To get a flavour of what it's like to be a graduate at Knight Frank, past and current
graduates have provided their thoughts and experiences.
As a product of the Knight Frank Graduate Scheme, I can speak without fear of contradiction
that it has enabled me to have a wonderfully varied and challenging career which
would be unlikely to be available anywhere else.
I joined the scheme straight from Oxford University, and had the opportunity to
work in our West End, Retail and Industrial Departments before moving to the City
Office where I took up permanent placement.
After six years in the City Office, I was given the opportunity to go to our Hong
Kong Office where I spent an exhilarating and intensive three years. I like to think
I returned with not only a greater knowledge of global property, but also with a
broader understanding of other cultures.
On returning in 1986 I set up our London Docklands Office to deal with the flourishing
market in both Commercial and Residential.
With my residential experience abroad and now in the UK, I was offered the chance
to build up and run our London Residential operation. In the year 2000 I took over
the running of the entire Residential Division.
In 2004 I became Senior Partner.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Knight Frank, and look forward to welcoming
you to what I know will be a very fulfilling career.
The Knight Frank Commercial business has always placed enormous store in its graduate
training programme. The intention is twofold: firstly, to build the graduates experience
in surveying and secondly, to feed the Knight Frank business with a pipeline of
the very best talent.
Knight Frank's graduate programme has always been highly acclaimed. The aim is to
provide all our graduates with a thorough training programme, focused upon securing
a positive APC result with the parallel objective of finding how individual skills
can be best aligned with the business requirements.
Anyone joining Knight Frank has the benefit of the enormous brand value the business
holds. It has served a wide range of people exceptionally well, including myself.
Whilst I now have the responsibility of running the Commercial business, I joined
in 1983 from what was then Birmingham Polytechnic.
After qualifying, I then spent many enjoyable years in the National Offices leasing
team, before getting more involved in the management of the business, developing
the Hotels, Offices, Healthcare and Industrial service lines. I then took over the
reigns of the Commercial business in 2005.
There is a great deal of depth and breadth at Knight Frank, which I am certain will
provide any enthusiastic graduate with an excellent entry in to a career in surveying.
I joined Knight Frank in April 1998, having previously qualified with a small private
practice in Surrey and then having worked with the Hamptons group, running their
surveying team in the country. When I joined, Knight Frank was a sea of change in
terms of work ethic, quality and opportunity.
My role was to develop a team of surveyors to carry out valuations on residential
property for a range of purposes. When I began, the team only had a single job.
However, the Knight Frank brand is a strong tool and we were soon expanding the
team to its current level of 23 surveyors around the country, to include Scotland.
As the team expanded and our profits became more consistent and sizeable, I was
asked to join the Partnership as a Proprietary Partner.
During my career at Knight Frank, I have had the opportunity to start a Residential
Institutional team, a separate European valuation team as well as being the chair
of a cross divisional Banking Committee for valuers.
Our Residential Graduate scheme, which I now oversee, allows a department to sponsor
a graduate for a rotational period. This allows them to gain experience in a range
of professional teams and ensures that they have a broad understanding of the property
world and in particular, all aspects of the residential market.
We place huge amounts of emphasis on understanding our graduates long term career
aspirations and rotate them in departments appropriate to their interests and skill
sets.
The departmental and subject training is augmented by training seminars and courses
for all graduates, covering areas such as negotiating skills and team building.
These ensure that the graduates have an opportunity to share their experiences and
continue to develop their team ethic which is so important to the culture at Knight
Frank.
Knight Frank offers huge opportunity to those graduates with an appetite for success
and one of the most rewarding aspects is to see how those individuals prosper over
the next ten years of their careers.
Global presence and variety of services were two attributes that made Knight Frank
a natural choice for me, as I was looking for a holistic and comprehensive experience
in the real estate sector.
I therefore made an application to Knight Frank's International Graduate scheme
and was delighted to be offered the position.
The opportunity appealed to me, as uniquely I was given the chance to gain six months
experience within the UK Investment and Valuations department and then to complete
the remainder of my APC training in Knight Frank's Mumbai office; as the first Graduate
on the training programme.
I joined the UK Investment division in September 2008, where I gained valuable insights
into the concerns and considerations that affect the business decisions of international
and UK inland investors.
I then moved into Valuation Services, which helped me develop an understanding of
the regulatory framework overlying the theoretical principles of real estate valuation.
After my six month period in the UK, I was then able to take the practical experience
I had gained to the Mumbai office in March 2009.
Amongst others, one of the most enriching experiences at Knight Frank has been my
frequent interactions with many erudite colleagues, which has given me a complete
insight into the inherent dynamism of the market system and its impact on asset
valuations.
My time at Knight Frank so far has been an extremely significant juncture in the
process of my professional and personal development.
Having graduated from the University of St Andrews with an MA in English Literature
I completed a Real Estate MSc course at Cass Business School, joining Knight Frank’s
graduate scheme in the autumn of 2010. The application process for the graduate
scheme at Knight Frank is both demanding and extremely rewarding. Successful candidates
complete a brief online application before going through two stages of interviews
and assessment.
The first-round interview is conducted by a partner within the business and aims
to reveal the candidate’s character, experiences and motivations – allowing them
to make a personal impression while demonstrating their technical and academic suitability
to the surveying profession.
The second round of interviews is a more thorough and exacting test of your academic
competence, market knowledge, communication skills and interpersonal ability. This
stage is split into five separate sections: two in-depth interviews with partners
from the firm, a presentation on a property subject of your choice, a group exercise
with other candidates interviewing on the day and finally a lunch with a variety
of senior figures within Knight Frank.
The application procedure thoroughly tests every aspect of your character and is
designed to find people suited to an industry that is exceptionally varied but also
very demanding. Personally, I found the chance to spend so much time in front of
senior members of the Knight Frank staff gave me several opportunities to try and
present myself in the best possible light while learning a great deal about the
firm. The amount of effort that goes into graduate recruitment at Knight Frank was
clear from the first application to the final lunch and provided a testing but fulfilling
experience.
Based on four six-month rotations, the scheme gives graduates the chance to learn
about Knight Frank’s business from several different aspects.
My first rotation was spent split between two departments: Property Asset Management
and Sustainability Consultancy. My work in Property Asset Management was an excellent
starting point for a surveying career as the work is extremely technical and involves
dealing with both clients and tenants on a daily basis. It left me with a much greater
understanding of how a building operates as an income-producing asset, as well as
a variety of practical knowledge that could only have been gained by work-based
training.
Sustainability Consultancy was an equally engaging seat. As a property discipline
it is still relatively new, but one that affects almost every aspect of the industry,
thus my work involved everything from sustainability policy research to asset energy
performance and investment analysis.
At the end of my first rotation I was offered the chance to go and work for the
Valuations team in Knight Frank’s Paris office. This experience has given me the
chance to get to know an incredible city while learning how an international business
like Knight Frank operates in foreign markets. The valuation work itself has been
wide-ranging and formative; I have worked on individual buildings as well as portfolios
across all the major asset classes throughout France. Much of the work has involved
working with the Valuations teams in London and across Europe, allowing me to develop
an understanding of how Knight Frank uses its global presence to conduct business
throughout Europe and the rest of the world.
The graduate training programme at Knight Frank is rightly considered one of the
best in the industry. Graduates are given every opportunity to develop in a structured
environment that offers a host of internal and external training. We are regularly
in touch with our APC supervisors and councillors, affording us the opportunity
to shape our careers from an early stage. A strong emphasis is placed on teamwork
and the famously social side of the surveying profession is not neglected either.
This is an attitude that is mirrored throughout the business by an amazing number
of sporting, charitable and extra-curricular events.
To date the graduate experience has been extremely rewarding -a mix of hard work,
a lot of learning and numerous opportunities for enjoyment. This sentiment is a
fair reflection of a firm that expects a great deal of its entire staff, but offers
an enormous amount in return.
Whilst studying for my BSc(Hons) degree in Real Estate Management at Heriot-Watt
University, I was s fortunate enough to complete a number of work experience placements,
within both the commercial and residential sectors, which complimented my studies
and helped to cement my interest and passion for the property industry.
After spending four years in Edinburgh, I was delighted to be offered a position
on the Knight Frank London Residential Graduate scheme.
The first stage of the recruitment process at Knight Frank involved an interview
with an existing partner; a very relaxed and open discussion about my achievements,
skills and what the Knight Frank graduate scheme could offer me. Upon successful
completion of the first round interview, I was asked to prepare a property related
presentation for the second stage. During this interview candidates are not only
tested on their technical knowledge, but also their communication and presentations
skills as well as the ability to remain calm under pressure. Alongside the presentation,
there were a series of other assessments including a competency based interview
and group exercise, before sitting down to a formal lunch with senior members of
the company.
Everyone I met during the graduate interview process was very welcoming and friendly,
and as such I felt I was given the opportunity to perform to the best of my ability.
It was immediately apparent that a great deal of emphasis is placed on getting to
know each candidate on a personal level as well as focusing on their professional
and academic knowledge.
The Knight Frank graduate scheme is unique and is based around a series of three
or six month long departmental rotations.. This allows graduates the opportunity
to gain the experience necessary for the APC competencies, within a combination
of departments, whilst meeting new colleagues within the company.
The graduate development training offered throughout the two year APC period is
exceptional, with many in-house workshops including time and self management, negotiating
skills, presentations skills and a graduate team building day, which everyone looks
forward to.
I started my position with Knight Frank in September 2010 within the Leasehold Reform
department, of which I spent 6 months helping the team to provide valuations and
assist in claims made for residential lease extensions and purchases of the freehold
interests. This involved interacting with clients, carrying out inspections, valuations
and being involved in negotiations.
I have also completed a rotation in the Residential Property Management department
where I helped manage a number of new developments in London, gaining exposure to
the service charge and annual budget process as well as interacting with clients
and tenants on a one to one basis. This was followed by three months in the Residential
Development department and two months in the Planning department where I prepared
planning applications and gave advice on the reuse and redevelopment of property.
Knight Frank also has an excellent range of social and sporting events that cater
for everyone. The Surveyor’s Rugby Sevens is a particular annual favourite as well
as such regular sports teams such as Speednet, Softball and Hockey. Charity events
are regularly supported by the company, both on an individual and team basis with
past events including the Beat the Banana 5k Run in Hyde Park, Give and Gain Day
and triathlon events..
Since starting at Knight Frank I have been given the opportunity to experience different
areas of the property industry, which has been both rewarding and hard work. From
the very first interview through to my daily responsibilities within the different
departments, graduates are undoubtedly treated as a valued member of the partnership.