星空传媒

You could not avoid the sense of a changing of the guard at this year鈥檚 British Council for Offices (BCO) conference in Milan. 

It was the first time in more than two decades that the event had not been run under the leadership of long-time chief executive Richard Kauntze, who stepped back from the role just weeks before. It was also the first time his successor, Samantha McClary, had ever attended the conference, despite more than 20 years working in real estate journalism.

For some people, attending an event with more than 600 of your members just weeks into a role might be a bit of a baptism of fire, but McClary, the former editor of Estates Gazette, has ample experience dealing with developers, contractors and the like.

鈥淣o one鈥檚 been too pushy yet,鈥� she reassured me when we sat down for a chat during the conference in the swish environs of Superstudio Events, a space more used to hosting fashion shows than property conferences. 鈥淚t has been very very enjoyable [and it] doesn鈥檛 hurt that it鈥檚 in a beautiful city with lovely weather.鈥�

>> Read more: The 2025 BCO conference: Key takeaways from this year鈥檚 event in Milan

But the event in Milan is not just an excuse for a quick trip abroad. McClary spent the three days picking the brains of delegates as she formulates her plans for the organisation. 鈥淭here鈥檚 been a lot of feedback to me about how the industry has changed and how the BCO can play a really important role in that,鈥� she says.

These changes, which have accelerated since the end of the pandemic, have seen office developers and owners seeking to provide more than just a workplace for their customers. 

鈥淚t used to be very much, design a nice office building, and that would almost be enough,鈥� says McClary. 鈥淣ow it鈥檚 a whole ecosystem and it鈥檚 this product that lives and breathes鈥�. 

She alludes to a session at the conference, run by BCO鈥檚 NextGen programme, which saw delegates brainstorm what the organisation should look like in 2030.

An office isn鈥檛 just an office anymore. There is leisure, there is retail, there is public realm 鈥� you鈥檝e got to have all these things to make a workplace work

鈥淥ne of the questions on the board was 鈥楽hould we still be the British Council for Offices鈥�,鈥� says McClary, recalling how attendees had questioned whether the organisation鈥檚 name should be retained. The answer is 鈥減robably yes鈥�, McClary makes clear, for familiarity and brand recognition if nothing else.

But the discussion itself serves to make clear that people in the sector are aware of the fact that the buildings they own, develop or operate are no longer uni-purpose, and that the BCO is open-minded about its role going forward.

鈥淎n office isn鈥檛 just an office anymore,鈥� says McClary. 鈥淭here is leisure, there is retail, there is public realm 鈥� you鈥檝e got to have all these things to make a workplace work.鈥�

McClary and the rest of her leadership team seem to have a modernising vision for a BCO that reflects the changes that have taken place in the sector, with a more forthright role in speaking publicly on behalf of the sector and in sharing data within it.

Perhaps it is this spokesperson role that the BCO had in mind when it appointed a veteran journalist to be its new chief. McClary says she hopes her press experience will help her make the industry heard and says that her 鈥渟torytelling skills are something new鈥� in the BCO.

鈥淥ne of the things I was most passionate about at Estates Gazette, and took a huge responsibility for, was you had this platform where every week you were given an opportunity to say something important,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 think the BCO could be such a powerful platform as well, to champion an industry that has been through massive transformation and is still going to keep going on that journey 鈥� and it needs a voice that is there to lift it up鈥�.

It is clear that McClary鈥檚 ambition in this regard has cut through to members. Elsewhere in the conference, Turner and Townsend Alinea director Mark Lacey tells 星空传媒, unprompted: 鈥淚 think what Sam鈥檚 trying to achieve with it being much more of a mouthpiece for the office industry is absolutely right鈥�.

Business is really good at feeding back on projects 鈥� what went right, what went wrong 鈥� but as an industry we鈥檙e not very good at that

鈥淚鈥檒l pay him later,鈥� jokes McClary when told this. She says she had the opportunity to 鈥済et policy makers to understand the workspace is a very important part of the UK economy and a very important tool for building communities鈥� and to get the industry鈥檚 key concerns around planning and viability heard.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 about our policymakers understanding the value and unlocking some of that capital for us through the conversations they have 鈥� bringing our sector into conversations as well, not just the housebuilders.鈥�

Data is another issue that is a focus for the BCO going forward. 鈥淏usiness is really good at feeding back on projects 鈥� what went right, what went wrong 鈥� but as an industry we鈥檙e not very good at that,鈥� says McClary.

Her desire to use the BCO as the platform to change this is backed by junior vice-president Helen Hare, who organised the Milan conference. Hare, who is also director of projects at GPE, says that the experience of being a judge for the BCO Awards and getting access to swathes of detailed project information showed her what the industry was missing.

She tells 星空传媒: 鈥淓very year you鈥檙e getting an experience of exactly what the BCO has got at its fingerprints. We鈥檝e got it, but how can we share it?鈥�

She acknowledges that financial data on schemes cannot necessarily be shared, but says specification details, as well as qualitative responses to new developments could be more readily shared.

Hare, who will be part of the BCO鈥檚 leadership team for the next year says data is 鈥渘umber one鈥� on her agenda and 鈥渙ne of the first things鈥� she spoke to McClary about.

鈥淚 completely agree with Helen,鈥� says McClary. 鈥淭here鈥檚 already so much data within the BCO and here is a real drive from everyone that I鈥檝e spoken to here about wanting to share data now. That wasn鈥檛 necessarily the case five or 10 years ago. If we can create that platform, then there is a real benefit that the BCO can bring to its members鈥�.

As well as expanding the BCO鈥檚 data and advocacy role, the current leadership seems to be keen on modernising the image and practices of the organisation itself.

Turner and Townsend Alinea鈥檚 Lacey says that in the past the BCO had been 鈥渁 bit of an old boys club鈥�, but that the Milan conference, for which he helped curate the programme, had brought 鈥渞eal positive change鈥�, with more women and young people leading on organizing and presenting.

The shake-up of the BCO鈥檚 events programme goes beyond the conference too. Hare announced in her opening speech in Milan that the traditional president鈥檚 dinner held in the autumn would be replaced, probably with something more like a summer party.

Hare tells 星空传媒 that the 鈥渧ery formal鈥� event no longer fits in a world where 鈥渆xpense budgets have changed quite drastically鈥�. Besides, she says, a lot of members 鈥渇eel they get more out of the drinks for the half an hour before than they do the lunch itself鈥�.

But, while Hare can put her stamp on the organisation for the next year, McClary is likely to be around for much longer if Kauntze鈥檚 26-year term is anything to go by. McClary and the delegates might have their sticky-note ideas for the BCO in 2030, but operating in an industry that continues to undergo rapid changes, only time will tell what the organisation looks like in five years.

星空传媒 was the media partner for this year鈥檚 BCO conference