Technology TransactionsRecruiting Should Begin At The Office
As any good teacher knows, we often teach what we need the most. Real estate brokers or managers learn to ride the waves or wipe out, and there is one tsunami out there that is crashing down - the need for massive recruiting.
It would not surprise me to find out that, back in the caveman days of real estate, the largest neighborhood broker, known to his closest associates as “15% Man Who Not Cut Commission” (Oh, to think where we once were,) worried all the time about how he would replace his agents. Between the losses due to predatory beast attacks and the lure of other upstart brokers promising his agents bigger and better cuts from the weekly kill, he had trouble.
Here we are, a few zillion millenniums later, worrying about the same thing as old 15% Man. It doesn’t take much savvy to look around any large real estate gathering and quickly glean that the average agent out on the beat today remembers Sid Caesar’s Show Of Shows like it was yesterday.
The fact that most members of management are (please take this with love) clueless as to how to recruit the Gen X’er into the business (never mind the Y’s) makes for a dead end for many companies. So, what are we doing about it? Far too little.
So, let’s start with setting some new standards at the office.
If you want to recruit business-minded folks of any age who are willing to run their businesses like true profit centers, people who take responsibility for their own success and never wallow in victimology, wanting handouts at every turn, then you are going to have to demonstrate a company environment where these things are possible. Here are four points to consider that could make the difference in whether you have a profitable office or an unprofitable revolving door.
Your lowest producer sets your minimum standards. Why would a potential shooter come to your company when you tolerate mediocrity? And, if s/he did come, how long will it take him or her to catch on and move on? That creates a revolving door and costs you much in wasted time, not to mention the rotten PR you get when these people leave.
Your company needs vision and mission statements. Don"t leave them sitting in a drawer somewhere but post them in conspicuous places around the company. They are intended to inspire the troops.
You need a procedures manual with a code of conduct included. All existing and new agents should sign it and agree to abide by whatever standards you and management deem appropriate. This is not optional and anyone who is not with you is against you. Now that’s a standard you can sink your teeth into.
Don’t be daunted by the prospect of creating a procedures manual from scratch. Many companies already have them in place and are willing to share. Check with other companies in your network or franchise and you will find a wealth of information available. The effort in completing this task is more than offset by the gains to be realized.
Insist that agents cover desk costs. Are all of your agents required to cover desk costs? Do commissions get withheld in full or in part until desk costs are reached? What is the company policy on allowing nonproductive agents to remain aboard? If you are allowing people to flounder indefinitely, you are helping them to fail, not to succeed. Would you want to work for a company that was so little invested in itself that people were supported toward failure and success was accidental?
It"s a tough question but a critical one. The bottom-line profitability of companies is far too slim (two percent net if you are lucky) to allow people who cost money to linger. And nonproductive agents cost money. They walk on your floors, drink your coffee, use your supplies, fill your space and cause great agents frustration. No one likes a slacker, especially a home run hitter. If you doubt that, ask your best agents how they feel about the people just taking up space.
You’ll get an ear full.