Why is this important?

Between June 2020-2021 alone, the UK home move transactions were above 450,000. The residential property sector is one of the major contributors to the construction sector, with the UK housing stock hitting a record high of £8.7tn in 2022.

To ensure the industry keeps moving, we must invest in the future of conveyancing – people, talent, and technologies so that home movers can experience efficiencies in fees and excellent customer service.

This week, we spoke to some of our team posing some questions so that they can share their own insights.

What made you choose a career in conveyancing?

“I once had a conversation with a senior barrister who advised that the area of law is not chosen by you but the area of law chooses you and so right they were. 17 years ago I stepped into my first role as an office junior in a conveyancing practice and I have not looked back since. I have worked hard and progressed to where I am now.” – Adrienne Steatham, Business Development & Conveyancing Project Manager

What advice would you give to someone who is interested in joining the conveyancing industry?

“Do it! Not only will you gain legal and technical experience but you will also gain customer service and relationship-building skills too. You will never be bored, there is always something to do and the end result is extremely rewarding.” – Sian Jones, New Build Manager

Who in the industry inspires you?

“Sian Jones and Aash Dhand – I have worked closely alongside these 2 for almost 7 years now and their ambition and dedication to the firm always inspire me to be at my best and improve my own skill set as much as I can. The compassion and understanding they have for staff make me want to strive to be an amazing support system and role model for my team.” – Ashleigh Murphy, Licensed Conveyancer & Assistant New Build Team Manager

What are the challenges you and your team face on a day-to-day basis and how do you work together to overcome them?

“Buying a house is one of the most stressful things you can do in life. Our clients are so desperate to be in their new home and for the journey to run smoothly. There are things that can go wrong but it’s our job to ensure that doesn’t happen. It really helped when we recently developed a Client Relationship Team, headed up by my colleague Ella Boothroyd. Their job is to act as the clients “buddy” and guide them through the journey, separately from the legal team. They will provide outbound calls at key points in the process to ensure our clients understand everything and are not overwhelmed. Our online reviews and and internal client perception ratings have increased since we started providing this service, so it really seems to be working!” – Sian Jones, New Build Manager

What is the best part about being a conveyancer? / BD / Senior Manager in Conveyancing?

“The best part about working in Conveyancing and Business Development is the relationships which you create throughout the whole of the transaction.  This could be with developers, estate agents, mortgage brokers or other solicitors.  The conversations had between these parties are the reason that the industry has evolved as much as it has.  Working in conveyancing is rewarding by providing clients with 5* service and helping them to achieve their dream by working closely with the relationships created over the years and understanding that we are all in it together and working together will only ensure a smoother transaction.” – Adrienne Steatham, Business Development & Conveyancing Project Manager

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“In tandem with building a leading, national conveyancing firm with a growing footprint of offices in Greater Manchester, Liverpool and London, we have built a 200-strong team of incredibly talented people, whose specialisms span far beyond just legal expertise,” he said. “We have – for example – systems and web developers, business analysts and customer service managers who are just as important to us being among the best in the business. An ABS allows us to better reflect our make-up and what makes us a modern-thinking law firm and will further unshackle the spirit of innovation that, over the past 15 years, has brought us success and helped countless customers to move into new homes and remortgage.”

Hickey added that the freedom to attract non-legal investors and appoint a leadership team with diverse skill sets would enable the company to react quickly to new technological and other opportunities and add further associated consultancy services and related products to its existing portfolio.

However, the PLS boss stressed that the company’s ethos of being “more than just a law firm” did not mean diversification without direction.

“We have no interest in being a ‘jack of all trades’ but we do intend to continue to evolve to ensure we are the master of one – property law,” he added. “We have always been at the forefront of tailoring technology and introducing efficiencies that benefit our clients and are focussed on keeping homebuyers smiling by offering all we can to take the stress out of moving.”    

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Months of hard work, collaboration and strategising have gone into the creation of the Academy, which will open its doors at the beginning of July with 7 new team members.

“Our vision is to give people the skills they need to succeed in the fast-moving conveyancing industry” explained Sarah Millican, Head of HR at PLS, who spearheaded the project along with Becca Culley, HR Business Partner. 

“A lot of thoughtful planning has gone into the training schedule which has been created by Laura Sayers who will oversee the Academy,” continued Sarah, “it’s a really in-depth and well-structured training programme that offers people a holistic education on the conveyancing process.”

Successful candidates will join the academy as Legal Administrators and throughout the 18 month course will experience working in different areas of the PLS business, including placements in our support teams and legal teams. They will also attend bespoke classroom training modules which will be delivered by PLS’s own in-house trainers.

Giving Back to the Community and Nurturing New Talent

The academy programme has been built with inclusivity in mind. There are opportunities for everyone and you don’t need formal qualifications to apply.

“We want to make a positive difference in our community and help job seekers discover rewarding long-term careers. Whether you have a keen interest in conveyancing or are a complete beginner, there’s something for you at the Academy,” explained Becca.

Discussing the background of the PLS Training Academy, Sarah shared, “We’ve found that many companies take a siloed approach to conveyancing. People join one department and are not taught how their role fits into the overall business. We want to change that by giving people the chance to learn about the entire conveyancing process in a supportive, nurturing and collaborative environment.”

While the PLS Training Academy emphasises developing the next generation of conveyancing talent, the firm is committed to taking a flexible, people-centric approach.

“There are many aspects to conveyancing beyond the actual legal work,” said Becca. “We hope that, by empowering people to experience different departments, we can identify roles within PLS that best suit their strengths.” 

Investing in the Future: Our People

As well as welcoming new applicants, the PLS Training Academy is part of a comprehensive internal initiative focused on giving back to the talented team at PLS. 

“We are an award-winning company because of our people.” Sarah shared, “We understand the importance of investing in learning and development. It’s something we’ve looked at a lot internally – and formalising our approach through the PLS Training Academy felt like a natural leap forward.”

“Anyone in the business can take modules from the Academy,” continued Becca. “We ultimately want to give back to our people – both new recruits and our amazing team – by supporting their personal and professional development.” 

Learn More About the PLS Training Academy Today!

With a fantastic family culture and an underlying belief in nurturing everyone’s individuality, the launch of the PLS Training Academy is a wonderful opportunity to hop on the career ladder at an award-winning, innovative conveyancing firm. 

Visit our careers page to find out more about life at PLS.

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The theme this year is ‘creating hope through action’, reminding us that it is positive action, no matter how big or small, will provide hope to those who are struggling.

In this current climate, conveyancers have carried tremendous pressure. As a conveyancer, your sole purpose is to help those relying on you, to get a sale through to completion on time, and some may struggle to cope with the mental strain this can have. In an industry that has had to cope with the Stamp Duty Holiday and new rules on Help-to-Buy, bringing tight deadlines and long hours, it is no wonder that many conveyancers and solicitors are finding their work increasingly at odds with their mental well-being.

Often unreported, those with mental health issues will suffer in silence. PLS strongly believes that promoting a culture of teamwork, conversation and collaboration, as well as having the appropriate management practice in place to deal with the wide array of mental health issues, will ‘create hope through action’.

As an industry, let’s take a stand and change the stigma surrounding mental health – keep talking and be kind.

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Expanding on our existing footprint in Manchester and London, we have now opened our doors in Liverpool on October 5th. This move will bring expert mortgage and conveyancing advice and employment opportunities to Merseyside.

The Liverpool office will initially be home to five of the firm’s existing staff who will move across from their Head Office. They will be joined by 7 new locally-recruited conveyancers. But with space for over 30 staff to work safely and hybrid working in place, there is great scope for growth.

For Dean Carruthers, Head of Operations at PLS Solicitors, the opening of a hub in maritime city marks a return to familiar territory.

“As a Liverpudlian I am delighted to be heading up our presence there,” he said. “Liverpool boasts a wealth of legal talent for us to recruit from an additional office in the northwest of England, will allow us to extend our residential conveyancing services to a greater number of customers.

“We are looking forward to forging new relationships in the region and showcasing our market-leading processes to those on our Liverpool doorstep.”

PLS Solicitors prides itself on pioneering the use of technology within the residential property sector, with its PLS Portal 24/7 negating the need for customers to physically visit an office to sign documents and a proven means of preventing the mortgage application process from stalling.

Similarly, ask PLS enabled lenders to remotely check progress on their case using an Amazon Alexa smart device.

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In a city where there is so much choice for employees and high levels of competition for employers, particularly in conveyancing, PLS Solicitors has come up with a new way to attract and keep staff.

Sarah Millican, HR Director at PLS says, “Like every firm, we take care of our staff with various rewards and recognition but when it comes to their health and well-being, we feel the opportunities to support our staff are endless.”

According to CIPD’s annual report on UK Working Lives www.cipd.co.uk/Images/uk-working-lives-summary-2019-v1_tcm18-58584.pdf, good work can be described across six indicators from recognition and reward, to achieving a sense of fulfilment and positively contributing to mental well-being of all.

Sarah continues “Over the past 10 years, PLS has understood the need to provide a place where staff look forward to coming to work and recognise the importance of mental well-being. Like the CIPD, we have identified six indicators via our Great Place To Work programme. We believe to attract and retain our staff we need to ensure PLS is a happy place of work by:

1. encouraging people to achieve their career goals
2. celebrating victories – no matter how small
3. socialising – encouraging staff to take time to make friends
4. volunteering – giving staff time off to take part in local programmes
5. providing appropriate training, development and benefit package
6. giving staff the opportunity to reduce stress, keep fit, healthy and mindful.”

This year, PLS Solicitors has named its chosen charity, Papyrus, which supports those suffering from suicidal thoughts, and the friends and family who are also affected. With this in mind, the firm is determined to look after health and well-being of all employees. Whether it is a massage at the desk, fresh fruit deliveries or encouraging staff to use the rec room to blow off steam with a friendly competition of table tennis or pool!

With two weeks since the launch of the programme, Sarah Millican, HR Director is delighted with the result: “Everything we have introduced across the six Great Place To Work indicators has gone down really well. There is a real buzz around the office. The social events have really brought people together, particularly those who wouldn’t normally get to talk to each other on a day to day basis and the healthy living is a real benefit to all.”

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Research from careers advice online shows that the average person will change their career 5-7 times during their working life. This together with the growing need for more conveyancers in the UK inspired PLS’ Make the Change campaign and the Academy – creating an opportunity for ambitious individuals looking for a new start.

In this article we hear from Ellie, one of the Academy’s most recent graduates.

Clearly unsure of which career path to take, Ellie explained, ‘I left school and went straight into a nursery apprenticeship, which I soon changed to hairdressing after 9 months’. Influenced by her cousin’s law degree at Newcastle, Ellie investigated opportunities in the legal area but was put off by how much experience she needed. Ellie then came across the PLS position on indeed.com.

PLS was looking for bright, enthusiastic and personable candidates with little or no experience to train into experienced conveyancing assistants and more. Although no experience was necessary, people who work at PLS should have excellent customer service and communication skills. An area Ellie clearly flourishes in, conveyed through her welcoming, yet professional phone manner during her interview with us.

‘I had never worked in an office before so I had no expectations of what working with PLS would be like.’ However, Ellie said during her interview ‘the team really made me feel at ease, particularly Kayleigh one of the HR Team. The Academy training schedule was obviously well structured and would set me up for the world of conveyancing.’ When Ellie got the job, she knew it was going to be a good place to work, saying ‘I just got that feeling’.

Describing her days in the academy Ellie explained ‘Every day was a different challenge, some days we would work individually on live conveyancing files, and then other days we would work together, asking questions and supporting each other’. This on the job training was governed by the Academy leader who checked everything before any documentation was sent out to clients.

Now in her fifth month at PLS, Ellie is an integral member of the Post Completion team. As a leading conveyancing firm by volume, PLS deals with around 900 transactions per month, so it is important that the team is able to deal with a large number of cases efficiently and accurately.

‘The Academy gave me the confidence to hit the ground running’ says Ellie, ‘Some of the challenges and that documentation I now come across are identical to those I worked on in the Academy. So, I can recognise the little things, like a unilateral notice for example. I think it just gives you more confidence in your abilities.’

Those recruited into the Academy will spend between 3 and 6 months in training, with Ellie’s training schedule lasting 4 months to make sure she was absolutely confident in her abilities. When asked why the Academy vary the timescale, Ellie explained that although everyone makes mistakes, there were no chances for serious mistakes to be made – ‘They wanted to make sure that I could do it, and they knew that I could. It’s great because they make sure that there’s no chance of us making mistakes, and that we are really confident in our work before we get placed in a team’.

PLS has been placing a tremendous amount of emphasis on client delight and excellent client service, implementing innovative training schemes and appointing Karishma, the company’s first Client Services Manager. It seems this focus on the customer experience can be seen in all aspects of the office. When asked how PLS employees seem to be so hard working and efficient with the work they produce, Ellie explained that ‘It’s people’s homes we are dealing with. It’s an emotional and stressful journey isn’t it? So, we have to work hard to make sure the that clients are happy.’

It’s apparent that Ellie enjoys her job as she has already recommended PLS to friends and family. PLS is a great environment for workers of all ages, providing opportunities for progression to everyone. Danielle Woods joined the company in March of 2018 and has progressed rapidly to a Conveyancer and Team Manager, now responsible for an entire team of her own and regularly getting five star reviews. Ellie is keen to follow in these footsteps and progress onto a legal team, ‘I’m always willing to learn new things – eventually I could see myself on a team, or doing extra studying to get myself where I want to be. But I’m enjoying what I’m doing right now. I really enjoy working here.’

‘And everyone in my team is supportive!’. This supportive atmosphere wasn’t specific just to the post completion team, ‘It’s everywhere, there are people from other teams who are all so friendly, they will always make conversation which makes PLS a great place to work.’

This opportunity for growth sits among many other benefits for potential employees like Ellie, who lives just around the corner from the office. The Academy aims to turn new starters into knowledgeable professionals and speaking to Ellie it is clear they are successful. Through a tightly-knit community culture who act as a support net for colleagues, PLS manages to create a working environment that feeds employee’s talents and allows them to grow into forward thinking and conscientious individuals who always put the customers first.

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After rapid growth in the Manchester and London regions, PLS Solicitors has found themselves on a customer service journey like no other.

“Our customers have one thing in common – life got faster” expresses Aash Dhand, co-founder of PLS Solicitors. “With over 900 transactions a month, where 90% of business is done over the phone or through PLS’ 24/7 Portal, keeping clients happy has to be the number one factor in taking our firm to another level”.

Ten years ago, PLS started out employing just two people, it has now grown into a national conveyancing firm with over 140 staff and offices in two of the UKs major cities, Manchester and London. After this decade of expansion, PLS reflects back on what has made their business successful; how digital solutions have changed the way we see conveyancing and the importance of excellent client service.

Excellent customer service requires innovation and tip top communication skills

When co-founders Aash Dhand and Rob Thomas asked their staff what they could do better to service their customers nationally, there was a clear answer – “find ways to deliver excellent customer service consistently”.

“PLS’ vision is to be the country’s favourite conveyancer, and one day the country’s favourite conveyancing app.” says co-founder Rob Thomas “That’s why in 2016 we introduced a quicker and more efficient way for customers to buy or sell their new homes through our 24/7 Portal – taking the stress out of house buying by helping our clients feel in control”.

Estate agents and conveyancers across the UK have been changing the way we buy or sell our homes, with a focus on providing the service from anywhere, so customers aren’t even required to leave the house.  But is this really enough?

How do we balance a digital solution with human interaction and the need for reassurance?

“This year we will be launching our 24/7 app. In today’s world of mobile first, our customers want a fast, efficient and accessible service when buying or selling their home – to sign, upload documents and track their case anytime, anywhere but this does bring challenges when customers feel they need to see a face.” Says Thomas

With a focus on growth and innovation, great reviews weren’t as regular as PLS would have liked so they embarked on a new approach. By using this qualitative information to think about how to eliminate poor reviews and provide consistent client delight, they came to the decision to appoint a Client Service Manager. And so, in August last year, PLS welcomed Karishma Mohindra on board with one sole task – to manage and eliminate negative comments by improving customer service.

“For some time, we had a really good run of five-star reviews but last year, we noticed that the negative client feedback was trickling through and it was all around communications and managing clients’ expectations” expressed Dhand

“It’s a brave decision to encourage clients to express their views. We could see the good work that was being done in the office, but the bad reviews really knocked the teams. We needed to appoint someone with great people skills to figure out how we could eliminate these negative reviews, and that person was Karishma. Her new role as Client Service Manager will fit into the client journey ensuring that no customer or staff voice goes unheard.”

How did the appointment of Karishma affect the teams at PLS?

As Karishma is the first Client Service Manager at PLS, naturally some of the staff were unsure of her remit. Was she going to discipline if they had a bad review? Luckily, Karishma is more focussed on the positive. She says, “I wanted to encourage great relationships, so if there’s someone who has a tricky client or I hear someone who wants to talk to a manager, I am there for both the customer and the staff member. I made sure the team had the skills to take a more active approach listening to complaints and I positioned myself where I could always be on hand if things became more complicated. This way our staff felt empowered to address the issue responsively.”

Karishma restructured the new business and legal teams to enable them to address the most common complaints efficiently and a resolution that would exceed customer’s expectations. Like many organisations, building relationships over the phone, timeliness, communication skills when handling objections and responsiveness to potentially difficult discussions require a system and soft skills to manage them well.

In autumn last year, PLS also introduced its Client Journey training programme to give every single member of staff the opportunity to develop their soft skills and ‘put themselves in their clients’ shoes’. With the absence of regular face to face communication, a focus on developing soft skills and the right tone of voice over the phone, as well as excellent written communication were paramount.

To get staff motivated, it must come from the top!

It wasn’t really that hard to get staff motivated at PLS, particularly as this was a board decision. Karishma adds “Having our staff meet people from the board was a revelation, they really felt empowered and that people were listening to them. In busy organisations, management can sometimes be feared by having Aash and Rob at the consultation sessions really helped break down the barriers.”

One of the major challenges for staff in any professional services firm is managing conflict, which can affect staff motivation.  PLS’ Customer Journey programme certainly recognises this.  “Handling objections or just building relationships over the phone is a challenge for anyone but with our programme, we teach our teams how to put themselves in the clients’ shoes and understand how they feel” says Karishma. “This is the only way to delight our customers – by knowing how they feel.”

For Karishma, the biggest problem she found was that people simply did not know how to escalate issues or who to go to with questions about customer service. This role has resulted in Karishma being visible to all. She is the point of contact and someone to go to. “People are always dropping me emails and calls now”, she says.  This has made a real difference to the teams’ confidence and the way PLS handles complaints and concerns from clients.  Indeed as soon as Karishma hears the inkling of a complaint she is straight there to offer her help, chatting with the team members to see what next steps they would prefer to take.”

On a positive note, Karishma adds “If a review comes in that praises a team or particular staff member, I make sure to let them know. In fact, we let the whole firm know.  We also highlight our great comments more on social media to shout about our fab teams. It is really love to see the comments rolling in right now.”

Why is it important to encourage customer feedback so openly?

Forget stuffy officers and scary legal eagles, new technology puts the customer in control and takes out the formality. With tools like Trustpilot and Google, customers can very easily select their firm of choice or not as the case may be.

“If you don’t ask, you really don’t know” says Thomas. “It is easy to hide behind the technology, emails and even the phone but our aim is to try to eliminate those 1- and 2-star reviews by being better communicators”.

By the end of 2019 Karishma’s goal is to have zero 1 or 2* reviews, and only 4 or 5* reviews if she can help it. Over the past six months, PLS continues to increase its star rating which is currently five stars on Trustpilot for almost 380 reviews and 4.1 star on Google with 300+  reviews.  These are staggering amounts but a brave decision for PLS.

“Exposure to the good and bad is a risk but one that has paid off” says Rob Thomas. “Now that all the teams are trained on their soft skills, our online systems and the portal, PLS is moving away from one- and two-star reviews.

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