Book 4 - Appraisal Institute of Canada

ing for those people, such as fee appraisers, whohave worked in the private sector for most oftheir careers. Part of the challenge is learninghow to work within the bureaucracy, somethingwhich is true in any large organization. Nonetheless,three of the four AACIs and one CRA inREPDO came from the private sector. Conversely,a revelation for these former fee appraisers– who had previously focused on real estateappraisal – is that, although they may start in theCity’s appraisal unit, they can also expand theirhorizons by working in many other facets of realestate. In addition to appraisers, REPDO’s staffincludes engineers, planners, strategic analysts,an assessor and real estate advisors, along withtwo support administrative staff. MacNair statesthat his team works closely together and theirmotto is “none of us is as smart as all of us” (thequote is attributed to Ken Blanchard).“There are a lot of opportunities,” confirmsMacNair. “We are like a one-stop shop when itcomes to real estate. This is similar to the privatesector. We provide our clients with expert helpregarding all of their real estate-related needs.”He adds that, when hiring for positions inREPDO, the City looks favourably at anyone whois an AACI or a member of the AIC. “We knowthey have a strong background in valuation andwe can provide them with training and developmentopportunities to meet their aspirations andto satisfy our needs,” he explains. “We are a bigbeliever in education and we support our staffaccordingly.”Among internal courses offered by the City,there has been a recent push to provide staffwith training in project management. Projectmanagement skills and an understanding ofthe procurement process are two importantattributes REPDO seeks when hiring people,both as staff and on contract. Presently, about50% of the work is done internally and 50% isoutsourced.The City also encourages its REPDO staff topursue different designations, including those ofthe AIC, Building Owners and Managers Institute(BOMI) and International Right of Way (IRWA).MacNair points out that joining these professionalorganizations as an active member or volunteeris equally beneficial. He has served on the IRWAExecutive Committee for six years, eventuallybecoming the international president in 2005. Hehas also served as the educational chair of the AICin Kamloops, BC, and has served on other volunteerorganizations as well. “When people areinvolved in a voluntary capacity for the AIC or anyother organization, this gives them the opportunityto develop other skills such as leadership,” henotes. “This kind of activity is not only rewarding,it can also assist in advancing your career.”MacNair points out that, when hiringstaff, REPDO looks for technical skills as wellas ‘soft’ skills. These include everything frombeing able to deal with the public and attendpublic and committee meetings to havingstrong presentation skills and leadership abilities.We are also looking for team players whoknow how to be strategic as well as completethe day-to-day tasks.“There are currently a lot of opportunitieswithin the public sector,” he adds, “particularly asa result of succession planning.” In REPDO alone,one third of the team is eligible to retire in thenext three years. “This is happening all acrossCanada,” he notes. Right now, the City of Ottawahas one or two candidate members, but soonthere will be room for several more. And word isslowly beginning to spread.Recently, MacNair received calls from twoyoung university graduates who wanted to interviewhim about his career and ask him questionsabout how they can get involved in real estate.They had heard about the Appraisal Institute ofCanada, but were not sure what opportunitieswere available aside from fee appraising. MacNairwas pleased to share with them what he knows.His willingness to share his experience doesnot stop there. He is often asked why he writesarticles and facilitates real estate seminars acrossCanada. “This is my way of giving back,” heresponds. “It is important that we leave a legacywhereby we share our experiences so that otherscan learn from it.”He notes that a large part of succession planninginvolves targeting young people. “After all,”he says, “they will be our future leaders.” Thatis why making the next generation aware of allthe opportunities available to them is so criticallyimportant. If the leaders of tomorrow have theinformation they need to rise to the challenge,the future will look very bright indeed.click here to return to table 0f contentsCanadian Property Valuation Volume 54 | book 4 | 2010 Évaluation Immobilière au Canada 19