A player without fear of failure
More than a brand, Portugal Homes is a player without fear of failure and that takes on human form value in the direct contact with the customer, the great partner and ally of the brand. Pontos de Vista Magazine spoke with Andreia Leite, Business Development Director, Verónica Rosa, Operations Director and with Mariana Lemos Vieira, After Sales Director, three women who take on the face of the brand, among others, who perpetuate a feminine "stamp" to the organic and dynamic of Portugal Homes
Q.: Portugal Homes is one of the main players in the field of real estate in Portugal, also presenting a new vision on the sector. In this sense and just to contextualize, in what way has Portugal Homes been assuming as a reliable and credible partner in the sector?
Andreia Leite (AL) – “Innovation and differentiation are the keywords. We innovate in the way we capture our customers and throughout the procedure of bringing them to Portugal. We are endowed with an active attitude when travelling the world for our Private Meetings to meet with our clients, one by one, in their country of origin. The goal is to create a trusting relationship from the first minute in a familiar environment with clients.
We differentiate ourselves by how we perpetuate the relationship established with these same clients through our After Sales department, because we want this link to be extended in time, without forgetting the production of specialized market research tailored to each investor. Yes! One of the departments of Portugal Homes is the Market Analysis that produces market studies and analyzes investment possibilities. In fact, everything in Portugal Homes is done in-house, a factor of extreme relevance as regards the quality and personalization of the services we provide and, therefore, the excellent reputation that we are currently building with the ultimate goal of becoming a reference in the business world.”
Q.: Your philosophy is based on this vector, ie "Understanding our strengths and accepting our weaknesses". What does this motto mean, and how is it important in the daily organization of the company for the benefit of your clients?
Mariana Lemos Vieira (MLV) – “This is a sentence taken from our website and brochure, I see you did your homework. We could ignore our weaknesses and focus only on our strengths, but it is precisely in the analysis and understanding of our weaknesses that we become stronger. We do everything we can to see where we can improve, we work hard so that mistakes do not recur and we try to the maximum that these same weaknesses turn into strengths.
This motto is important because it allows us to not be afraid to fail, but above all, to know what to do if we fail and repeat the process when we find the correct formula.”
Q.: Because you are Women and Leaders, have you ever felt, throughout your career, a stigma for being Women in a universe that until very recently was "reserved" to Men?
Verónica Rosa (VR) – “Leadership is a constant learning path, a path that is not always easy, especially in this sector that was reserved to Men until very recently. I remember several episodes in which I was looked at as a "doll" or silenced in a meeting, all of which are some examples of the existing stigmata. But it is up to us as Women to be able to deal with stigma and to overcome it, by minimizing it and reducing it to its smallest importance. As a Leader, it's up to me to help a colleague or friend do the same. Nobody deserves to live with these stigmas. The narrative is ours, we are the only ones who can write it”.
MLV – “My entry into the real estate market is also recent, but I confess that in this, as well as in other areas, I still feel some inequality between the role of men and women in the business world. The path that we women have to take to build a trust relationship with a client is a time-consuming process. Often, on the side of the receiver, not listening to a thick and serious voice can change the way they perceive and interpret the message. Sometimes we forget, but the form is always more important than the message itself. In this perspective, and in order to combat stigma, I feel we have to be very assertive and determined women, only in this way can we positively win the trust of our clients.”
Q.: In your dynamic, how is the personalization you put into each process important in creating that relationship of trust with the client?
AL – “Personalization is one of our strengths, which is why we are the only real estate agency in Lisbon with a full After Sales service. Our relationship with the client does not end after signing a deed, goes far beyond that. It goes from tax representation to verifying periodically if everything is alright with the property, connecting water, light and gas, among others. This "personalization" was one of the pillars of Portugal Homes' growth as an organization and we want it to continue to be constantly referenced by clients to family and friends. That's how our business started.
In the event of investor clients, the important thing is the numbers, and having a department that can provide a detailed analysis of the market and potential investments is undoubtedly a critical success factor.”
Q.: On March 8th, International Women's Day was celebrated. By 2019, why do you think women still have to fight for?
VR – “It is alarming the salary difference existing for the same positions between men and women, even frightening that in the days when a woman continues to be penalized professionally for her choice to be a Mother, equally frightening are the countless cases of sexual harassment that we hear every day in the news. All these are reasons to continue to fight and with time change will come. Portugal Homes is the perfect example of this, a company with not one but three women in management roles. Working in a company that promotes this ideal is something that fills me with pride.”
Q.: In the future, what can we expect from Portugal Homes?
In a word, revolutionize. Ideas are there and some are already being put into practice successfully, as is the example of our After Sales and the Market Analysis departments, others are still on paper, so to speak. But you can always expect the best from Portugal Homes, a consolidated company and a reference not only in the real estate sector but in the business world in general.
Source: Pontos de Vista Magazine
