Communication and negotiation / Teamworking / Inclusive Environments

Question 1

How would you prepare for a negotiation (agree, prep, decisions, positions, approach, walk)?

Answer 1

• Agree your client’s objectives and negotiating strategy before starting the negotiations
• Detailed research and preparation
• Deciding what points you can concede on and which are non-negotiable
• Understand the other party’s position
• Develop a partnership/collaborative approach, rather than an adversarial approach
• Walk away when you need to

Question 2

What makes effective communication (4 c’s)?

Answer 2

• Clear
• Concise
• Complete
• Courteous

Question 3

What key skills are useful for effective teamworking (L, D, P, R, H, S, P, C, R)?

Answer 3

• Listening – to other people’s ideas
• Discussing – team members to ask questions and interact
• Persuading – individuals to consider their positions
• Respect – treating team maters with respect and support their ideas
• Helping – to encourage team work
• Sharing – information to create a positive team environment
• Participating – ensuring all team members get involved
• Communication – have effective communication skills to allow team members to work together
• Reflection and identifying strengths and weaknesses

Question 4

What are key ways to improve collaboration in a team (E, C, E, L, R)?

Answer 4

• Establish team goals
• Communicate expectations
• Encourage cohesion between team members
• Leverage team member’s strengths
• Recognise and encourage collaborative behaviour

Question 5

Why would it be beneficial to have a greater diversity in the industry (G, I, B)?

Answer 5

Greater talent pool
Increased innovation
Benefits reputation

Question 6

What are the RICS doing to encourage diversity (3)?

Answer 6

• RICS launched the Inclusive Employer Quality Mark (IEQM) for firms to sign up to
• Achieved gender parity on the Global Executive Team
• Setup diversity working groups e.g. LGBT+

Question 7

What is unconcious bias?

Answer 7

Learned stereotypes that are automatic, unintentional, deeply ingrained, universal, and able to influence behavior

 When people favour others who look like them and/or share their values. (Everyone has)

Question 8

How can you prevent unconcious bias?

Answer 8

Training to make people aware of their own biases to help manage them

Question 9

What is a ‘win-win’ situation?

Answer 9

• When the agreement reached cannot be improved further by any discussions.
• Outcome cannot be improved for your benefit, and similarly, the agreement for the other party cannot be improved further for their benefit either.

Question 10

What is the definition of an inclusive environment?

Answer 10

A safe space in which integration of diverse experiences and perspectives can freely coexist. It’s a place where people feel respected by and connected to each other.

Question 11

How can you reduce the likelihood of unconscious bias affecting your decisions?

Answer 11

• Be aware of unconscious bias.
• Don’t rush decisions - take your time and consider issues properly.
• Justify decisions by evidence and record the reasons for your decisions, for example during a recruitment exercise.
• Try to work with a wider range of people and get to know them as individuals.
• Focus on the positive behaviour of people and not negative stereotypes.
• Companies should implement policies and procedures which limit the influence of individual characteristics and preferences.

Question 12

The Equality Act 2010 : nine protected characteristics

Answer 12

Age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

Question 13

What is the RICS Inclusive Employer Quality Mark a response to, when launched, how many companies signed up, and what are the 4 key principles (L R C D)?

Answer 13

o Launched 2015, response to the sector being behind other professions in moving towards a more diverse and inclusive workforce, which is only possible if there is a measurement of this specifically to determine how inclusive an organisation is.
o 183 companies signed up, representing 300,000+ workforce.

o 4 clear, key principles:

 Leadership – demonstrable workforce diversity commitment at highest level.
 Recruitment – using best practice recruitment methods engage to attract new people from under-represented industry groups.
 Culture – develop an inclusive culture where all staff engage with developing, delivering, monitoring and assessing diversity and inclusivity
 Development – training and promotion policies that offer equal access to career progression to all workforce members.

Question 14

What is the RICS position on diversity and inclusion?

Answer 14

o Communities are becoming more diverse, and we want to work in organisations that treat people fairly, with respect and embrace different viewpoints, cultures and backgrounds.
o We lack diversity throughout our organisations (generally in wider public), and need to address this urgently if we are to tackle the skills shortage.
o Limited progress from legislation and cultural change, more needs to be done and everyone needs to consider their own behaviours.

Question 15

Define equality

Answer 15

• Equality: ensuring everybody has equal opportunity, not treated differently or discriminated against because of individual characteristics.

Question 16

Define diversity

Answer 16

• Diversity: taking into account differences between people and groups of people, and placing a positive value on those differences.

Question 17

Explain the moral case for diversity

Answer 17

 An inclusive industry where everyone is treated with fairness, dignity and respect would provide better outcomes for society as a whole.
 We are involved in the whole community, but often do not represent the communities we work in.

Question 18

Why was the Equality Act introduced/what purpose?

Answer 18

 Introduced to bring together various separate pieces of legislation into one single act (Equal Pay Act, Sex Discrimination Act, Race Relations Act, Disability Discrimination Act)
 Purpose: protect individuals from unfair treatment and promote a fair and more equal society.

Question 19

What is direct discrimination/what could it involve?

Answer 19

o someone treated less favourably directly because of protected characteristic they have/someone else they know has/thought to have
o Could involve a decision to not employ, dismissal, poorer promotion/training/contractual benefits, or denying contractual benefits because of a protected characteristic

Question 20

What is indirect discrimination/what could it involve?

Answer 20

o Less obvious, often unintended, basically where you have procedures in place that make it indirectly more challenging for someone with a protected characteristic to perform, and you are unable to justify it.
o Could involve a recruitment selection criteria, contractual benefits or a redundancy scoring matrix.

Question 21

What is harassment?

Answer 21

o ‘unwanted conduct’ – violating dignity or creating intimidating/ hostile environment for someone.

Question 22

What is victimisation?

Answer 22

o when an employee suffers what the law terms a ‘detriment’ – something that causes disadvantage, damage, harm or loss

Question 23

What is positive action?

Answer 23

 when employer takes proportionate steps to remove barriers and provide support to improve protected characteristics participate, as long as will not lead to further discrimination

Question 24

What is affinity bias?

Answer 24

 Feeling an affinity with someone as they have similar life experiences.

Question 25

What is the halo effect?

Answer 25

 Unfounded positive trait attribution (i.e. dressing ‘smart’ = good)

Question 26

What is inclusive communication, and what are 4 typical ways to do it?

Answer 26

 Being aware/valuing different ways people communicate i.e.:
• using gender neutral language (‘they’ not ‘he/she’)
• Put person first (e.g. people with disabilities, rather than disabled people)
• Diverse range of people represented on marketing materials etc.
• Deaf accessible if possible

Question 27

What is the business case for diversity and inclusivity (performance, skills, end user, image)?

Answer 27

 People perform better when they can be themselves at work
 Millennials want inclusive employers, and we must be able to attract them to deal with skills shortage (RICS is white male dominated)
 Having team members that can understand the end user and provide a more diverse range of inputs will do a better job.
 Simple actions such as being listened to can increase confidence and self-esteem and create more engaged employees.
 Strengthen company’s image (press etc)

Question 28

How should a company approach a diversity and inclusion policy, and what should one set out?

Answer 28

 Policies are secondary to ensuring a supportive culture.
 Diversity and inclusion policy: sets out company approach to diversity and inclusion, and detail how to avoid discrimination at work.

Question 29

How does direct disability discrimination differ between DDA and EA?

Answer 29

 Under DDA applied only at work, under EA unlawful in all circumstances: worse treatment because of disability than someone without disability.

Question 30

How does discrimination arising from disability differ between DDA and EA?

Answer 30

 Introduced under EA - when disabled treated unfavourably because of something connected with disability (and which cannot be justified) and not due to disability itself.

Question 31

How do reasonable adjustments differ between DDA and EA, and what 2 discrimination types were introduced under EA?

Answer 31

 DDA requires changes only made where otherwise would be impossible or unreasonably difficult, under EA only substantial disadvantage needs to be experienced.
o Harassment and indirect discrimination were not covered under DDA.

Question 32

How do EA and Part M differ?

Answer 32

o EA and Part M are both about disabled access, but completely different things:
 Part M sets out minimum requirements for door widths, accessible toilet provisions, lifts etc for disabled access
 This does not mean building complies with EA.

Question 33

What is an access statement?

Answer 33

 Documents how applicant addressing accessibility issues in design

Question 34

What are the 3 common duties under making reasonable adjustments?

Answer 34

 Changing how things are done
 Providing an auxiliary aid (i.e. hearing aid system etc.)
 Changing physical features.

Question 35

What does an inclusive environment:
recognise?
create?
facilitate/avoid?
accomodate?

Answer 35

• An inclusive environment recognises and accommodates differences in the way people use the built environment.
• Creates buildings, places and spaces that can be used easily, safely and with dignity, by all of us, regardless of age, disability or gender.
• It facilitates dignified, equal and intuitive use by everyone.
• It provides choice, is convenient and avoids unnecessary effort, separation or segregation.
• Goes beyond meeting minimum standards or legislative requirements.
• It readily accommodates and welcomes diverse user needs - from childhood to adulthood through to old age, across all abilities and disabilities and embracing every background, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity and culture.

Question 36

Name the primary (3) and secondary (3) legislation that is relevant to inclusive environments.

Answer 36

Primary:

Equality Act 2010
HESAW 1974
Planning and Building Acts

Secondary

NPPF
Building Regs
Fire Safety Regs

Question 37

What 3 parties/parts of a property lifecycle are impacted by EA 2010?

Answer 37

1. Duty on ‘service provides’ and those exercising a public function to make reasonable adjustments.
2. Duty to not discriminate against or victimise someone in selling or letting premises.
3. A ‘reasonable adjustments’ duty on ‘controllers of premises’ (i.e. landlords and management companies) in relation to let premises and common parts.

Question 38

Outline the potential physical (4) and auxiliary aids/services (4) that constitute typical ‘reasonable adjustments’ in practice.

Answer 38

Changing a physical feature:

• Sometimes a physical feature of a building or other premises may make it more difficult for you to access or use it:
• providing ramps and stairway lifts
• making doorways wider
• installing automatic doors
• providing more lighting and clearer signs

Auxiliary aids/services

• Here are examples which could be provided to help you:
• a portable induction loop for people with hearing aids
• BSL interpreters
• providing information in alternative formats, such as Braille or audio CD’s
• extra staff assistance