The theme of this edition of the magazine "Value, Wherever It Is" sends me back, above all, to the past, to grammar classes during which I struggled to understand the numerous forms of verb tenses - past, present and future.

But I quickly return to the present and accept the challenge of thinking about the future, the future of the certified appraiser profession.

I still have the comparison with verb tenses in my mind, and trying to remember this part of grammar, I start reading about tenses. The names of the past tenses seem downright funny to me: imperfect, perfectly simple, perfectly composed and, the most beautiful of them, pluperfect. I can't help but draw a parallel with my past actions. The former seems more appropriate to me, because I could certainly have done things better. I don't think anyone can firmly state that the past was perfect or more than perfect. There is always room for improvement.

The present is firm, simple, without variations. It's as if it's telling you: Be careful what you do because you won't meet me again and you might regret it..

Coming to the future tense, one nuance of it catches my attention: previous future or "in the past". What does that mean? It's either future or past? Could this combination of words mean that the future is linked to the past, as Anatole France said: "The past cannot perish, for the future will be born from it"? However, reading the definition of this form of the future, things begin to make sense: the future past shows a future action completed before another future action. For example, "we will have become true professionals when the profession will enjoy the respect and trust to the others".

I like the idea of ​​future action before another future action. This means that before reaching an important goal, it is necessary to go through some preliminary stages, to ensure all the conditions for the successful achievement of that goal, to “prepare the ground”. I have never believed in immediate success or in getting rich overnight, without work. Small and sure steps most often lead to achieving the final goal. “The future is the sum of the steps you take, including the small ones, ignored or ridiculed”, said Henri Coandă.

The first condition for achieving a goal is to clearly establish it. Drawing a parallel with sea navigation, it rarely happens that a sailor leaves the port without having a predetermined destination. No one wants to drift. Equally important is the prior establishment of the route, and this includes several landmarks. Thus, any goal should be divided into smaller, intermediate goals, which lay the foundation for the main goal.

An objective must be grounded in purpose and its added value, and the deadline for its achievement should not be in the foreground. The time horizon should be set according to the assumed objective and not to start from a predetermined deadline in which we must achieve certain objectives. I do not believe in "five-year plans" or in very long-term strategies, for the simple reason that the future is unpredictable and it is very possible for exceptional situations to arise that cancel the opportunity of a previously established objective or create opportunities for other objectives. Moreover, objectives are accomplished by people, and people and their mentality are constantly changing. A very long-term strategy is like a train with a lot of wagons, running on a railway without switches. When a beneficial opportunity appears on the right or left of the railway, the train cannot turn because it risks derailing. On the other hand, if the strategy were built like a fleet of cars, with a high degree of flexibility, adapting to new routes would be much easier and less risky.

As I said, the first condition for achieving a goal is setting it. Within a company it is quite easy to think about goals, short, medium or long term. However, in the case of a profession, setting a major goal can be a somewhat more complex exercise.

From my point of view, the fundamental objective of the profession of certified appraiser, the destination we should reach in a relatively short time horizon, is a sum of three weighty words: Recognition, Respect, Trust!

In my opinion, many of the intermediate steps have already been taken, and the direction is good, with ANEVAR fulfilling its role of organizing and coordinating the activity of authorized appraisers, as well as representing the interests of the profession at national and international level. However, the profession is not only made up of those who temporarily lead the activity of the Association, but of all authorized appraisers, professionals in the valuation of goods. Consequently, each of us must assume responsibility for successfully navigating this path, and our landmarks should be precisely the fundamental ethical principles.

I am convinced that every licensed appraiser has read and understood the Code of Ethics of the profession and knows the ethical principles by which they should guide their work. However, I will highlight some elements of the ethical principles and how they could lead to the achievement of the fundamental objective.

INTEGRITYThe principle of integrity states that authorized evaluators must be honor and honest in all professional and business relationships. I would include here, in addition to relationships with clients and report users, behavior towards fellow professionals and partners from other professions. If we are not fair and honest with our colleagues, I find it hard to believe that we will be any different with our clients. Sometimes, honesty can be annoying, and direct expression of opinions can be disturbing, but it is more correct to directly state your opinion than to silently approve behavior with which you do not agree. The saying of master Brancusi – “Opinions are free, not obligatory”. A person honest is perceived as being trust, and a profession consisting of honest people will be a reliable profession.

OBJECTIVENESS, INDEPENDENCE, IMPARTIALITY. Of course we all think we are independent and unbiased and we state this strongly. However, there may be certain situations that may influence us professional judgment without us realizing it right away. Whether it's writing an evaluation report for a former high school classmate we haven't seen in 20 years or for a company we worked for a while ago, even if it doesn't seem to have any influence on our judgment, subjectivity can be quite significant. Independence is an essential factor in shaping public perception of our profession and we must be able to prove at all times that professional judgment we are not compromised due to a possible conflict of interest.

PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE. Here I would highlight a few sentences from the Code of Ethics:

• „maintaining professional knowledge and skills at the necessary level so that the employer or clients benefit from servicii profesionale competente" – Before reaching the maintenance of knowledge, we must not ignore the initial professional training (training courses). This is where the foundations of the future skills of an authorized evaluator are laid. This is one of the intermediate steps that should not be neglected under any circumstances, because without a well-made foundation, a building will not last long. Equally important is maintaining a high level of professional training, a kind of maintenance, if we draw the parallel with the building again. In this regard, efforts will be combined: on the one hand, the Association will offer a diversified and adapted continuous training program to current needs, on the other hand, the evaluators will go through the training program and, moreover, will propose current topics for new professional training materials. And why not continue in this endeavor and add a beautiful roof or a precious architectural detail to the building – the distinction of ANEVAR Accredited Member – MAA, a high level of professional training.
• "Professional competence involves exercising judgment”, a reason, in the use of professional knowledge and skills. Possession of theoretical knowledge is not enough to successfully complete the assessment process. It is necessary professional judgment of the appraiser for choosing the most appropriate methods for estimating value. Otherwise, an ordinary computer would be enough to do all the work of the appraiser. And then we would no longer have a profession, but a data center.
• "The authorized appraiser will provide those appraisal services for which has competences and qualifications” and “Authorized assessors will not misrepresent qualifications and professional experience "own" - I perceive a nuanced difference between having a competence and being qualified for a certain activity. DEX defines competence as someone's ability to pronounce on something, based on a deep knowledge of the issue in question, while qualification can only mean the attribution of a quality, for example that of a certified appraiser or, more specifically, a certified appraiser in real estate valuation. In my opinion, simply having the EPI specialization is not equivalent to having the skills to evaluate any type of real estate property, from an apartment to a hotel or other complex property. I am convinced that no one is good at everything and that we should all be aware of this. In addition, instead of insisting on the area in which we could excel, we waste time trying to be good at everything, an attempt that usually ends in failure. Recognizing limits is not a form of self-disrespect, but a form of sincerityThe fact that we do not get involved in a mission that is beyond our competence will not reflect negatively on us, on the contrary, it may generate trust and respect from the customer. Moreover, providing impeccable valuation services for certain types of goods will definitely keep customers coming back.

The highlighting of certain words in the previous sentences is not accidental. I firmly believe that honesty, sincerity and truthfulness, both towards others and towards oneself, generate trust and the respect society towards us, as individuals, and towards the profession we represent. I am convinced that through perseverance, by maintaining a high level of training and professionalism, as well as by exercising impartial professional judgment, we will enjoy recognition this profession as being the only one whose representatives can professionally estimate the value of an asset.

The past is important and should be studied from the perspective of the mistakes made, so as not to repeat them in the present, as well as the good things that should inspire the future. The actions and thinking of the present are essential for planning the next actions. But the future takes priority. Let's think about the place we want to occupy in society and let's all act accordingly, now.

Article written by Laurențiu Stan, published in the magazine Value, wherever it is no. 20 (09.2018) – http://site2.anevar.ro/sites/default/files/revista-asociatiei/valoarea-oriunde-este-ea-nr20.pdf