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L
eading corporate figures are of-
ten associated with foreign busi-
nesses or entrepreneurs. More
than a few local property firms
have sought to better their images
through clinching contracts on prop-
erty operation and management with
foreign partners. Foreign players, with
their expertise and professionalism, not
only brought fresh concepts to top-tier
office towers and apartment buildings
which were under their management,
but also added their property brands.
That was why it came as a surprise
when an array of high-end properties,
including Sunrise City apartment com-
plex in Ho Chi Minh City, and Hanoi’s
Agribank and VNPT Towers came under
the management of a local enterprise
- the property management company
PMC. To date, PMC provides manage-
ment, operation and management advi-
sory services for over one million square
metres of property.
PMC’s general director is Nguyen
Hong Minh, a graduate of the Maritime
University’s wireless electric techniques
faculty. “I was enrolled by the Maritime
University in 1987. At that time, like
numerous other peers, I opted for a fac-
ulty not based on personal passion or
future career orientation - it was mostly
an impulsive act driven by potential in-
come,” Minh recalls.
Minh finished training at a time
when Vietnam’s economy was in a fix
and he could not find a job suitable to
his training. His first duty was work-
ing on a hotel’s reception desk, a job
he secured thanks to his English skills.
Later, in 2002, during his time work-
ing at a container shipping firm under
Vietnam National Shipping Lines, Minh
was tasked with founding a profes-
sional property management firm to
manage the Ocean Park building - the
first top-tier office tower built by a state
corporation.
“When I took on the new task, as
usual I tried to perform my duty as well
as possible, nothing more. My career as
a property manager began that way,”
says Minh, who has now been in prop-
erty management for a decade. Asked
what keeps him going, he says: “Since
this profession is novel in Vietnam it
entails myriad challenges which have
inspired me. Challenges include those
related to human resources manage-
ment, service standards and hospitabil-
ity. One can never get bored with this
sort of work.”
Property management is still a
young business in Vietnam, even after
more than a decade of booming devel-
opment in all market segments. Several
businesses operating in this field have
experienced periods of doubt about
their future. Each property sector, in-
cluding hotels, resorts, trade centres,
apartment buildings, office towers and
private villas demands different quality
standards and service requirements.
“Theoretically, property manage-
ment aims to extend space for hu-
man activities. The demand for quality
seems to be limitless and this is what
makes the profession appealing,” Minh
claims.
In fact, service quality is a big chal-
lenge for Vietnamese labourers who
are often weak in terms of personal
skills and the ability to work in groups,
particularly in technical operation and
maintenance, meanwhile property
management requires a whole chain of
service providers.
Hence, Minh set out to establish
standards for providing services that
would be much more important than
simple staff training.
“I outlined diverse standard sets for
every specific property line based on
common international standards when
founding our property management
business in 2002,” Minh says, adding
that shaking hands with prestigious for-
eign consultants for technology trans-
fers is a smart way to thrive in this field.
But it is not simple to replicate
foreign managers’ success, as Minh ex-
plains: “Duplicating models is an easy
task, but there are countless lessons
of failure because of replication. We
can only survive once we have deep
knowledge about the profession and
Propertymanagementhasgrownrapidly inVietnaminrecent yearsandwhile foreignbrandsand foreign
faceshavelongdominateditsupperranks,thetideisslowlystartingtoturn,withoneVietnamesecompany
in particular making waves. Text by
Dinh Thuy
profile
Leading
the charge
The underestimation
of the capability of
local businesses
inspired Minh and
his colleagues in their
endeavours to ramp up
service quality.