Four Ways to Avoid the Cost of a Bad Hire – Land Director

By Human Capital Group

30th November 2020

Our series of blogs into how you can assess the cost of a bad senior hire continues this week, with our Managing Director Gerard Ball talking to two industry titans – Andy Beasley and Darren Humphreys – about Land Directors.

Andy Beasley spent upwards of 40 years in the housebuilding sector and was previously Regional Chairman of Bellway Central. Darren was the CEO at SME Rectory Homes, Divisional MD at McCarthy & Stone and has spent extensive amount of time working at with big players CALA and David Wilson.

Both Andy and Darren have many years of experience in the housebuilding world and have individually both felt the ramifications that a bad senior hire can have on a business.

They discussed with Gerard the following:

• How essential is a Land Director to a regional arm of a housebuilding business?

• What are the traits of an incapable Land Director?

• When quickly do you know if you’ve hired the right Land Director?

• How do you find a good Land Director?

You can see the webinar in full here (the positions of Managing Director and Construction Director are also discussed in the same footage) but be sure to read this blog first to get the key takeaways.

1. If a division is not looking to grow and find new sites, and has a substantial land bank already then how essential really is a Land Director?

Darren: “It’s great if you’ve already got a good land bank position but this needs to be maintained and managed effectively, which planning, impacts and solutions also need coordinating.

“You like to think that a Land Director is always out on the road looking at new opportunities, but the reality is that there is a lot of work to be done in terms of managing a division’s existing land bank. I think they are the lifeblood of the business. Everybody is a key part of the overall team of course but it doesn’t work without each cog. It is indisputable that the land supply is the first important part of the cycle.

2. Is a ‘bad’ Land Director one who’s lost his hunger?

Andy: “Ideally, you need a Land Director who’s an all-rounder. Some can go out and land great deals but then they can’t sit down and go through the detail and ensure everything is in place, while others face the opposite problem – they’re not very good at getting the deal in the first place but once through they’re skilled at processing it properly. Ideally you need someone who can balance both these requirements and has the skills to do both. This can be quite difficult to find and very often the good ones will move on to being managing director.

“You need a good Land Director with a network of contacts who can bring things in on a regular basis. There are always going to be times of ‘feast and famine’ but someone who can manage this properly is essential.

Darren: “It can take time to spot the issues with a bad Land Director. Some can be very forceful and get short-term results but in the long-term can prove to be very disappointing.

“Someone without strength of character might be overly cautious so you need a Land Director who can be strong without being pushy, who has a good network and a wealth of knowledge.”

3. What is your expectation on the timeline for assessing a good Land Director? Is the first 3/6 months enough to know whether you’ve got it right or wrong?

Darren: “Within three months you can assess their character, approach and culture fit with the business. However, three months isn’t a lot of time to find new land and address any inherited problems from their predecessor. Certainly within six months you would expect to see some results coming through.”

Andy: “I agree, six months is a good timeframe. By then you’d want to see poorly performing sites turning a corner and progress being made, although if they walked into a lot of challenges then six months actually might not be that much time at all. Sometimes you just have to base it on ‘good feelings’ and reach our for feedback from land agents, partners and other external contacts.”

Darren: “A new Land Director could potentially have a lot of work to do in terms of changing reputation and improving people’s perception of their company and this can take time. Being a trusted partner and having credibility for delivering on what is promised is just as important as high bids for land. Land agents take everything into consideration which is exactly how an experienced and capable land director can add value.”

Andy: “At the end of the day, trust in what people can do and a business having a strong track record is very important and runs quite deep in the housebuilding industry.”

4. When you are recruiting a new Land Director, do you try and gather references from sub-contractors and land agents?

Andy: “Yes! The likelihood is that you already know local land directors and have already formed an opinion on them and can assess whether they will be a good fit for your team.”

Darren: “Absolutely – testing to see what information is out there in the market about a potential new hire is essential if it’s possible. Obviously sometimes you’re not able to gather this due to confidentiality clauses but quite often a land director’s reputation will precede them as a candidate.”

In short, if you get the hiring of a Land Director wrong then you’re likely to see highs and lows, and quite possibly an upset team. They are an essential part of a property division and are very much a linked to company profits and future success.

We hope you found this insightful! Make sure you also check out our blog where we delve into the intricacies of hiring a Construction Director, have a read here.