Optimisation experts at work

Well thought-out and efficient processes for our operational business

About two years ago, Livit introduced the Business Project Specialist job profile. Since then, Fabienne, Olivia, Anita and Ramona have been taking a close look at our business processes for property and rental management. Their task? To optimise processes and reduce complexity to relieve the burden on the operational business and ensure service quality. In this interview, Olivia and Fabienne give us an exciting insight into their job.

From left to right: Ramona, Fabienne and Olivia / Not in the photo: Anita

Can you tell us a little bit about your professional background and how you came to the real estate sector and Livit?

Fabienne: I completed a retail apprenticeship in the jewellery and watch sector, but I knew from the start that this would only be an intermediate step on my career ladder. After my apprenticeship, I did specialist training as a marketing manager and then worked for an IT company and for a company in the food industry. I also got my first experience in project management there. 
I joined Livit in 2020, on a temporary contract to begin with. As it suited both sides, I was then offered a permanent job. I moved into rental management, where I was able to use my marketing experience. But I soon missed the project work, which is why I looked for opportunities within Livit and was successful in 2022. Since then I have been working in our four-strong Business Project Specialist team, which also includes Olivia, Ramona and Anita.  

Olivia: For me, it was commercial training in the estate agent sector. For an outsider, it seemed an obvious way to gain a foothold in this industry. But I had other plans and did an apprenticeship at the Belvoirpark hotel training college in Zurich. After finishing this training though, I realised that I didn’t see my future in the hotel and catering industry. I wanted to go back to office work. One of my friends put me in touch with Marco Testa from recruitment, and I was interviewed in 2010 to make a career move and become an administrator. I convinced him and got the job. Over the next 10 years, I worked my way through every position from Administrator to Senior Property Manager. In 2020, I became a mother for the first time and went on maternity leave When I returned, I was able to take up a new position as a Project Specialist.

How did you arrive at your role as a Project Specialist?  

Olivia: The job was offered to me during my maternity leave. As I had already taken on some of the sub-tasks in the tenant CRM project in addition to my responsibilities as a property manager for several years, the offer was unbeatable for me as a part-time returnee. Not only myself, but also other members of the team were already working as project specialists before the reorganisation, but embedded in property management and rental management, where we were also responsible for the departments’ usual operational tasks. In 2022, we were able to form an independent team.  

Fabienne: This has brought us closer together. We’ve been able to break away from ‘blinkered thinking’ and strengthen our collaboration. We complement each other incredibly well. Everyone’s specific business knowledge helps us a lot when it comes to finding solutions.    

What appealed to you about this new position? What excited you?

Fabienne: From day one, we have felt we have the trust of our superiors. And we can act more freely than we were able to in our old positions because of the strong regulation. This also means that we can be creative when developing solutions and think outside the box.  

Olivia: Salesforce, our tenant CRM system, was launched at the end of 2019. When I took the job in 2020 following my maternity leave, it was still under development. As I had been working on the project before I had my baby, I was involved from the very beginning, was able to contribute my expertise and learn a lot at the same time. I enjoyed being able to help develop something for the operational business. 
Livit also made it possible for me to job-share and work part-time in this high-responsibility position. Close collaboration with my job-sharing partner Ramona is one of the reasons why the position as a Project Specialist appealed to me. I’m convinced that we are stronger together than on our own.

What specific tasks and responsibilities do you have as a Business Project Specialist at Livit?

Fabienne: As Project Specialists, we question processes and workflows. We create concepts, develop processes and actively propose improvements. We also manage the power users (editor’s note: users who have comprehensive knowledge of the tool landscape and help employees with questions in the sense of first-level support) and work closely with the Digital Business department to further develop the tools in use at Livit.  

Olivia: And in doing so, we focus on simplifying and optimising operational business processes. Even the smallest adjustments can result in noticeable time savings and better quality. That’s exactly what we’re aiming for.

What specific skills and attributes do you think are key to being successful in this position at Livit?

The past year has been a particularly intense one. Can you tell us more about it and what challenges or successes you have experienced?

Olivia: Last year we successfully introduced our digital tenant portal myLivit to new tenants. Introducing it required the extensive training and empowerment of our employees. As Project Specialists, we closely supported this process. We tested the functionalities in advance, refined the processes, prepared the training courses and then delivered them. 
Collaboration with different departments was particularly intensive during this period. It was also the first time that we were seen as key people in our new role. This and the successful introduction gave our team a positive boost.  

Fabienne: This success may be difficult for outsiders to understand, but we managed to build up the necessary skills in around 400 people in just four weeks. Despite the tight deadlines, the teamwork and preparation were spot on, right down to the last detail, which we are incredibly proud of.  

Looking back, which event or project has been the outstanding highlight for you personally?

Fabienne and Olivia unanimously: Needless to say, the introduction of the myLivit tenant portal. Without teamwork and our trust in each other and in our abilities, it would have been impossible to do it all in such a short time.    

And what’s in store for the future that you are able to talk about? 

Olivia: Our work lies in the areas of project, process and knowledge management. We will continue to strive to simplify operational processes and procedures in order to ensure good quality and increase efficiency. We will also be working closely with power users and are in the process of defining quality standards.

Fabienne: I am convinced that automation and artificial intelligence are subjects that will occupy us more and more in the years ahead. It definitely doesn’t get boring in our job. The opportunity to be actively involved and contribute new and creative ideas is what I particularly like about this role. 

Fabienne and Olivia, thank you very much for this fascinating interview.

Our Business Project Specialists