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SCMP Reporter

INTERNATIONAL property consultant and surveyor Colliers Jardine is embarking on a major restructuring exercise to improve its performance and penetration in Asia.

  Its operations in the region have grown to such an extent that group chief executive Roger Cook has decided to split the day-to-day business management into three country groupings - Australasia, Southeast Asia and Greater China.

  The company, 50 per cent owned by Jardine Matheson Holdings, has grown rapidly since its creation in 1991.

  The joint venture started with offices in five countries, but now boasts branches in 10 countries in the region, from Beijing in China to Christchurch in New Zealand. Bombay, in India, is its next target.

  Karen Wong, formerly joint managing director, has been appointed executive chairman for the Greater China region, overseeing all business in Hong Kong, China and Taiwan.

  Rick Williams, formerly Colliers' other joint managing director, has been made managing director of the group's new corporate advisory services division, based in Hong Kong, looking after the interest of multinationals throughout the region.

  Given the pair's new international responsibilities, Mr Cook has recruited former Olympia & York (US) vice-president for development, Allan Yeung, as managing director for Colliers Jardine (Hong Kong).

  The current Taiwan managing director is being shifted to the mainland to become the company's managing director for China. His replacement will be chosen soon.

  The reshuffle brings more Asian faces into prominent positions in the company.

  'Where there is local talent, we like to put them in management positions,' Mr Cook said.

  With the arrival of Mr Yeung, and, given his long experience of working with developers, the company is looking to expand its field of operations.

  In the past, it has concentrated more on the middle to luxury end of the residential sales and leasing market, like other international property consultancies in Hong Kong such as Jones Lang Wootton.

  Now, Mr Yeung said he was looking to forge relationships with Hong Kong developers and get the company involved with marketing of mass market housing projects.

    He also said he was interested in tapping the North American and European markets further, given his contacts and time spent there.

  As for the recent slowdown in the local property sales market, Mr Yeung seemed little deterred.

  'A tough market means a lot of opportunities to win more customers,' Mr Yeung said.

  He said he would exploit the slowdown as a chance to gain market share and poach personnel from other companies who, during a boom period, might be more reluctant to change jobs.

  Mr Cook conceded that the company's investment business in Hong Kong had been hit by the recent slowdown.

  However, he said the company's property management and plant and valuation business in Hong Kong and China had continued to provide healthy recurrent profits.

  Colliers Jardine now manages 160 buildings in Hong Kong, covering 35 million sq ft and 25,000 flats.

  As for India, Mr Cook said he thought the country held possibly as much potential as China in the longer term.

  However, he doubted property development of the scale seen in China would emerge for a few years.

  During a recent visit to India, Mr Cook was told by the authorities that the country would have as large a population as China in 20 years. Currently, it is 900 million, compared to China's 1.2 billion.

  Colliers' Bombay office will be its 36th in various countries in the region.

  Mr Cook said: 'It has been our deliberate policy to blanket the region to offer a full range of services in every country our clients might want to invest in.' 



Colliers in major restructuring