BUSINESS ROZHOVOR
Heimstaden Brings
the Concept of Friendly
Homes
The Scandinavian company Heimstaden is the third-largest
provider of rental homes in Europe and the leading rental-home
provider in the Czech Republic. Heimstaden wants to build
from their long-term experience and introduce a new vision,
responsible behaviour and efforts to create friendly homes and
communities.
Mr Rafaj, for over a year you have been
the CEO, the leader, of the Scandinavian
company Heimstaden, who owns almost
43,000 rental flats in the Czech Republic.
How did it feel to join an enterprise
with a logo nobody in our country had
previously recognized?
My job transition was absolutely smooth.
The Scandinavian group Heimstaden
provides rental homes in several European
countries, and so has a stability of rules
and operational values. Since 2017, when
I joined the company, representatives of the
previous owner and myself have took steps
to transfer the former company Residomo
to the long-term investor Heimstaden. The
new owner has chosen our company to be
the leader who sets new standards of service
and quality in rental homes in the Czech
Republic, and whose professionalism is
compatible with top European competitors.
I personally had no problem when joining
the new enterprise because I share the
values of Heimstaden. I appreciate the
northern attitude towards the environment,
nature and the open culture which respects
individuals and their demands. I understand
the Scandinavian mentality, with their
sense of system, order, discipline, etc.
Moreover, I came in close contact with
the temperament, nature and habits of
Scandinavians during my studies in Finland.
When the principles of the vision of
Heimstaden Friendly Homes were
introduced in the Czech Republic, was
it a logical demonstration of the new
approach of the company towards its
clients?
It definitely was. The companies of Heimstaden
Group offer their clients, who are always in
the company’s spotlight, more than just four
walls in each room; they offer them homes
comfortable to live in and to house important
life moments. In Scandinavian countries, there
is a great emphasis on high-quality customer
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care, good communication, helpfulness and
respect towards a client’s needs. Anybody can
live in our flats; we offer a home to any age
and social group, for any stage of the client’s
life. We offer friendly, stable and comfortable
homes in a safe environment as well as open
communication. Communication has become
even busier and simpler thanks to our recently
opened mobile app, the My Home (Můj
domov) client portal, and a free client call
centre. I am sure there will be an increase in
demand for rental homes as they allow for
greater social mobility and can offer a flexible
response to various changes in life, such as
moving for a new job, etc.
The Friendly Home vision is to be
developed through regular feedback
received from surveys amongst clients.
The first survey was performed at the
end of 2020. What did you learn from its
results?
We regularly evaluate all communication
with our clients; it is vital for us that they be
satisfied with our services, and the opinions
the research reveals definitely help improve
their satisfaction. We were happy to learn
that about eighty per cent of respondents
appreciated the improved communication
thanks to the client call centre, e-mail and
My Home (Můj domov) online platform.
Two-thirds of those who had some service
or maintenance carried out in their homes
were happy with the quality and timing of
the work. It is maintenance and servicing
which we consider crucial and we want
to settle servicing schedules so that the
jobs are always done within ten days. Our
clients appreciate the security in our homes,
which we intend to enhance through the
introduction of monitoring systems at all
entrances.
As for the environment, we and our
clients see room for development: they
miss outdoor seating and more greenery.
We will do our best to meet these
demands, and many will hopefully enjoy
our community-garden projects. We
understand the significant role we play in
the lives of our clients, and we are doing
everything to make their homes truly
friendly, safe and peaceful places.
Heimstaden puts great emphasis on
social and environmental sustainability.
How helpful is the experience the
company has already gained through the
administration of real estate in northern
countries such as Sweden, Norway and
Denmark?
Environmental and social sustainability
is extremely important in all walks of our
enterprise. We care about the quality of our
clients’ and employees’ lives and we want to
develop good, strong, lasting relationships
with municipalities, financial institutions,
and investors. We get regular feedback
from our employees, maintain intensive
communication with trade unions, decrease
fluctuation and hire new employees. The
key values of Heimstaden include “care –
dare – share”, which has grown even more
important during the COVID crisis. Our new
owner promptly transferred and implemented
these values in our environment and we
were able to immediately take particular
steps and measures both towards our clients
and employees.
Scandinavian countries focus on
sustainable urban development and
climate. What has Heimstaden brought
in this field?
Heimstaden is a traditional promoter of the
so-called green policy. We want everything
we do to contribute to long-term sustainability,
the protection of the environment and
climate, no matter if it happens via massive
investments in replacing windows, better