Brokers: It’s Not All About the Money for Agents or Managers

Brokers: It’s Not All About the Money for Agents or Managers

Are you losing agents to competitors? The key: if you think you know your agents; get to know them better. Build a healthy culture and retention skyrockets.

Now that financial incentives to affiliate with one broker over another is climbing, it may be useful to focus on what creates and maintains a healthy organizational culture. When brokerage firms talk about their strong cultures, it’s important to focus on what is at the core.

Lencioni’s’ book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, is where it all starts.

The Five Dysfunctions

Absence of Trust. The fear of being vulnerable with team members prevents the building of TRUST within the team.

Fear of Conflict. The desire to preserve ARTIFICIAL HARMONY stifles the occurrence of productive, ideological conflict.

Lack of Commitment. The lack of CLARITY or BUY-IN prevents team members from making decisions to which they will stick.

Avoidance of Accountability. The need to avoid interpersonal discomfort prevents team members from holding one another ACCOUNTABLE for their behavior and performance.

Inattention to results. The pursuit of individual goals and personal status ERODES the focus on collective success.

Relationships Trump Money

While aggressive agent recruiting has always been a factor in residential brokerage, no one would disagree this recent wave is more prevalent than ever. The fundamental truth is that it’s not always about the commission split. Many other factors enter into an agent’s decision where they affiliate their business. At the heart of this are the features and benefits of a brokerage company, and also the feeling by an agent and a firm’s leadership that there is something unique and special about a company.

At this year’s Gathering of Eagles (GOE), Real Estate Coach Tom Ferry, who was part of the Dawning of a New Age Panel, “Don’t give a manager an office. Make them stay on the floor talking to people, helping them with calls. Listen to your agents and solve their pain points.” Keller Williams International CEO Josh Team agrees. “The purpose of our technology is to help agents be more efficient so they can focus on relationships. Where do you see your business in next five years? Staff now for your future. Then, listen to what your agents want and provide it to them.”

For Larry Kendall, founder of Ninja Training, his coaching program is all about building relationships—managers to agents and agents to consumers. His presentation at the Gathering of Eagles focused on helping agents figure out their why.

“When you know your people’s passion, their purpose, or their why, and, then you link that up with selling real estate, you have the rocket fuel that drives motivation. Simon Sinek, in his book, Start with Why, says a person or company’s why is at the core of what motivates them.

What we do is sell real estate. How we do it is the (name your company) Way. Why do we do it? What motivates your sales associates and managers? The why is their rocket fuel and usually falls into one of life’s four core values: Family, Occupation, Recreation, Dreams.”

“Want to build a world-class brokerage? Focus 100 percent of your time on building your culture, developing people and growing your business,” according to Mike Staver, a keynote speaker at this year’s GOE.

We know of many brokerage firms that, although they may have lost agents in this recent wave of aggressive recruiting, are still doing their own recruiting and growing. Their ability to do so is not based solely on financial metrics but on revealing what is unique about their company to the agents who work there.

Lencioni’s dysfunctions are an excellent way to focus you and your team on the fact that the only thing you can control is your behavior and results.