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Building a strong team is one of the hardest parts of real estate — you might find quality where you least expect it.
We are in a season of change, and that means everything from national regulations, the market itself and teams. And, change is contagious. All of the upheaval on a macro level has people thinking about change on a personal level; some brokers who always thought they would be independent are moving to teams, and vice versa.
For my team, this time of change has been used to restructure and harken back to our collaborative team roots. It has also meant recruitment.
When I am recruiting, I am always reminded of the importance of relationships, especially in our industry. In fact, I cannot think of another industry more driven by networks — many of our clients are living in homes as a result of people I know and my broker relationships.
I recently sat down to think about where I should focus my efforts, and I made a list of how and where I have found my current team members. The results were so surprising and great non-traditional recruitment sources. If you are also in a period of growth and change, hopefully, you find this framework helpful for finding top talent.
Transactions
Whenever my team or I work with a broker on the other side of the transaction with whom we are impressed, I always add their name to my running file. We have also had other brokers approach us this way as well, and I believe it is due to our organizational processes. Outside brokers see how well we work together and how on top of transactions we are, and they are intrigued.
Clients
Would you believe me if I said my director of client concierge was a past client? It is true. After posting the position on social media, a client who had just closed on her new home reached out with interest. She told me that working with Busby Group was so different from her perceived experience of buying real estate — less stressful — and that she felt it must be a positive work environment. She has been with us for several years.
Good old fashioned networking
Good old fashioned networking has never let me down. In fact, our director of operations and marketing manager were both referred to me by connections within my network. So now, when I am looking to grow the team again, I put out another call to my professional contacts including lenders, managing brokers and developers, and I again received a great response. These are people who work with brokers every day, so it comes as no surprise that they have a few recommendations.
I have had several interviews with brokers who my network connected me to, and each time they have been quality interviews. This is just another reason that maintaining a positive connection is so important — never burn a bridge.
Change is hard, but maybe even harder is building a great team. I try to embrace this time as a season of growth, with a mentality of building back stronger. I am excited to see what happens next.
Julie Busby is the founder and president of Busby Group, and in the top 1 percent of Chicagoland brokers. Follow her on Facebook and LinkedIn.
