•The Pelican Valley team
By Ayobami Ife, Abeokuta
ABEOKUTA: Pelican Valley, the big player in smart home – driven real estate development in Nigeria, has doled out choice lands and awards to its outstanding staff and consultant in recognition of their commitment to the firm’s great mission.
First to walk to the dais for award was Miss Sipeolu Esther, who clinched the Best Customer Service Employee Award 2024. Azeez Hammed Opeyemi emerged the Best Behaved Employee 2024 while Mr. Owoyabu Soliu beat others to win Most Punctual Employee.
The Director of Operations, Tpl. Akintomide Olumide clinched the Best Dressed Employee of the Year 2024. Not done yet, Tpl. Akintomide also bagged the Pelican Valley CEO Special Recognition Award of the Year 2024. The Chief Security Officer, Babangida Jude also earned the Pelican Valley CEO Special Recognition Award. The awards were also accompanied with cash rewards for the winners.
The mother of the awards which came with rewards of a plot of land at the firm’s staff estate in Kobape corridor of Ogun State went to each of the trio of Mr. Ernest Nwokolo (Outstanding Consultant of the Year), a security guard,Mr. Simon imrya and Engnr. QuosimOladosu. Interestingly, it was backed with documents, including survey plan,plot allocation letter and a deed of gift of the plot of land gifted to each of the recipients.
The awardees were also shock-struck, including Ernest Nwokolo, with tears of joy bursting out from the eyes when their names were mentioned one after the other and as each stepped forward to receive both the honour and unquantifiable blessings from the Chief Executive Officer CEO of the Pelican Valley Nigeria Limited, Ambassador (Dr) Babatunde Adeyemo.
They commended the firm and CEO for workers – friendly dispositions, pledging that the “rewards are a call to more commitment” to the real estate firm.
The colourful Awards and Dinner Night ceremony at the Podium, Pelican Valley Estate Laderin, Abeokuta on Saturday came hours after the firm’s Staff Retreat at the same venue, where the resources persons – Dr. Tunde Elegbede, an associate professor, Department of Industrial and Labour Relations, University of Lagos and Mrs. Dorcas James, human resources consultant hailed Pelican Valley for its achievements, especially the Smart Home initiative, saying it is the direction world is going.
They charged the firm to consolidate on its gains garnered over the years and continue to also focus on sustainable development anchored on integrity, innovation, excellent service
delivery and talents retention.
Dr Elegbede while speaking on the theme of the retreat, “Sustaining real estate development through, excellent delivery and talent retention,” harped on deploying input efficient technology, environmentally – friendly policy, renewable resources towards designing and implementation of sustainable real estate development.
He said rural – urban migration, urbanization, government inability to develop rural areas and population explosion in urban settings are vital indicators of opportunity for real estate entrepreneurs to tap into and build smart cities in Nigeria’s urban areas.
He identified Smart City as the new option for the world because of its social and economic impact as it emphasizes technology – driven human habitations to promote good health, reduce traffic jam, efficient communication, seamless management, public safety among others.
According to him, the concept of smart initiative in real estate today is such that nothing is a waste anymore by inventing another use (recycling) for things that seemed useless at any point in time.
Reckoning real estate as a big and serious business, Elegbede tasked the firm on sustainable integrity, excellent service delivery, tech savvy staff, social networking, contract negotiation skills, talent mentorship, continuous training and effective communications to ensure success.
In her presentation, Mrs. Dorcas James, identified real estate business as lucrative but highly competitive, stressing that success in the sector comes only to operators who can add value to their real estate products.
She identified the increasing housing deficit in the country, global clients taste and population surge as variables that will continue to create markets for the property business, even as she noted that Pelican Valley which is a brand already built on integrity, should leverage on these factors to seize the market and dominate it.
The resource person said the firm could accomplish the goal by sustaining the corporate behaviour that has continued to earn her the trust of clients which are integrity, ethical principle and due diligence as well as making talent retention the driver.
She also urged Pelican Valley staffers to see themselves as an integral part of the organisation, who must deliver value on a daily basis.
Earlier in address, the CEO Adeyemo said the retreat sought to appraise where the organisation was coming from, where it is today and where it is should be tomorrow.
According to him, the Pelican Valley Nigeria Limited, the top – Nigerian real estate firm behind Pelican Valley Estate Laderin Abeokuta where unusual home happens as well as the Pelican Brief Estate, Pelican’s Ecostay Apartments and Pelican Greenish Acre Farm Estates – sited at Kobape corridor of Ogun State, has recorded significant achievements the nation’s real estate sector with Smart Home initiative as evidenced in the commissioned set of apartments at Ecostay Apartments.
Adeyemo the project is a lifelong one and encouraged the staffers to see themselves as part drivers of it for mutual benefits.
