Collaboration at Work

One of the comments the Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA) has heard most often in the weeks since the RECA Symposium on Self-Regulation is how important this initiative was in terms of collaboration. The Symposium served as an excellent opportunity to get 100+ industry stakeholders together, from across the country, to discuss self-regulation and professionalism within our industry. That being said, it is not the only recent example of collaboration at work.

• RE BarCamp YYC: the Alberta Real Estate Association (AREA), the Calgary Real Estate Board (creb®) and RECA are currently working together to plan Alberta’s first ever RE BarCamp. Staff from each of the three organizations are meeting regularly to organize this event, which is taking place in Calgary on May 2, 2012, and the communications and marketing for this event is being issued jointly and branded jointly by the three organizations. Industry professionals from across the province are invited to attend. If you’re interested in reading more about RE BarCamp, check out the RE BarCamp YYC website at http://rebarcampyyc.wordpress.com/.
• creb®/RECA Tweet Up: creb® and RECA have booked a joint real estate professional Tweet Up for April 26, 2012 at Melrose Café and Bar. Representatives from both organizations will be in attendance and it’ll be a great opportunity to network with other professionals in the Calgary area. It’s also a great lead up to the RE BarCamp event on May 2.
• Social Media Breakfast: Last August, AREA and RECA split the sponsorship costs for a Calgary Social Media Breakfast. Social Media Breakfast is a free breakfast event, held monthly, that includes a guest speaker on some aspect of social media. Many industry professionals, both in real estate and mortgage brokerage, attend these breakfasts and it’s important for RECA to maintain a presence at such events. Collaborating with AREA on sponsorship made sense and demonstrates our commitment to partnering with other industry stakeholders.

As you may or may not be aware, the RECA management team meets regularly with the AREA management team to discuss priorities and issues of mutual interest, and RECA has recently started similar meetings with the creb® management team. These meetings are an excellent opportunity to discuss projects or issues that might be better tackled collaboratively.

Other recent examples of collaboration and cooperation between RECA and industry associations:

• RECA continues to work with the Alberta Mortgage Brokers Association (AMBA) on the development of the Practice of Mortgage Brokerage course, which is the second course within the Mortgage Associates Program. In working with industry associations to develop education, RECA can ensure education programs fulfill the needs of industry professionals – both in terms of standards and practice.
• The Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals is assigning 9 Continuing Education Units to the RECA Mortgage Re-licensing Education Program (REP) course.

Do you have any suggestions on how RECA can collaborate or partner with other industry organizations and associations?