Healthy culture is as vital to real estate success as responding lightning fast to leads, using a smartphone and networking.
No matter your real estate role, you have the power to define and shape the culture of your workplace. We outline five ways you can strengthen and maintain culture in your company and office below.
Define the culture
Identify the core principles that your company lives by everyday, write them down and display them prominently. Use them as a compass to guide you to success.
These values make up your secret sauce, how and why you do business differently than your competitors. Drivers of company culture include engagement, empowerment and purpose. Keep in mind that these fundamentals should drive all decision-making, actions and behaviors.
Develop the people
Your team is the heart of your organization. When your team members are engaged and empowered, innovation and creativity thrives.
You can help encourage engagement and empowerment by:
- Setting clear standards and expectations for each employee and staff member.
- Encouraging team members to take on new challenges to develop their skill and talent.
- Recognizing strengths and delivering timely and effective feedback.
Build trust
Trust is the foundation of any high-performing team. Without trust, things fall apart: communication fails, misunderstandings proliferate and people become guarded. When this happens, innovation, creativity and performance diminish.
It takes time and effort to secure strong bonds and personal connections. Set your expectations by leading by example – demonstrate a high degree of integrity by honoring all of your commitments, telling the truth and maintaining confidentiality.
Think strategically
To think strategically, you should understand your company inside and out. Know the experts to contact when looking to make the best and most effective decision for the company. Instead of dwelling on roadblocks, take a solutions-minded approach to them.
Communicate effectively
Communication is more than what you say – it’s how you say it. Good communicators recognize how their words, tone and physiology affect a conversation. More importantly, they listen to the challenges and solutions of others around them.
Paint a clear vision of what you need from your team members and why their roles are important, and offer ideas and suggestions on how they can best contribute. Also, make sure to keep cool and an open mind under pressure.
If you have any questions or would like more information on how the Quicken Loans Agent Relations team can help you grow your business, call (888) 980-4601 or email us at AgentRelations@QuickenLoans.com. You can also visit us at RealEstate.QuickenLoans.com. Quicken Loans leadership development team was consulted for this post.