.
· Processed a spreadsheet.
Week six.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday June 6th 2011.
· Today I did quite a lot BP’s and BPC’s.
· Processed a spreadsheet.
· Updated the 2011 Auctions rota spreadsheet.
Tuesday June 7th 2011.
· In the morning I got a new assignment about the Estates Gazette’s rich list.
· Later in the morning we got an urgent e-mail and I had to go to Grahame Park for some viewers.
· CRM updates about some companies related to an article Ceri sent me.
· Brochures.
Wednesday June 8th 2011.
· Estates Gazette Rich List spreadsheet.
· Auction at Kensington Town Hall.
· Received a new assignment to perform. I had to make a new version of the competitor analysis for next week because then is the audit for our licenses.
Thursday June 9th 2011.
· Competitors analysis.
· Auction in Croydon.
· HBR article.
· Brochures.
Friday June 10th 2011.
· Today Bjorn and I are cooking lunch at work. We have a cooking schedule which you can volunteer for. We made some fresh burritos for everyone in the office. It is not really relevant to work but naturally it was very nice for a Friday. The rest of the day I was busy with the competitor analysis.
Reflective questions.
8. Discuss how your classroom learning applies to your internship experience.
Just as I experienced last year, the things we’ve learned in class, are not really helpful when going on an internship. Classroom learning and professional work are two very different worlds and after two year I can definitely say that you learn way more during three months of internship than in two years at school.
School learns you just some basic terms (like what CRM is, very general) but the important things are passed by. I hope next year at school will be more productive and educative, just like the internships are.
9. How do you fill your leisure time? Think e.g. of new friends, local friends and contacts, special local activities, travelling, night life or parties, food, etc.
Our days at work last from 08:30am till 05:30pm, so after work we have plenty of time left for ourselves. When the work day is over, we normally take off to the bus home, this will take around 25-30 minutes in total. At home, we sit in the living room with everyone (or in the garden when sunny) and later in the evening we make dinner and go either to our own room or stay in the living room, just what you prefer. Sometimes we go to a pub after work or play football in the park (and go to the pub after) with people from work and other interns. During the weekends we sometimes go to the city centre in the afternoon or just stay at home and relax, in the evening we often go out. Recently, we all have been to a comedy show close-by our house and during my first weekend we spent the days in Hyde Park for the Royal Wedding and celebrated Queens day at the Hems, a Dutch café. We’re all getting along very well and we do fun stuff with people from work too. Every time someone leaves (mostly interns) we have leaving drinks on Friday with most of the office. We headed to a pub nearby and have a drink and a good time.
London has lots to offer and three months is too short to do everything, but I fill my leisure time with plenty of fun stuff!
Week 7 -8.
Daily activity journal
Week 7.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday June 13th 2011.
· Finished my first version of the competitor analysis.
· Updated my calendar with Auction dates for next month.
· Brochures.
· Estates Gazette Rich List 2010 spreadsheet
· Daily Intern task.
Tuesday June 14th 2011.
· Brochures.
· Searched information about some properties.
· Spreadsheet.
Wednesday June 15th 2011.
· Today is the day we host the Empty Homes Network Executive Meeting. In the morning we did some preparations so the meeting room was ready to use. During the day Meghedi and I welcomed the people and offered them a cup of coffee or tea. At noon we picked up the pre-ordered lunch at Jamie Oliver’s restaurant Fifteen. It was quite cool to host a meeting like this and to be involved as well.
· In the afternoon I had to go to Moorgate to deliver some keys.
· Further on I worked on the Estates Gazette Rich List.
Thursday June 16th 2011.
· Brochures.
· Went to an auction of Andrews & Robertson at the Grand Connaught Rooms.
· Participated the marketing meeting with the whole team. The meeting included the new brochures, new way of doing marketing, the upcoming conference in September and some difficulties with our new software SalesForce.
Friday June 17th 2011.
· Stephen sent me an e-mail in which he asked me to format an offer template.
· Worked further on the rich list of Estates Gazette.
· Meghedi and I had to go to Graham Park later in the afternoon to take some pictures there for a case study, which will be published on a government website following the business event on May 23rd.
· Worked on school assignments.
Week 8.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday June 20th 2011.
· Residential auction organized by Savills at the Millennium Hotel.
· Looked up some charities and now I’m waiting for feedback from Ceri.
· Had to drop off some keys near Russell Square.
· Brochures.
Tuesday June 21st 2011.
· Got an e-mail about an interesting Network event (organized by Networth) dated for next weeks Tuesday.
· Worked again on the Estates Gazette’s list.
· Got several new assignment e.g. new spreadsheets for Salesforce updates.
· Uploaded pictures and sorted/edited them for the case study about Grahame Park. See annex 3.
Wednesday June 22nd 2011.
· Had to assemble some chairs along with others peers. Not particularly interesting, but we had some fun at least.
· Worked on a new spreadsheet to be uploaded into Salesforce.
· Post Office
Thursday June 23rd 2011.
· Today I worked on a database that contains Estate Agents in London. Source: the London Office Guide.
· Wrote an article about doing internship at Camelot for a case study.
· Prepared questions for an interview next week. We have to go to Grahame Park again to interview a guardian.
Friday June 24th 2011.
· Completed the Estate Agents database already.
· Worked in the Rich List.
Week 9-10.
Daily activity journal
Week 9.
Total amount of hours: 32
Monday June 27th 2011.
· Today a new intern arrived for our marketing and sales department. During the morning we couldn’t do much due to problems with our Citrix network. In the afternoon I had to train the new intern. In between I was being busy with my regular tasks and databases.
Tuesday June 28th 2011.
· We had an auction today near Holborn. Since it was Annet’s first time to visit an auction, I decided to attend it as well after we were done with handing out brochures.
· When we got back we got a new task. Unfortunately there were some problems with the keys for the property we had to go to, but after all everything went right.
Wednesday June 29th 2011.
· Made an appointment for tomorrow with a guardian for the interview we have to do in Grahame Park.
· Estate Gazettes Rich List spreadsheet.
· Updated the calendar with future auction dates.
· Worked on my school portfolio.
Thursday June 30th 2011.
· After a few chaotic days, today was pretty normal. In the morning I spent time on adjusting the questions for the interview we had to do this afternoon.
· Sent out most of the brochures that were ready.
· Made some new brochure packs.
· In the afternoon we had to go to Grahame Park for the interview with the guardian at 2 Bristol. After we returned I worked out the answers and converted them into an article.
· Estates Gazette Rich List contacts database.
Friday July 1st 2011.
· Vacation.
Week 10.
Total amount of hours: 24
Monday July 4 th 2011.
· Vacation
Tuesday 5 th July 2011.
· Vacation.
Wednesday July 6th 2011.
· Read all e-mails of the last three work days and responded where necessary.
· Looked up information about a charity recommended by Bob de Vilder from Holland.
· Rich List spreadsheet.
· Brochures.
· School assignments.
Thursday July 7th 2011.
· Worked on the Estates Gazette spreadsheet.
· Brochures
· In the afternoon I went to the Doyle Club with Ceri. The Doyle Club is the host of a meeting event once every month. In this pub people from all kinds of businesses can come to meet potential partners. It is a small venue with a very informal way of networking.
Friday July 8th 2011.
· Further on to the Doyle Club event yesterday, I had to make notes about every business card I got so Ceri could process them.
· Brochures
· Rich list
· Administrative tasks in between.
Week 11-12-13.
Daily activity journal
Week 11.
Total amount of hours: 40
Monday July 11th 2011.
· Had an auction near Marble Arch in the morning.
· Stocktake.
· Brochures.
Tuesday July 12th 2011.
· Auction at the Le Meridien hotel at Piccadilly.
· Brochures.
· Sales meeting.
Wednesday July 13th 2011.
· In the morning we had to go to a property in Battersea. Mr. Steve Cross, a security advisor who is in the press lately about squatting and the law that is about of being changed. He will speak at our annual Sales event in September and today he was shooting a footage for the BBC about anti-squatting and the changing law. The site has been squatted a while ago so that’s why it was perfect for the case study.
· In the afternoon I finally finished the Estates Gazette Rich List spreadsheet.
· Brochures.
· Processed the meeting minutes from yesterday’s Sales meeting.
· Phone calls.
Thursday July 14th 2011.
· Today we had to go to three auctions; two at the Park Lane Hotel (auctioneer Allsop) and one at the Radisson Blu Portman Hotel organized by Barnett & Ross.
· PW and EG.
Friday July 15th 2011.
· Checking the Estates Gazette Rich List spreadsheet.
· Brochures.
· School assignments.
· Small tasks in between.
Week 12.
Total amount of hours: 32
Monday July 18th 2011.
· Kind of a bad start of the week: the whole Citrix system was out which resulted in an almost non- operational office.
· Nevertheless we processed quite a bunch of returned post today.
Tuesday July 19th 2011.
· Auction at the Ramada Jarvis Hotel.
· Updating the Intern Manual for Marketing & Sales.
· Finished the Rich List re-check.
· Returned letters.
Wednesday July 20th 2011.
· Brochures.
· Intern manual Marketing & Sales update
· Auction at Kensington Town Hall.
Thursday July 21st 2011.
· We had two auctions again today; the first one at the Grand Connaught Rooms followed by the Kensington Town Hall.
· Spreadsheets.
· CPM updates.
Friday July 22nd 2011.
· Annual leave.
Week 13.
Total amount of hours: 36
Monday July 25th 2011.
· Auction at the Millenium Hotel.
· Sales assignment.
· Short meeting with Ceri about my assignment, portfolio and final evaluation.
· Had the afternoon off.
Tuesday July 26th 2011.
· Auction at the Grand Connaught Rooms.
· Finished updating the Intern Manual.
· CPM updates.
· Networth Event at Gable after work.
Wednesday July 27th 2011.
· Rich List updates.
· Brochures.
· Sales assignment.
Thursday July 28th 2011.
·
Friday July 29th 2011.
Assignment #2, Unit X: Sales
P2.
Create a portfolio in which you show and prove that you have negotiated and processed sales to customers on at least 4 occasions.
During my internship at Camelot I attended and participated many different kinds of occasions and meetings. Since I am working at the marketing & sales department, this particular assignment suits very well with my tasks.
The four occasions I attended to negotiate and did pro-active sales assignments were:
· Brochures and telephone calls
· Auctions
· The Empty Homes Network Conference
· Empty Homes Network Executive Meeting
· The Doyle Club
· Networth event at Gable
Potential clients are picked out the magazines or papers and via our program CRM, we contact them and keep the company’s contact history. We send either a regular brochure pack including a personal letter or a congratulations letter, if for example someone has been promoted, with a letter and information about Camelot.
During one of the meetings we had, Bob showed us figures and diagrams that proved this approach and tactic is working pretty good. It is an effective way of getting recognized, though it is a pretty expensive one as well since just a smaller percentage of the target group will become an actual client.
During the time period I did my internship, I went to a lot of auctions. The purpose of going to all these auctions in London is to promote Camelot and getting recognized as a company. The venues of the auctions are mostly hotels or town halls. We can’t go in the hotel or town hall for promotion work, because we don’t pay the auctioneers to do this kind of work. For that reason we have to stand outside in front of the place to approach all the people who are going to the auction and provide them with information. We give them the brochure and sometimes they ask what it is about or they just want more information. This aspect of the internship gives me the opportunity to meet potential clients face-to-face.
Empty Homes are an independent charity. They help people create homes from empty property and campaign for more empty homes to be brought into use, for the benefit of those in housing need.
Over the years EH has developed significant expertise and experience, and now provide practical help to people and organisations who wish to bring homes back into use. EH provides training, carry out research and advise organisations on how best to get empty property into use.
Empty Homes remains an independent charity: they are a charitable housing association, an industrial and provident society and a member of the National Federation of Housing.
What they do:
- Help: They offer practical advice and assistance, so people and communities can create new homes by bringing empty properties back to life.
- Challenge: Theycampaign so those in power and those who own property make empty property available to people who need homes.
- Develop knowledge: They undertake rigorous research to inform the debate on empty property, and make sure their campaigns are grounded in evidence.
- Enterprising: We strive to get the most from every penny, and work with others who share similar aims to create new ideas for homes from empty property.
On Wednesday the 15th of June, we hosted the Empty Homes Network Executive Meeting at our office. About 15 people came to our location for the meeting. I didn’t really participate in the meeting because is was just for our guests and not relevant for me. Still it was interesting to see this meeting develop and to be the host of such a conference. The other Sales intern and I just made sure everything was ready for the meeting and the guests were comfortable.
The Doyle Club is a monthly event we visit. Every first Thursday of the month the Doyle Club reserves its venue for a network meeting. Business owners and people from various companies can come to the Doyle Club to meet new potential partners or clients. The atmosphere is very informal since the Doyle is just a regular pub normally.
During the time we were there I collected quite some business cards and I have had some really nice and interesting chats. Ceri even managed to get the interest of two potential investors. One of them was that interested that they arranged a meeting for further details the next morning.
M1
Add a section in your portfolio in which you analyse customer requirements and solve problems for customers.
At Camelot we have to deal with to parties who require a service from us; the ‘Camelot Solution’. The unique ‘Camelot Solution’ is a method that involves placing live-in guardians in the building for the period that it is vacant. The property is in constant use and that is the message the neighbourhood receives.
Companies pay Camelot a nominal fee to protect their empty properties. Camelot charges an accommodation fee to all live-in guardians. This is the main income of the company.
Each month Camelot carries out building and guardian inspections and emails a written report to the owner keeping them fully updated with regard to the condition of their property.
I guess you can define the guardians and clients as our customers. The requirements of the clients (the people who hand over their property to us) are a good maintenance of their property and the protection service we provide. Also good contact is very important and the agreements between the two parties must be discussed well. As an intern, I do not have to deal with any issues with clients.
Most turnover is generated by the guardians, as they are with loads more than clients and all have to pay a fee. Camelot has more than a thousand guardians and just three guardian managers, so managing all them can be very hard. Besides, new guardians apply all the time, which makes the job for the Guardian Management department even harder.
One of the tasks of the interns is picking up phone calls. A large percentage of incoming calls is coming from pending or existing guardians. So solve problems and dealing with the customer (guardian) requirements. We often get questions about the application procedure and we then have to provide them with the correct information in order to help them out. Sometimes we are called by potential clients or guardians with issues/questions about finance.
By picking up phone calls and talk to many different people, I mainly ‘solve’ problems or help out by putting the caller trough to the appropriate person. This way I learn more about their requirements as well.
Naturally, every single guardian wants a liveable place to occupy and therefore we have to make that happen. Our maintenance department is always busy with dealing with the requests and solving upcoming problems. The guardians require also a good contact with us of course. That is therefore one of the reasons why we have an emergency phone, which will be operated by one of our employees.
In short, dealing with so many different people an be very hard, but Camelot knows the requirements of both guardians and clients very well and will do anything within range to deal with as good as possible.
1. Learning outcomes
2. Case Study Grahame Park
3. Auctions
Learning Outcomes
Desired outcome | e.g. What is it that I want to learn? | |
How | e.g. How am I going to accomplish that? | |
Measurement | e.g. How will I measure my accomplishment? Make sure this measurement is SMART. | |
1 | Desired outcome | Improve and develop my writing and speaking skills in English language. Not only in general but in a professional way as well. |
How | I can achieve this during my internship period by working at Camelot, performing tasks, and by receiving feedback and recommendations for improvement from my supervisors and co-workers. | |
Measurement | Feedback and assessment from my supervisors | |
2 | Desired outcome | Develop my professional attitude at the office and during meetings. |
How | Be part of the team and doing my internship at Camelot. | |
Measurement | Feedback from my supervisors. | |
3 | Desired outcome | Learn about the English culture and the way of doing business in the United Kingdom. |
How | Working at Camelot Property Management, show my interest and be initiative. By being involved in the projects and the procedures of Camelot I can learn a lot. | |
Measurement | Knowledge about the common procedures and the way to act. | |
4 | Desired outcome | Learn about Camelot as a business and how they manage to remain the market leader and develop themselves in the market. |
How | By being interested in the company I can learn more details that are involved in the business. Also, by attending the sales meeting and during the induction training last week I learn a lot. | |
Measurement | Knowledge of the company while performing tasks. |
Case study Grahame Park.
Camelot Property Management
Grahame Park Estate – Collindale
In partnership with Genesis Housing Association
Overview
In 2010 Camelot were appointed by Genesis Housing Association to secure part of a large scale rolling decant programme that will eventually take place over 15 years for the regeneration of Grahame Park Estate, a project that will provide 3000 new homes with improved green spaces and better community and health facilities. A decant project is typically where an estate or large property is emptied and the services wound down gradually over time as residents move out rather than on one specific date.
Camelot Property Management: Protection by Occupation
‘Camelot provide an innovative and cost effective solution to securing vacant properties: protection through occupation. This initiative currently protects hundreds of properties across the UK, bringing empty homes back into use and offering a unique, low cost housing solution to thousands of Guardians.’
In 2001, Camelot was the first company in the UK to introduce protection by occupation: The ‘Live-In Guardian Solution’. Protecting properties through occupation prevents crime and the anti-social behaviour associated with vacancy. Furthermore, housing Guardians prevents buildings falling into states of disrepair with Camelot carrying out reactive and preventative maintenance when required by the client. The Camelot solution is designed not only for residential property, but can be used to secure all types of commercial property too; if it is wind-proof and water tight Camelot can protect the property by occupation with carefully vetted Guardians.
As one of Camelot’s largest projects, this case study explains in detail how the Camelot solution works.
It also demonstrates the results and the impact it has had for those managing the empty dwellings, the Live-in Guardians and the community.
Genesis Housing Association
Genesis owns or manages homes across London and the south east for thousands of people. As one of the most diverse housing groups in the UK, Genesis’ main aim is to provide great services, great homes, great places and great opportunities for its customers. Genesis is the lead developer for the regeneration of Grahame Park, which is one of the largest estate regeneration schemes in England. The project is being delivered by Choices for Grahame Park, a wholly owned subsidiary of Genesis Housing Association and working in partnership with the London Borough of Barnet.
Background
Grahame Park Estate, Colindale – Client: Genesis Housing Association
Grahame Park is Barnet’s largest housing estate with 1,777 homes built by the GLC in the 1970s. Although the estate is popular with many early residents, problems arose due to the concentration of low income and disadvantaged people and its isolated feeling from the surrounding community.
The regeneration proposal aims to create a vibrant new community with major infrastructure improvements as well as improved transport links and facilities.
Genesis is working with the council and the community to develop and implement the regeneration proposals. The rebuilding programme is planned over the next 15-18 years providing 3000 new homes. The regeneration proposals were offered to residents in 2003 and there was a strong vote of support with 79% voting in favour. The regeneration is being implemented on a phase by phase basis meaning that there will be stages where dwellings will be vacant. As residents move out it has been proposed that Camelot Guardians will move in, thus protecting the property until the point of demolition
With the first phase of substantial demolition (208 properties) there had been problems on the site with criminal gangs breaking in to properties, vandalising the surrounding areas and stealing copper pipes. Boarding had been used as a preventative measure. However, this was inefficient and led to the client searching for an alternative. Camelot was requested to come up with a dynamic security solution that implemented the innovative Live-in Guardian scheme offering effective protection as well as the opportunity for empty property to be utilised as temporary, affordable housing.
The ideal scenario for Genesis was for the empty blocks to be demolished as soon as possible. However, vacant possession required 3 main strands of activity:
1) Secure Council Tenants to be decanted into their new homes being built by Genesis as part of the regeneration programme;
2) The full implementation of the Compulsory Purchase Order by Barnet Council;
3) New lettings to be made for non-secure tenants who were not being decanted into the new housing.
What was quickly apparent was the risk of existing residents who lived in the homes due for demolition could become isolated and vulnerable as people moved out, as well as the problems of vandalism. Therefore, in order to effectively manage the risk of blight, vandalism, the living environment of residents and neighbours Genesis used Camelot to deliver the Live-in Guardian scheme to provide a flexible solution to the problems faced.
The Project
Camelot took on the Grahame Park project in September 2010 as the first major phase of demolition was being prepared for. Camelot's role is to act as the security contractor and advisor within the decant project. Camelot have successfully achieved the first phase of the decant working on six residential blocks of flats where voids have been protected through occupation with Live-in Guardians.
This project seeks to provide an effective security solution whilst offering people a home that is low cost and would otherwise be wasted space. People have been given homes for up to 12 months while at the same time managing the security problems being faced.
This project seeks to provide an effective security solution whilst offering people a home that is low cost and would otherwise be wasted space. People have been given homes for up to 12 months while at the same time managing the security problems being faced.
Due to the amount of gang related activity and vandals in the area many of the perimeter flats were already boarded up with metal screens by an external contractor working directly with the clients. However, these proved to be less effective for securing the premises than our Live-in Guardian solution. Deborah Hiller, Senior Project Manager at Genesis Housing Association stated: “Vandals still broke in and stole copper pipe work from live water systems which caused serious flooding. At one point this caused the DHS to fail so badly neighbouring businesses and a school had to close with demands for compensation”. During our initial work with one of the blocks, one of our Interns discovered a boarded up flat being broken into. The police were called, a chase ensued, and the perpetrator is now in jail. One of the challenges Camelot faced was to coordinate closely with the metal screen company to ensure that as our Guardians moved in the screens were removed. Once we agreed upon procedures this was a smooth transition.
Camelot also arranged for SIA security dog handlers to patrol the vulnerable parts of the site every night due to the amount of unwanted activity in the area. Over time, as our Guardians moved in, the amount of reported activity began to fall and has continued to do so as more properties become occupied. By having our own contractors on hand to deal with all immediate maintenance to bring the flats up to habitable condition and then on hand to deal with all reactive maintenance issues such as failed hot water, Camelot has managed to maintain the appropriate levels of health and safety service to our Live-in Guardians on site. Now we have a sizable Guardian population on site constituting a secure neighbourhood. The few secure tenants still in the flats feel safe with the Guardians in occupation.
Camelot have so far managed 70 flats on the Grahame Park Estate currently housing over 100 Guardians. The total number of dwellings in the process will be 1,100 with an estimated 35% of the dwellings having one Guardian. Barnet Council has intimated that a further three similar sized estate regeneration projects may be put under Camelot's management in the near future.
The Impact
The Camelot solution has had a positive effect on the environment and community surrounding the Grahame Park estate. The local police have been involved with this project and have noticed the increase in safety and security at the site. Their call outs to site have been reduced and they are now better focused on specific incidents that our Guardians and dog handlers report to them. This allows them to plan to reduce the causes of crime on the estate rather than reacting to every incident of crime.
Camelot have been involved with the local community meetings which include the councillors, local resident committees, demolition contractors, architects, new homes builders, and even the vicar of the local church. Camelot has been received warmly by all as a viable solution to the decant security problem.
Camelot have been involved with the local community meetings which include the councillors, local resident committees, demolition contractors, architects, new homes builders, and even the vicar of the local church. Camelot has been received warmly by all as a viable solution to the decant security problem.
Stuart Woolgar, Camelot Project Manager commented “When I first visited the site it was a ghost town. There was a sense of fear felt by the existing residents still living there. As our contractors were fitting out the voids, vandals were breaking into properties on the other side of the estate. The first Guardians who moved in were scared to begin with but after we implemented a hybrid solution of using guard dogs and Guardians we filled the properties more efficiently. The last time I visited there was a good sense of community and it no longer feels like a ghost town”.
For each phase going forward Genesis now has the option of using Camelot to make safe and habitable each of the next phase of flats due for demolition and place Live-in Guardians in situ, allowing Genesis to focus on redevelopment plans rather than reacting to the continual crime and vandalism issues that were occurring before the Camelot solution was implemented.
Victoria, a Guardian for Camelot since early 2011 describes her flat at Grahame Park as: “a clean, secure environment where it feels safe. The neighbours are very friendly and I can really see this becoming a home for me”. In terms of her experiences with Camelot so far, Victoria states: “ The services provided by Camelot are very helpful and quick”.
Camelot are continuing to see growth meaning that the rate of properties handed back is lower than the rate of properties taken under management. This means that on nearly all occasions Camelot can re-house Guardians creating a unique and sustainable living solution with some living for Camelot for over 8 years. At Grahame Park it is envisaged that Live-in Guardians will be used to bridge the gap 3-18 month gap between vacant possession and the actual start of demolition.
Lessons Learnt
The Grahame Park project has been a learning curve for all involved. Without Camelot’s advice in the early stages, to put in place very robust security measures with a view to putting a halt to ongoing attacks, the vacant estate could have started to slide out of control.
Secondly, the ability for the client to understand that Camelot’s Guardians are not simply replacement tenants but part of an ongoing security operation. Providing a security solution that is vastly different in comparison to traditional security methods can be hard to grasp. It is an innovative solution to a persistent problem.
A key lesson learnt was the importance of timing and implementation of the Live-in Guardian solution.
Camelot arranged for maintenance works to be carried out to re-commission the voids to be habitable by our Live-in Guardians. This was a necessary, timely exercise because of the paramount importance of health and safety for our Guardians and protection of the flats for our clients.
Camelot arranged for maintenance works to be carried out to re-commission the voids to be habitable by our Live-in Guardians. This was a necessary, timely exercise because of the paramount importance of health and safety for our Guardians and protection of the flats for our clients.
The task of finding a large quantity of Guardians to fill the flats as they became vacant was time consuming and high pressure. Site and Guardian Manager, Adam Smith, of Camelot Property, carefully interviewed and vetted each Guardian before signing over the keys to the flats ready for occupation. With a high level of dedication and support from the other members of the project team this was achieved in a timely manner meaning that Guardians were housed efficiently and the property protected to a high standard.
Adam Smith commented “‘The first time that I was on site a drug deal was taking place and I was threatened. Since our Guardians have been in occupation there have been no serious issues on site. The Guardians spent time, effort and money to make their accommodation nice and habitable. They now move with us as each flat is ready for demolition. The solution works for them, for our client and for Camelot”.
The project highlights the benefit of using a protection by occupation service during periods of vacancy particularly in regeneration developments as it considers the use of empty homes on a sustainable level. The estate required redevelopments, however, using a traditional security method would have been inefficient as highlighted in the early stages of the project. It would also mean that the 100 Guardians we housed and the remaining flats yet to be occupied would not be utilised as an affordable housing solution.
Summary
§ Camelot Property Management provide Protection by Occupation, a pro-active security solution that can save up to 80% on costs and offers a low cost housing solution.
§ This case study provides details of Grahame Park, one of Camelot’s largest live projects
§ In 2010 Camelot were employed to manage the security of the first phase of properties due for demolition on Grahame Park Estate as part of a major rolling regeneration programme.
§ The benefits of implementing the Camelot solution include: low cost security, vandalism and squatting prevention, lowered crime reports and a restored sense of community to a previously derelict and un-friendly area.
§ Protection by Occupation has led to 100 people being housed by Camelot so far.
- With a little effort, every Guardian can turn their new apartment into a cosy home-
§ Once complete, the regeneration project implemented by Genesis will provide over 3000 new homes with improved green spaces and better community and health facilities.
References
Genesis
Choices For Grahame Park
17 The Concourse
Colindale
London
NW9 5XA
Deborah Hiller – Senior Project Manager
020 8359 2902
Luke Riley – Project Director
020 8359 2928
Relevant Websites
Auctions.
List of auctioneers/venues I’ve visited during my internship at Camelot Property Management and example of a catalogue from auctioneer Lambert Smith Hampton (auction date: Monday 11 July 2011).
Auctioneers.
· Brendons Auctioneers |
· Strettons |
· Allsop |
· Savills |
· Cannon Capital |
· Cushman and Wakefield |
· Acuitus |
· Andrews and Robertson |
· Barnett and Ross |
· Sutton Kersh Binstock |
· King Sturge |
· Barnard Marcus |
· Athawes and Son |
· Charrison Properties |
· Lambert Smith Hampton |
· Harmon Healy |
· Must Be Sold |
· Countrywide Property Auctions |
Venues.
o Hammersmith and Fulham Town Hall
o Wembley Plaza Hotel
o Chelsea Old Town Hall
o British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)
o Grand Connaught Rooms
o Park Lane Hotel
o Radisson Blu Portman Hotel
o Ramada Jarvis Hotel
o Kensington Town Hall
o Millennium Hotel
o Le Meridien
o Corydon Park Hotel
