by Michael J. Lipsey, CCIM, CRB, CPM, MCR, MCRE

I have been to the Promised Land. I have seen the very pinnacle of service success -- the future of customer service.

So can you … All it takes is a quick trip to Jackson, Mississippi where you will find One Jackson Place, the home of Parkway Properties, Inc.

Parkway Properties, Inc. is a self-administered real estate investment trust specializing in operations, acquisition, ownership, management, and leasing of office properties. The Company is geographically focused on the Southeastern and Southwestern United States and Chicago and offers fee based real estate services through its wholly owned subsidiary, Parkway Realty Services.

At the helm of this visionary company is President and CEO Steven G. Rogers. This former Army Infantry Captain and Harvard MBA believes that Parkway must "engage in a constant search for new ways to bring about customer satisfaction and maintain the ability to keep up with the ever changing marketplace."

Personally, I contend that no one else in the field of commercial real estate is handling customer service better, or more efficiently, than Parkway Properties.

Based upon my intimate knowledge of this forward-thinking company, I can tell you that no one at Parkway is better educated than you or I, smarter than you or I, works harder than you or I, or is even any better looking than you or I.

What separates Parkway Properties from the rest of the pack and makes One Jackson Place "the promised land" is that they care … just a little more. They're not as afraid to take risks … just a little more. They do … just a little more. They think outside the box … just a little more.

And that's the beauty of reaching the pinnacle of service excellence: All it takes is just a little more!

John Lawrence, President of Downtown Jackson Partners, agrees. Lawrence contends that one of Parkway Properties' major strengths is its "attention to small details."

"They pay a lot of attention to their tenants, who they call customers.  And when you're in the tenant retention business like we are in Downtown Jackson Partners, you couldn't have a better advocate," Lawrence explains.

Need an example of the "doing just a little more translates into a whole lot" philosophy? Look no further than the charitable donations that don't get reported in the annual shareholders meeting or brochures in the lobby. The following is a partial list of what Parkway employees, quietly and without complaint, collected and donated in just one year:

• 1,002 books, magazines & videos for disadvantaged
• 5,000 pop-tops for Ronald McDonald House
• 150 phone books to schools
• 307 pairs of eyeglasses & 2 hearing aids for the Lyons Club
• 1,187 toys for underprivileged children
• 357 coats plus 783 pounds, 7 boxes and 18 bags of clothes
• 75 cell phones to abuse shelters
• $425; 5,479 pounds; 235 items; 4 barrels; 741 cans and 153 bags of food to local area food banks
• Calling cards for our soldiers in Iraq
• $22,454 for United Way
• $22,454 for United Way
• ... and much more

Over the top goodwill notwithstanding, nowhere is this commitment to that "little, extra touch" more evident than in Parkway's operating philosophy, which is based on the premise that "we are in the customer retention business and further based on superior service to our customers, commitment to our employees, openness in our communication and … simplicity. We will strive to maximize shareholder returns by setting and implementing goals to increase profitability, FFO, dividends and stock value while minimizing risk …"

Why the emphasis on customer retention? Parkway has discovered that it costs six times as much to move in a new tenant than to keep one. In an effort to make that happen, they have developed a laundry list of very simple "Do's" and "Don'ts" geared to keeping their customers happy:

• The company defines itself as a "service provider," not a landlord, and its customers sign "service agreements" (not leases) that are approximately 10 pages long, not the usual 50, in which the tenant is a customer, while the owner is a service provider.

Its four "F's" of service -- flags, flowers, fixtures and fellowship (more on this philosophy later) -- requires intensive involvement by building managers, who are usually very young, highly motivated and trained at a company "boot camp" program.  Building Managers, whose principal mission is to retain customers, are paid renewal commissions thus aligning pay systems with the company's stated strategy.

• Outside brokers are given a "Bill of Rights" that promises, among other things, payment within 48 hours of a deal. Parkway actually 'believes' in these rights, and thanks to their success, such bills of rights are becoming common practice in the industry.
• The company employs two senior-level "customer advocates" to provide tenants with a "non-threatening" channel to complain.  Every customer is visited by these two professionals which is in addition to an annual written customer survey and the 'normal' numerous visits by Asset Managers, Property Managers, and yes, the President and CEO (who visits every property at least once a year).

The list goes on, but the idea is clear: save money and increase occupancy by keeping the clients you have.