At OneSearch, we believe our strength lies in the collective expertise, passion, and unique stories of the individuals who form our team. In our ‘Meet the Team’ series, we invite you to step behind the scenes and discover the diverse talents that drive our commitment to uncompromising quality. Today, we’re incredibly excited to introduce you to someone truly special: our Managing Director, Liz Jarvis. Known for her unique blend of wit, unwavering loyalty, and an inspiring passion for learning, Liz’s remarkable three-decade journey with OneSearch offers a unique window into the values and vision that truly make the OneSearch difference every single day.
Liz Jarvis grew up on a diet of comedy. She loved Bill Hicks. And, like her parents, she adored Billy Connolly.
“We had all of his vinyl albums,” says Liz. “I would take them upstairs to listen to them. He does a big spiel called ‘The Crucifixion’. It’s around 30 minutes long. I could perform it word for word for word.”
Her OneSearch colleagues have often wondered aloud if she missed her calling as a comedian.
There’s far more to our Managing Director than an irrepressible ability to make people laugh, and as she marks a significant milestone, we thought it was a good time for our customers, colleagues and other industry professionals to find out more about the woman who:
Lets squirrels climb on her monitor during Teams calls
Was chucked out of a séance at York Dungeon for a fit of giggles, and
Once gave a lift to a distraught man at Glasgow Royal Infirmary who, it transpired – much to husband Tom’s dismay – had got lost delivering a curry to a patient.
30 years and counting
Liz has been with OneSearch almost as long as we’ve been collecting data.
She’s now reached 30 years with the company and has seen OneSearch grow from its embryonic stage to where it is today. It has been quite the trajectory; for OneSearch and Liz.
OneSearch has grown from a small town planning practice in West Dunbartonshire to a team of over 200 offering the most extensive range of property information datasets in the UK.
Meanwhile, Liz has risen all the way up the ranks from a junior role in the data team to become Managing Director of OneSearch and Director of Legal & Search at Landmark. And her journey has been recognised by Scottish Business Insider magazine, which named her among Scotland’s most inspiring business women.
Things could have been very different were it not for a quirk in Liz’s employment history.
Tiptoeing past the typing test
Do you remember Ceefax?
Way back when TV only had five channels, before the words analogue or digital had entered common parlance, Ceefax (and its little sister Teletext) was the red button of its day. Working at Newstel after graduating from Leeds University, Liz was responsible for adding updates on the shipping forecasts and the day’s horoscopes.
Cromarty, Forth, Tyne, Dogger. North or northeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first, except in Cromarty. Fair. Good, occasionally moderate … Sagittarius. In a social setting, you could come across as a person who is eccentric and yet very interesting.
You might think that experience would have meant Liz was a fast typer. So did the founding partners of SPH (as OneSearch was originally called) when they were hiring her back in 1995. Such was their confidence in her typing skills that they excused Liz from having to take the company’s (then) mandatory typing test.
Liz is convinced, if she had been made to take it, she wouldn’t have passed. You had to achieve so many words per minute and she knew that, while meticulous, she simply wasn’t fast enough.
“I’m the only person they ever took on that they didn’t give the typing test to,” Liz tells us.
While Liz was spared that particular challenge, her upbringing taught her the importance of not avoiding difficult situations.
Being there for people
Liz and her brother had an unusual but happy childhood.
Their parents instilled strong values in them. Doing the right thing for society was always a big deal.
“My dad, in particular, was a real believer in doing the right thing. No matter how uncomfortable things were, my dad would always make us go and do it.”
Liz remembers the time, when she was a young teen, a neighbour passed away. Her dad made her go round and speak to his widow.
“I remember thinking, ‘I don’t want to do this. I don’t know what to say’. But actually, my dad forcing me into those situations at a young age meant that now, whatever’s happened to anybody, I’ll be the first to phone them up and say, ‘I’m coming round’.”
It’s not about knowing the right thing to say. It’s about being physically present.
Brought up at The Big Hoose
Liz grew up at, but not in, Scotland’s largest prison.
Bar-L. The Big Hoose. HMP Barlinnie, where her dad was a prison warder. (Her mum was a conveyancer.)
Liz’s family lived in prison quarters. They were there during the famous riots when prisoners were launching slates off the roof. Many hit and smashed the family’s windows.
It taught her how to survive in an environment where people really don’t like you.
“We lived in a really tight-knit community, because all the prison officers lived together. Everybody looked out for one another. Everybody protected everyone else.”
It’s why Liz believes it’s so important for young people to feel safe.
“It’s my turn to do it”
Liz is passionate about helping younger people get into a better situation.
That’s why she’s excited about her new role as a member of Landmark’s Social Values programme. Part of Liz’ recent history has included working closely with the King’s Trust to support and provide opportunities for 15 to 18-year-olds.
“If you don’t catch people at a young age and steer them onto a path which is more sustainable and better for their self-esteem, then that’s when things can start to spiral and go wrong.”
Liz believes if you put people on a good path, they’ll start to thrive.
“I believe in giving people chances, because all the way along the road, everybody’s done that for me. I’m 52 now, and I think that it’s my turn to do it for other people.”
Not that Liz hasn’t already been helping people.
Steps to resilience
Since she was a student, Liz has always volunteered.
She’s worked at the Citizens Advice Bureau, taught adult literacy courses and worked in a Glasgow soup kitchen. Along the way, she’s met lots of interesting people.
So when Roy Stirrat, one of the founding partners of SPH and Chair of the Link Group, asked if she would like to join the board of LinkLiving – a trauma-informed charity that supports people’s health, wellbeing, independence and community inclusion – it didn’t take Liz long to answer. Four years later, she became the Chair, a position she held for five or six years.
“I absolutely loved that role. Going around the different projects, meeting a lot of the service users, you just realise how fortunate your life really is.”
One particular story sticks in her mind.
A 15-year-old girl was being bullied at school. So much so that she felt unable to go outside the house.
“Her parents were at their wits end. They didn’t know what to do as they watched her sink into depression. She couldn’t get out, couldn’t form relationships. Her self-esteem and confidence were at rock bottom. Then her school recommended she go on LinkLiving’s ‘Steps to Resilience’ programme.”
At the end of the 16-week course, she was a different person.
“You wouldn’t have recognised her. Her mother wrote this really touching letter. It would have brought a tear to a glass eye. She told us how it had completely changed her daughter’s life. How she could never have imagined at the start that she would have come out as this person. For the first time in two years, she was going on public transport. She couldn’t do that before. She had been so fearful of everything outside the front door.”
Volunteering: the gift that keeps on giving
Liz is convinced that one of the best ways to make yourself happy is to do things for other people.
“Helping other people brings continuous joy, and it’s so good for your own wellbeing. You also develop your own skills, empathy and understanding at the same time. It’s a totally two-way street.”
It doesn’t need to be a huge thing that you do. Something small, almost inconsequential to you, can make a massive impact on someone else’s life. “Human connection”, says Liz, “can make people suddenly feel they have a part to play in society and that somebody is looking out for them. Never underestimate what a difference small acts of kindness can make.”
Volunteering also gives you a chance to learn, which is something Liz loves, loves, loves to do.
An insatiable love of learning
Liz doesn’t think of herself as academic, but she’s always been interested in philosophy.
“I love deep and meaningful conversations. The problem is nobody ever wants to have them with me!” she says with a chuckle. “So I had to pay to do a course to have people talk about philosophy with me.”
During lockdown, Liz started attending evening classes with Glasgow University. Among others, she’s taken courses on:
Existentialism
Moral philosophy
Contemporary ethics
Nature versus nurture
How to research the history of your house
One thing that Liz has realised from her studies is how “daft wee things can lead to other things.”
For that last course, Liz decided to research the history of her first house, an old tenement near Shawlands and Battlefield, on the south side of Glasgow. She started making TikTok videos about it, and then about the East End of Glasgow.
This caught the attention of the BBC and she was invited to take part in a documentary about her experience of growing up at Barlinnie. Liz being Liz, though, many of the stories she shared were too funny for her interview to make the final cut.
However, Liz has no regrets about it. Because her philosophy is simple: never say no to an opportunity.
It’s something she picked up from her mentors at OneSearch.
Believing in herself, believing in others
Who has had the greatest impact on Liz’s career?
Marcus Noble, the former chairman of OneSearch. Still a close friend, Marcus taught Liz to believe in herself.
“Every uncomfortable situation, he would say to me, ‘go and do it. Don’t wait. Do it now.’ Whether that was phoning someone up or standing my ground about something, he would force me to do it. My nature is more compliance. But his actions completely transformed my self-belief.”
Instilling belief in others is something Liz has taken into her own style of mentoring – an approach that has helped develop talent throughout OneSearch.
“If somebody gets an opportunity and doesn’t believe they can do it, give me one hour with that person and I will convince them it’s something they can do. You can get down the road and realise maybe that’s not quite right for me and then change direction. But you’ve got to go for it. Run at it at 100 miles an hour.”
Liz also takes great pride in seeing talent develop, whether that be taking on the challenge of senior roles or progressing their career elsewhere.
People like Carol Gildea at OneSearch. Zoe Fillingham and Rob Steadman at our sister company SearchFlow, and her old sidekick from their days on the road together in England: Karen Bartke, aka Officer Karen from the BBC Scotland mockumentary Scots Squad.
“Karen left because I encouraged her to chase her dreams. I told her, ‘you don’t want to be 65 standing at the bus stop somewhere with the rain running down your back, thinking if only I’d done it. You can do this. You can do it!’”
What advice would Liz give to someone starting out on their career?
1. Build relationships
“It’s so important to make good contacts and build great relationships with people.”
2. Be all over technology.
“In the past we were able to think, ‘oh, mañana, mañana.’ But everything moves at such a pace now, so if you’re not at the forefront of that, if you’re not researching it, you’re going to get left behind. You need to be in the forums. To be heard at these discussion groups, whether it’s local law societies or government steering groups. You need a place at the table.”
3. Never stop learning
“I’ve still got millions to learn. From courses. From colleagues. From people I work with. Along the way you pick up wee nuggets about things. You never ever stop learning.”
4. Surround yourself with people who know more than you
“I’m surrounded by brilliant people who are great at all the stuff that I’m not. And maybe for me, my biggest skill in life was simply being the glue in the middle that held other people together.”
It’s a fitting note to end on. But just then, our Teams call is joined by a special guest.
A squirrel hops up onto the window sill.
“Wee Sheena.” One of Liz’s regular guests, dropping by with the same easy familiarity as any OneSearch colleague.
Looking for accurate data and reliable property searches? Connect with a OneSearch Business Development Manager in your area to get started with OneSearch today – visit our registration page.
Are you looking to make your ordering process even smoother? We’ve just released two brand new how-to videos designed to help you navigate our order portal and mapping tool with ease.
Whether you’re a new customer or just need a refresher, these quick guides will help you get the most out of our services.
Watch Our Latest How-To Guides:
How to place an order via the OneSearch order platform: This video walks you step-by-step through our intuitive order portal. Learn how to easily place new orders, and track the progress of existing or previous ones, all in one convenient place. Say goodbye to confusion and hello to effortless ordering!
How to use our mapping tool when placing an order: Our mapping tool is a quick and easy replacement for when you are unable to source a pre-existing boundary plan, which is required as part of your order. This video will show you how to effectively use this tool to ensure accuracy and efficiency when placing your orders, saving you time and preventing potential issues.
We’re committed to providing you with the best possible experience, and these videos are just one more way we’re making it easier for you to do business with us.
Ready to Dive In?
You can find these new videos, along with our full library of helpful guides, on our official YouTube channel.
We hope these resources help streamline your ordering process and enhance your experience with us. Do you have any other video topics you’d like to see covered in the future?
Last night, the iconic Jam House in Birmingham was abuzz with excitement as OneSearch and Ladies of Law co-hosted a memorable networking event in celebration of International Women’s Day 2025.
The evening, which also commemorated the one-year anniversary of the partnership between OneSearch and Ladies of Law, was a resounding success, bringing together an incredible group of professionals to honour the remarkable achievements of women in the legal industry.
Claire Slade, one of the organisers of the event, said: “The evening was a true celebration of the strength, resilience, and achievements of women in the legal industry. To see the attendees making such valuable connections with peers at all stages of their careers was fantastic. We hope everyone left feeling left feeling inspired and empowered!”
One of the highlights of the evening was an inspiring talk from Alice Kinder, who spoke to the attendees about her personal journey and professional achievements, as well as the importance of proactivity and seizing opportunities, self-determination in shaping one’s career and life, and the need for the legal profession to evolve with the world, promoting diversity and inclusion.
Ella Watts, founder of Ladies of Law said after the event: “It was a wonderful evening. You could see the connections being made through networking, lots of people came on their own which was lovely to see!”
We at OneSearch are grateful to everyone who attended and made this event such a success. It was a magical evening, and we look forward to many more opportunities to celebrate and support the incredible women in our community. Here’s to many more years of partnership and celebration!
Let us leave you with this section from Alice Kinder’s talk:
“This year’s theme for International Women’s Day, Accelerate Action, is a powerful reminder that progress doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when we work together to push forward, open doors for others, and create space for those coming up behind us. As an employment lawyer, I see the workplace changing every day, but there is so much more to be done. Progress requires intention. It requires us to champion fairness, advocate for inclusion, and stand firm in the face of inequality.“
– Alice Kinder
We have been made aware of an increase in costs from our supplier Groundsure. This increase has meant a selection of products available via OneSearch will be subject to a price update, effective the 1st April 2025.
If you are currently a OneSearch customer, your account manager will be in contact with you soon to discuss the specific increases, as well as advise about alternative products available. Alternatively you can get in touch with us and we will be more than happy to assist you.
The property transaction process is a complex jigsaw puzzle involving multiple pieces – conveyancers, estate agents, lenders, surveyors, and, of course, the buyers and sellers themselves. Typically, these groups have often operated in silos, with communication barriers and information gaps hindering efficiency and causing frustration for everyone involved.
However, there’s a growing recognition that breaking down these silos and fostering a collaborative approach is crucial for streamlining transactions, reducing stress, and improving the overall experience for all involved. When asked what would make the biggest positive impact to their productivity and business success, 43% of responders to Landmark’s recent market research suggested that less chasing between stakeholders was top of their list of requests, as well as greater transactional visibility (29%).
So, what are the first steps? Understanding the issue at hand is the first jigsaw piece.
Silos: the unwavering obstacle in property transactions
There are several headaches that could potentially occur when all parties involved in a property transaction work in isolation from each other:
Communication breakdowns: Information gets lost in translation, leading to misunderstandings, delays, and errors. Sometimes key knowledge may only be known by one person, leaving transactions susceptible to annual leave, sickness, or departures.
Duplication of effort: Different parties may end up requesting the same information or performing the same tasks, wasting time and resources.
Lack of transparency: Buyers and sellers may end up left in the dark about the progress of their transaction, leading to stress and frustration.
Increased risk: Without a clear overview of the entire process, potential risks and issues may be missed or addressed too late.
Elizabeth Jarvis, Managing Director of OneSearch echoed this point in a recent industry roundtable discussion: “One of the biggest frustrations [in the industry] that is wasting time really is chasing one another through all different parts of the process.”
“I wonder why it has taken a really long time,” Elizabeth continued, “It feels like the thing that we’ve never really been able to solve is this transparency or ability to see what other people are doing, putting information in a central place where everyone can access it together instead of it being phone calls and emails.”
The recent survey highlighted these issues, with 53% of responders listing the length of time it takes to complete a transaction as the biggest frustration, with poor communication (31%) not far behind.
The Benefits of Collaboration
In contrast, a collaborative approach to property transactions offers numerous advantages:
Streamlined communication: A centralised platform or system allows for seamless information sharing between all parties, reducing delays and preventing miscommunications.
Increased efficiency: By working together, parties can avoid duplication of effort, optimise workflows, and accelerate the transaction process.
Improved transparency: Clients have a clear view of the progress of their transaction, reducing stress and building trust, without too much of a bombardment of communications.
Reduced risk: A collaborative approach allows for early identification and mitigation of potential risks, ensuring a smoother and more secure transaction.
Enhanced client satisfaction: A more efficient, transparent, and collaborative process leads to a better overall experience for buyers and sellers.
Technology at the heart of progress
Technology plays a crucial role in facilitating collaboration in property transactions. Digital platforms and tools can:
Create a central hub: Provide a single source of truth for all transaction-related information, accessible to all parties.
Automate tasks: Reduce manual effort and streamline workflows, freeing up time for more valuable activities. This includes checking of potentially incomplete documents, so that time isn’t wasted when this is discovered weeks after uploading.
Facilitate communication: Enable real-time communication and collaboration between parties, regardless of location.
Enhance transparency: Provide clients with online access to their transaction documents and progress updates.
Rob Steadman, Sales Director within Landmark Information Group, who also participated in the roundtable, noted that future offerings from Landmark were placed to be an ideal solution.
“There’s potentially new things that [Landmark] are bringing to the market, which is harnessing the power of AI. The fact that we touch across the whole property ecosystem so that gives us a really good insight into transactions”
“We’re excited really with the position that we’re in…almost to have a vault that’s very clear, very secure.”
The Role of Conveyancers in Driving Collaboration
Conveyancers are uniquely positioned to champion collaboration in property transactions. They act as a central point of contact for various stakeholders and have a vested interest in ensuring a smooth and efficient process, such as:
Advocate for technology adoption: Encourage the use of digital platforms and tools that facilitate collaboration.
Promote open communication: Establish clear communication channels and protocols with other parties.
Educate clients: Explain the benefits of a collaborative approach and encourage client participation.
Build strong relationships: Foster trust and mutual understanding with estate agents, lenders, and other stakeholders.
Breaking down silos and fostering collaboration is not just beneficial – it’s essential. By embracing technology, improving communication, and working together, all stakeholders can contribute to a more efficient, transparent, and client-centric process.
The individuals within the conveyancing sector have a key role to play in driving this change. By championing collaboration, conveyancers can enhance their own expertise, improve client satisfaction, and contribute to a more streamlined and efficient property market.
The conveyancing sector is facing a perfect storm of challenges as 2025 gets up to full speed. Regulatory burdens and economic uncertainty, to the rise of AI and automation, all whilst battling clients demands and expectations; it’s a complex industry landscape, perhaps more so than ever before.
However, amongst these challenges, a spirit of resilience and proactivity is emerging. Conveyancers are taking control of the controllables; embracing innovation and seeking solutions to streamline processes and improve efficiency.
This shift in mindset is evident in the recent market research from Landmark Information Group. Over half of responders (52%) are now taking matters into their own hands by assigning workloads more effectively, while 34% are digitising more processes. Proactively sourcing new business and investing in improved training are also high on responders 2025 priorities.
What Tech Can Do For You
Understanding and integrating new technology can be a daunting task for conveyancing firms, especially with the rapid pace of recent advancements.
“Everybody’s grappling with the fact that the technological capabilities [in conveyancing] are accelerating at such a pace,” admitted Rob Steadman, Sales Director within Landmark Information Group.
“If you deploy AI today, tomorrow there’s almost like the next better version of AI to change it.”
Liz Jarvis, Managing Director of OneSearch highlights the need for dedicated education and training: “There’s an assumption by a lot of people that there’s all this information out there about tech, prop tech, and AI technology, and how it can help your firm. But actually, I don’t think that that’s fully translated into how it can be adopted.
“I think conveyancers and others doing this role, they actually need a lot more information about what that can do [for them] specifically, rather than big noise of a release of this technology. What does it mean to me and to my firm? How long will it take me? How long and what cost will it take for this to embed in my business?
“There’s the worry, what if I invest this money now? Is it obsolete in 12 months’ time?”
The feels are reflected in the market research; 62% of respondents listed the knowledge gap within their team as an aspect which has challenged progress, as well as the slow pace of change towards a digital outlook (62%).
Collaboration and Communication: Bridging the Gaps
Another key theme for 2025 is the need for improved communication and collaboration among all stakeholders in the property transaction process. Participants highlighted the frustration caused by chasing information and the lack of transparency in the system.
Liz Jarvis continued along this point: “One of the biggest frustrations and things that is wasting time really is that chasing one another through all different parts of the process whether it would be a surveyor, an estate agent, the other side of the transaction, the purchaser or the vendor.
“I wonder why it’s taken a really long time. It feels like the thing we’ve never really been able to solve is this transparency or ability to see what other people are doing, putting information in a central place where everyone can access it together instead of it being phone calls and email.”
This desire for greater transparency and collaboration points to the need for solutions that can bring all stakeholders together in a central hub, providing a single source of truth and facilitating seamless information sharing.
Looking Ahead: A Call for Bold Leadership and Continued Innovation
The recent market research from Landmark paints a picture of a sector that is facing challenges head-on, embracing innovation, and actively seeking solutions to improve efficiency and client experience. Conveyancers are taking control, demanding more from technology providers, and prioritising collaboration and communication.
Moving forward, direction and continued innovation will be crucial. As Rob Steadman emphasised, “It’s going to come down to bold leadership across the sector to be clearly heard as to what their priorities are.”
By working together, conveyancers, technology providers, and other stakeholders can create a more efficient, transparent, and client-centric property transaction process. The challenges are real, but the opportunities are even greater.
The Landmark 2024 residential conveyancing survey tells a ‘tale of two halves’. One is about hope for economic stability as we enter autumn with listings and sales volumes rising, and interest rates falling. The other is about how conveyancers are still struggling with slow transaction times, insufficient resources, and general lack of transparency. For more details, be sure to download the market research results today.
