COACHING: To Win, You Need a Winning Office Culture

Core values are key
Core values are key

By David Lally

Brokers and managers face a challenging task: to be successful you must constantly recruit agents while helping to develop the careers of your more experienced ones. Then, for those agents who survive the first challenging 18 months, you face headhunting from competitors.

As agent productivity goes up, the pressure to reduce commission splits increases. For many brokers and managers, this cyclical pressure can lead to burnout.

When you encounter a business with a strong work environment there is a sense that employees enjoy what they are doing and there tends to be team involvement in the growth and development of that organization. This is a place where people feel cared for. Ideally, you want your clients to experience this every time they walk through your door. If they feel cared for, if they catch the buzz of a great team, they’ll naturally want to refer you to others. The necessities to building a winning office culture are as follows:

1. Don’t let the tail wag the dog?establish your core values

Managers often fall into the trap of believing they must meet every whim or demand of their agents in order to keep them. Unfortunately, this results in a culture of chaos where small, unimportant issues steal your time?where the tail wags the dog. Successful brokers and managers establish their core values and then make decisions for their agents based on these values. You must devote time to establishing?or re-committing?to your company?s core values. What kind of business do you want to run? What do you value? What is your long-term goal for the business? What are your business standards? To help you determine these key points, follow these steps:

Write a mission statement.

Develop clear performance standards?what you expect from your agents and what they can expect from you.

Write clear job descriptions.

Create a system to hold people accountable to core values.

Brainstorm with agents and staff about how to implement your values everyday. This fosters not just a sense of involvement and loyalty, but lends purpose and clarity to everyday activities.

2. Communicate your core values continuously

While establishing core values is of great importance, constantly articulating them is of equal importance when building an office that agents want to be a part of. It is not enough to develop values, share them once with your people and then expect things to change. You must reiterate them as often as possible. This must be an ongoing and consistent process if you want it to have an impact.

3. Be a mentor

Core values are not a gimmick or monthly exercise. They are the standard you set for your business, so they must also be the standard you set for yourself. Actions speak louder than words, and you cannot expect a change in your office if you are unwilling to implement change in your own life. Consider getting certified as a mentor?it is the fastest way to gain the skills and systems necessary to implement a winning office culture and boost profitability.

By following these steps you are well on the way to developing a vibrant office culture.

David Lally is the senior writer/editor at Buffini & Company. For more information, visit www.buffiniandcompany.com.