In the article, "Rebuilding to Enhance Resilience", Jim Berry and Kathy Faucht surveyed 200 industry leaders to see how these companies are recovering from the Covid Pandemic.  Here is the section of the report focused on how commercial real estate companies are using digital transformation in the recovery process

Technology: Digital transformation and tenant experience are a business imperative

COVID-19 accelerated the use of technology in the CRE industry. In a matter of weeks, most of the CRE workforce moved to remote work, property tours turned virtual, most tenant communication converted to online channels, and more technology was required to manage day-to-day operations.⁹ Some CRE companies also increased their use of cloud-based collaboration and productivity tools to lower in-house technology costs and increase flexibility.¹⁰

While these measures may help improve tenant convenience and ensure business continuity, CRE companies still struggle with defining digital workflows and digitizing key business processes.¹¹ Most respondents (56%) believe the pandemic has uncovered shortcomings in their company’s digital capabilities and affected their plans to transform (figure 2). Additionally, there are growing cybersecurity and data privacy concerns among those surveyed, due to the increase in virtualization, data capture, and data-sharing using cloud and digital tools.

Balancing tactical and strategic actions

The pandemic has made enhancing agility and nimbleness a top priority for CRE organizations. These goals require companies to focus on digitization of key CRE business processes and the tenant experience. And while many CRE companies have taken a reactive approach to digital transformation, developing a more structured plan, including the implementation of various technologies and data analytics, would likely yield more meaningful results. Along with this, to enhance resilience, companies should double down on their cybersecurity and data privacy investments.

Developing the digital strategy and road map

According to our survey, many companies plan to accelerate digital transformation, yet only 40% of respondents said their company has a defined digital transformation road map. North American respondents report their companies are farther ahead than their European and APAC counterparts (figure 3): Fifty-three percent of respondents that have a defined digital transformation roadmap consider digital tenant experience a core competency. Further, 47% of European respondents and 44% of APAC respondents, compared to 32% of North American respondents, have started redefining business processes, job roles, and skill requirements to embed the use of technology and tools.

CRE companies should assess their digital maturity by reviewing existing capabilities. This could include evaluating the maturity level of technology usage for managing operations, elevating tenant experience, and developing tech talent. Based on this assessment and considering the business vision, CRE leaders should develop a digital strategy that focuses on technologies and initiatives that deliver strategic value. Thereafter, companies should frame the execution plan to work on key initiatives for digital transformation and ensure the transformation team has the right talent and governance structure to implement the digital solutions. Governance structure should focus on effectively managing transformation programs and encouraging innovation.

Companies should increase investment in technologies that can serve as building blocks of their digital transformation efforts. However, on average, only 45% of respondents plan to increase their investments in cloud, robotic process automation (RPA), artificial intelligence (AI), and digital channels over the next 12 months (figure 4).

Companies can significantly increase tenant engagement by optimizing real-time updates about facilities and developing a sense of community using mobile apps. About one-half (48%) of respondents who said their company is using digital technologies, such as interactive mobile apps, to increase communication with tenants or end users, plan to increase investment on digital channels over the next year. Cloud technology could be the backbone for many new capabilities as it offers scalability, data storage, and ubiquitous access. For instance, companies can leverage cloud-based tools for digital marketing and to connect virtually with tenants to build a digital tenant experience.

To expedite implementation of a digital transformation road map, CRE companies should look for strategic partnerships with technology providers or proptechs. REIT respondents seem to acknowledge this and are being more open to collaborating with proptechs. On an average, 58% of REIT respondents have increased their intent to partner, compared to 45% of respondents who are developers.

Leverage tenant data and analytics

More than three-fifths of companies acknowledge that they are capturing Internet of Things (IoT) sensor data. With more organizations and end users making data-backed decisions, sharing relevant property-related data could help companies build trust and increase tenant/end-user engagement. This might be a great opportunity for organizations: Currently, 49% of respondents share data with tenants (figure 5).

Next, companies could use different analytical tools to generate insights and facilitate decision-making. Now more than ever, CRE companies need to capture and analyze high-frequency data to create a meaningful tenant experience. This could include data around how tenants use different amenities, and/or engagement and performance levels. Companies can analyze tenant engagement levels and behavior to understand preferences and provide a more customized experience. For instance, owners/operators can combine and analyze the occupancy, movement, and temperature sensor data and assist tenants in creating COVID-19–safe seating and space utilization decisions. They can also use tenant data to predict lease renewals and devise appropriate strategies for tenant retention.¹² APAC companies seem to have a higher focus on data analytics: Fifty-eight percent of APAC respondents expect their companies to increase investment on data analytics in the next year, compared to only 32% of European respondents and 34% of North American respondents.