Porters Arrive As Ringley Sponsor Award

The Ringley Group, who recently picked up a National Training Award by The National Apprenticeship Service, held their annual Porter Training Day on 29th September.

The company are also sponsoring the Porter/Caretaker Of The Year Award at News On The Blocks Property Management Awards 2011. This was the right award for us as it's about the real front line people that serve the discerning leaseholder says Ringley Group Managing Director Mary-Anne Bowring. Ringleys Porters Day, was led by Property Manager Nicholas Achilleos. It featured a talk by Laurence Waxman on the four Ss stand up, smile, service and security and with this primary purpose everything else falls into line.

Following on from this Nicholas gave presentations on what a General Risk Assessment and Fire Risk Assessment is. The effectiveness of having a Virtual Concierge was also discussed. The Property Management Awards celebrates the work done behind the scenes by the likes of porters, concierge staff and building managers. The unsung heroes of blocks. The Ringley Group understand the value that site staff add to blocks. Indeed, Ringley were the first property company to put together a Virtual Concierge service which gives 100% visibility on day books and HR/absence/sickness as well as instant messaging and noticeboards.

It's about bringing a little hotel quality to high end blocks and building community spirit says Mary-Anne Bowring. Ringley are a key innovator and are at the forefront of the property industry. Our brand promise is 100% transparency, a just ask culture and this includes owners being able to see every invoice, site report and Property Managers work in progress. Customers also feel safe with our Money Back Guarantee, supporting our service promise. As Concierge, Caretakers, Porters and Site Staff are lone workers, we make an enormous effort to ensure they feel like an integral part of the Ringley Team, with values, ethos and reporting structures.

This means weekly calls, walking the buildings with Property Managers, online competency tests on health and safety and guides to other building issues. It also includes webcams to photograph contractors when they arrive on site so one can see who's walking around on site. In times of change or after we take on a new site appraisals are quarterly until service standards reach the Ringley standard. We focus our site staff on the 4 Ss: Stand up, Smile, Service, Security. Appraisals benchmark deliverables and set goals around these areas and end of shift checklists call for some reflection, for example; who did I help today? The Property Management Awards recognises the excellence and professionalism of all specialists working in the property industry. Shortlisted companies will be announced in November. The awards ceremony takes place at Lords Cricket Ground on Monday 5th December 2011. Last years Porter Of The Year was Redouane Houjabi.