THE UNITE GROUP PLC Annual Report and Accounts 2024 39 Q: CAN YOU SUMMARISE HOW UNITE STUDENTS’ STRATEGY HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED IN 2024? A: We have refreshed our strategy, based around our purpose – Home for Success – creating communities where young people thrive. Our strategic vision is to be the leading living platform for young people. Building from a position of strength, we will become the partner of choice for the strongest UK universities, the preferred home for university students of all years, and for young renters. Our strategy is to accelerate our core growth while building for the future. This is built around revenue growth, university partnerships, our development pipeline and asset initiatives. Q: WHAT ARE THE MAIN TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVES THE COMPANY HAS INVESTED IN DURING 2024 AND HOW ARE THEY MAKING A DIFFERENCE? A: We are upgrading the digital experience for our customers and employees and 2024 reflects the first of three years of strong delivery. We upgraded the customer website to improve the initial experience from awareness through to booking, as well as our customer app, to improve the living experience. Our new brand and digital asset portals professionalise our customer messaging and our Stripe payment portals improve the management of customer payments. Our colleagues enjoy a new rewards and benefits platform, plus a more tailored wellbeing platform. Q: HOW WILL THE INVESTMENTS MADE OVER THE PAST 12 MONTHS IMPACT ON THE BUSINESS GOING FORWARD? A: Over the next couple of years, the business will upgrade our finance systems and processes, improving efficiency through automation. We will also launch our primary service management platform to support student case management and maintenance. Our new booking and inventory management system will be upgraded to manage the end-to-end sales booking journey and coordinate all operational activities. Q: WHAT’S BEEN THE BIGGEST POSITIVE SO FAR AND WHAT DOES UNITE STUDENTS’ SUCCESSFUL GROWTH IN 2025 LOOK LIKE TO YOU? A: It is fantastic to have refreshed our strategy, based around our purpose, to provide clarity in our ambition. We’re starting to deploy digital value to our customers improving the customer experience, both before and during their time living with us, through a more self-service approach and by improving the way our employees interact and spend their time. Successful growth is implementing the first year of our five-year strategy, focusing on our priorities and continuing our finance transformation. This also involves focusing on residents’ experience and property management milestones. Building for growth Q&A with Tom Ellis, Group Strategy & Technology Director “ Building from a position of strength, we will become the partner of choice for the strongest UK universities.”