Pilot program lays a new pipeline of women in property

Pilot program lays a new pipeline of women in propertyLast week, as more than 120 Sydney students attended the first Girls in Property program, we laid the foundations for a long-term pipeline of talent with fresh perspectives, says AMP Capital’s Louise Mason.The brainchild of the Property Council’s NSW Diversity Committee, Girls in Property Week was endorsed by the NSW Department of Education and supported by a range of companies.Girls from four public high schools in the northern suburbs of Sydney – Cheltenham Girls High, Mackellar Girls High, Riverside Girls High and Asquith Girls High – attended three days of activities, which included site tours, workshops and work experience.Mason, the Property Council’s NSW president and the chief operating officer of real estate with AMP Capital, says the “wide scope of our remit” demands “a long-term pipeline of diverse talent who will bring fresh perspectives to our sector”.”I was struck by their maturity and genuine interest in the property industry, along with their insight into the issues we must deal with every day to balance financial imperatives with those of the communities and the environment in which we operate,” Mason says.Jane Fitzgerald, the Property Council’s executive director in NSW, says the feedback from the week was “overwhelming” and the contributions made by members was “amazing”. She applauds the volunteers who shared their insights, the companies who sponsored the girls and those who gave them a behind-the-scenes look at the world of property in their own organisations.The program has “made a real difference to many girls by giving them an opportunity to think seriously about a range of career options and life journeys they may previously have never considered,” Fitzgerald says.The program culminated in “the largest luncheon we’ve ever held,” Fitzgerald says. “With 9 people attending, it was bigger than Christmas”.What happens next?Fitzgerald says the Diversity Committee will return to each school to present to parents and staff, before the girls will make their subject selections for next year. This will give the Committee some qualitative evidence of the program’s success.Fitzgerald says the main challenge is “to work out how we scale this, not just more broadly in NSW, but in other states”.The Property Council’s other divisions have been watching the pilot program closely, and Fitzgerald says the focus now is on “turning this into something that is replicable and scalable”.”The breadth of support from our membership reflects their understanding that the long-term answer to diversity in the property industry is currently taking classes in our high schools.”Creating a sustainable pipeline of talent purposefully heading towards property, rather than ending up there by accident, is a real game changer for our industry,” Fitzgerald concludes.