A new lease of life...

Welcome to a new lease of life, a sub-series of the devcast…podcast, where you’ll be learning how experts of the Build to Rent, PRS, student accommodation and retirement living sectors climbed the ladder of their professions.

Hosted by Nick Hammond, Head of Build to Rent at deverellsmith, our guest in the studio this episode is Jeremy Heath-Smith, CEO of Spike.

Or you might know him as the co-founder of Tomb Raider studio Core Design.

After a successful career in the gaming industry, Jeremy has gone on to found Spike, a market-leading property management and resident engagement software provider, whose solutions are now being used by major organisations across the world, connecting more than 200,000 residents with their local communities each day.

How was Lara Croft created?

How did Jeremy Heath-Smith transition from gaming to PropTech?

What lessons has he learned as CEO of Spike?

How did Tomb Raider take the world by storm?

Jeremy described himself as the person who simply gave the green light to the Tomb Raider phenomenon. He draws a comparison to the creation of Mickey Mouse, suggesting that while Walt Disney gets the recognition, the actual creator might have been someone working under him.

He highlights Toby Gard as the mind behind Tomb Raider’s creation, initially conceiving the character as male but reshaping it into Lara Croft to avoid legal issues with Indiana Jones. Reflecting on those times, Jeremy acknowledges the decision to embrace a female protagonist in a predominantly male gaming world as a bold move.

Throughout the process, Toby and the team were responsible for the entire creation, while Jeremy’s role was to guide them in the right direction.

Reinventing Build to Rent technology with Spike Global…

Jeremy describes Spike as a central hub within a residential complex – a resident portal that encompasses all essential amenities for those living in these wonderful build-to-rent schemes. This portal allows residents to access various services within the building, from communicating with the concierge to booking gym sessions of meeting rooms – essentially catering to all their needs.

However, the question arises: what’s in it for the managing agent?

The real advantage lies in facilitating communication between the managing agents and their tenants. Spike excels in this aspect. It addresses the primary challenge in Build to Rent, which is effective communication. Enabling tenants to reach out to the building managers easily and efficiently, significantly boosts satisfaction levels all around.