Inman is exploring what the future of real estate leadership should look like through a series of articles, Q&As with industry pros, and an upcoming five-part series called Leadership Week. Please send your feedback to leadership@inman.com. If you’re a leader who wants to join us for our exclusive Disconnect in The Desert event on March 26-28, or want to recommend a colleague, send a note to brad@inman.com explaining why.
From my 30 years of experience in the professional Realtor association industry, I’ve been fortunate to work with many talented broker owners and managers who have left a lasting impression in our 7,000-plus member association in metro Denver.
Managing a brokerage is a multi-faceted and demanding job. It involves leading and operating a multitude of different personalities while simultaneously navigating a highly competitive and complicated industry.
Brokerage leaders set the bar of professionalism for all real estate agents within their organization and have three core competencies within their position:
- Recruitment and retention: It’s leadership’s job to attract and keep the best agents at the brokerage.
- Compliance with laws and ethics: Brokerage managers must ensure all agents are educated, up-to-date and compliant with relevant real estate laws and policies. They also must ensure agents are adhering to the Realtor Code of Ethics when dealing with buyers and sellers as well as other real estate agents.
- Sales training and production: Brokerage managers are responsible for ongoing agent sales training and elevating overall production numbers.
Successful broker owners and managers seamlessly execute on all three duties above to maintain and propel an effective firm.
From years of observing inspiring broker owners and managers from the association side, it can be concluded that many of the best have notably similar characteristics.
Below are some of those qualities, in no particular order. Great brokerage leaders are:
Empathic
They’ve walked in their agents’ shoes. Many of the most successful broker owners have been successful agents themselves. This helps them understand the challenges agents in their office face and gives them the experience needed to offer sage advice.
Plus, having this background allows them to set a good example of what a top real estate agent looks like.
Entrepreneurs
Another common quality of a successful broker owner or manager is having an entrepreneurial spirit. They have a desire to carve out a space in this industry, both for themselves and their company, and are extremely driven in their careers.
Customer focused
Great broker owners and managers understand they are in the “people business.” They are motivators and connecters who know that forming meaningful relationships is imperative not only to sell real estate but also to make it in the professional world.
Supportive and caring
Today’s successful broker owners and managers appear to be more focused on developing a company culture and creating a supportive environment.
They care about their agents’ families and encourage community involvement. They provide employee benefits and work-life balance, and by doing so, they attract like-minded individuals who fit the company culture.
Educators
Successful broker owners and managers are available to fully answer any questions that may arise.
The real estate business has become increasingly complicated. Leaders in this space must not only stress to their agents the importance of continuing education but also be available to answer questions and help agents navigate any complications they may encounter.
Committed to the industry
There is a consistent call to raise the level of professionalism, and broker owners and managers must be the first to answer. Many of the best brokerage managers are committed to a high level of excellence and bettering the industry at large, which directly translates into their organizations.
Being a broker owner and manager is both a challenging and rewarding profession. The best professionals in this segment are top decision makers, strategic thinkers and great leaders.
The profession involves wearing many hats as well as leading and managing many different personalities, and it’s a highly respected and valued position within the industry.
Ann Turner is the chief executive officer at the Denver Metro Association of Realtors (DMAR). You can follow DMAR on Twitter at @DMARealtors.
