The past two years have been an exciting time for the Real Estate market. The COVID-19 pandemic brought about a change in the way people think about living and working, and swung their attention to the commercial real estate sector and its relevance in the future.

Commercial real estate too has adapted quickly to come out with innovative ideas and solutions related to new workspace norms and advising organisations to maximise their real estate portfolios. In the intervening period, we also heard and read a lot about work from home, wellness programmes, sustainable workspaces, environment awareness, etc. In a nutshell, the pandemic will change the perception of organisations from the perspective of a future employee.

While work from home or remote working is the new norm, it might not be sustainable for organisations to continue with it forever. It is the hybrid work model which may be sustainable in the long run and can be brought on as an added benefit to employees.

Work from home also allowed organisations to think over roles categorised into office or remote and helped them tap into the undiscovered talent in Tier-2 and tier-3 cities. With improved technical infrastructure and superior internet connectivity, it is easier for companies to go out and explore these talent markets.

It would be prudent to say that Talent availability and hiring trends in the real estate sector will see a massive shift in the manner in which it is perceived by the top talent. The rising demand for good and quality properties across asset classes has provided companies with the confidence to enter the space from which they had restrained themselves previously with consumer goods or allied services.

Students from top universities and colleges are interested to join this sector owing to its consultative work model and pay perks and benefits. This sector which was earlier perceived to be dominated by the family business is seeing a surge in various world-class funds and investment houses setting up their shops in the country. This helps candidates to get exposure from global companies and assists in defining the future of the real estate sector in terms of employment and talent attraction.

There has been a surging interest from top talent from diverse backgrounds and industries and they are exploring opportunities in the real estate space. India is on the verge of another revolution of infrastructure development, which gives a lot of impetus for Real Estate to develop world-class cities and workspaces. This will generate a demand for good talent across domains such as Finance, Investments, Construction, Design, and Workspace consultants. Since real estate is already the 2nd highest contributor in terms of employment, it will keep on attracting world-class talent and has a lot of scope in terms of career development.

The industry now needs to focus on adapting Diversity and Inclusion with a sharp focus to enable diverse ideas and solutions to their clients. Technology will also play a crucial role in attracting the best of the talent to their floors (physically or remotely).