Lockdown diaries: WiredScore’s Hamish Dupree

Hamish Dupree is head of London markets at WiredScore. He shares his day – on 8 September – from home-working with a playful two-year-old to strategies for sparking innovation in real estate. It’s 6am and I’m tiptoeing through the flat with my laptop. My daughter Nola’s room is next to the lounge, and she wakes up at the faintest sign of life. Going into her room to say “good morning” and getting her up is one of my favourite moments of my day. She always wakes up with a big smile on her face and her mood is infectious. That said, she will wake up around 7.30am without my help, and the next 1.5 hours present the precious opportunity to focus without distraction. Lockdown provided me the opportunity to examine my routines and experiment with different habits to improve my productivity. I recently read that we can work on average for just 40 seconds in front of a computer before we are either interrupted or distracted. As a result, I have become more deliberate in minimising possible distractions from my surroundings – closing unwanted tabs, turning off unnecessary phone notifications – and I always start my day by planning my time in-between meetings. Part of the excitement in working for an ever-evolving scale-up company is that there are a thousand different ways I could spend each day. One of the challenges, however, is determining the best use of my time and prioritising accordingly. This process of prioritisation also ensures that I take enough breaks. My first virtual meeting kicks off at 10am, and it’s with the WiredScore Smart Council. These meetings are always fascinating: we have invited a group of the world’s leading landlords, developers, and occupiers to partner with us and define a global standard for smart buildings. We meet with council members roughly once a month to share insights, and discuss how we can best use technology to improve customer experience and sustainability. Today’s meeting touches on how technology is driving the need for new skillsets in real estate. The discussion brought a few things to light, namely, the fact that the more technologically advanced buildings become, the more complicated they will be to operate. Further, the data buildings provide will only be valuable if analysed and used effectively, which is a compelling argument for bringing new and relevant skills into the real estate arena. The industry has long been described as “slow to innovate”, and while that label once held some truth, I can happily say that things are starting to change. A catalyst for such change is the fact that traditional real estate companies are heavily investing in, and utilising, technology. After our meeting, it’s straight onto a phone call with Andrew Marshall, a tenant representation adviser at CBRE based in central London. Many occupiers are embracing the mantra that “work is something you do, not a place you go” and employing an increasingly distributed workforce. His client is starting a search for a new office and has cited “great connectivity” as a non-negotiable factor. As a result, the client would like to include WiredScore as part of their search requirements, to ensure they avoid the issues they experienced during their last move. Working from home with children can be difficult – and we only have one! But it has given me the chance to spend time with Nola that would otherwise not be possible. Around lunchtime we go for a short walk; she stops at the manhole cover and spins around until she is dizzy, charges through a group of pigeons and chats constantly, pointing proudly at anything she can name: “car, tree, bike, shop, sky, lorry”. It has been widely publicised that lockdown has increased demand for houses with gardens. I personally am placing a higher value on outside space than ever before. We are lucky enough to live very close to a lovely park, so I try to fit in a quick workout most days. The best time is sunrise or sunset. I have always noticeably felt the positive impact of exercise on my mental and physical health, but it is easy to prioritise other things. During the past few months, however, it has been so important. Being someone with a dormant gym membership, doing the same workouts outside has been a revelation. It has also given me an excuse to do what I enjoy most when trying something new: buy stuff. Explaining that an agility ladder is an essential purchase to my partner Kierra was very amusing, although I am unsure that she is convinced. Otherwise, I spend the rest of my afternoon speaking to Workspace on Zoom about our work across their certified buildings, all 57 of them. Then it’s a phone call with Adam Poole, a development manager at Reef Group, to discuss some exciting upcoming projects. At around 5pm, the last meeting of the day is a presentation to a developer. It is a tough environment to be underwriting major developments. The key assumptions that underpin appraisals are much more uncertain than normal, and investors are questioning the viability of many projects. Those that are pushing ahead agree that they need to provide an experience that makes businesses and their staff want to work in offices, because many may come out of lockdown feeling they no longer need to. One thing is very clear: technology has a major role to play. But I’ve been in front of Zoom for seven hours, and will be happy to say goodbye to it for a while. At 6pm, it’s time to start Nola’s bedtime routine. This usually begins with me entering the front room to chaos. It is amazing how a two-year-old can create mess with such ingenuity (she particularly enjoys hiding fruit and veg in new places). This evening it is a sweet potato in the microwave, which, much to her disappointment, I have spotted before turning it on. One of her most mature qualities is her love of sleep, and most nights around 7pm she grabs her favourite teddy and says “bottle, bed please”. Long may that last. This evening, England are playing Denmark in the UEFA Nations League, but I have decided to skip it (with one eye on the return of the Premier League this weekend). Instead, I spend the time enjoying a meal with Kierra and planning our next holiday abroad, whenever that may be.