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REALTOR® Emeritus | Retaining Top Personnel RESIGNATIONS AND TERMINATIONS | | |||
|  The Cost of Turnover Orientation Motivation Coaching and Mentoring Training Goal Setting Performance Assessment Resignation and Termination More Resources: Retaining Top Personnel Code of Ethics: Retaining Top Personnel | "Right Way to Say Goodbye to Your Agents," by Deborah H. Long, Real Estate Business, Winter 1991, p. 45-47. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner, Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers. Further reproduction or distribution without permission is prohibited. The Right Way to Say Goodbye to Your Agents Brokers can use these termination strategies to make a stressful situation more positive and even instructive. BY DEBORAH H. LONG, CRS Saying goodbye to agents is an experience that no broker relishes. Yet, it is an event that is extremely common in the real estate business. Most frequently, agents say goodbye to their brokers. But brokers also have the task of saying goodbye—to agents who, for whatever reason, are not working out. Either way, terminating the broker-agent relationship is so difficult that brokers often abdicate responsibility to a subordinate or avoid the duty altogether. One broker tries to get himself in the mood to terminate someone by playing the Roy Rogers tune "Happy Trails to You." Although terminating someone is rarely pleasant, there are some strategies that brokers can use to make the situation less stressful and even instructive. Periodic Evaluations Eliminate Surprises When a salesperson is about to be terminated, it should not be a surprise to either that salesperson or to the broker. Termination of the broker-sales agent relationship should be done only after much deliberation on the broker’s part and never in the heat of a dispute. Periodic evaluations of all sales staff should be completed by the broker-manager at least every three months. This regular examination of performance and productivity between the salesperson and the broker-manager can eliminate surprise or abrupt terminations that almost always create ill will. During the evaluation period prior to a possible termination, the broker-manager should have a private interview with the non-performing salesperson and review the goals they mutually set when the salesperson originally joined the company or during the last go-‘round of annual goal-setting. These goals should encompass personal as well as professional objectives. For example, the broker presumably has established minimum performance standards for all salespeople working in the company. Is this salesperson meeting that minimum? Is the sales agent performing up to his or her productivity expectations? Has the salesperson accomplished previously set educational or time management goals? Brokers may have other concerns to address during the evaluation, including attitude, ethics, health problems, image, and commitment. If the salesperson is not meeting company and personal goals that he helped set, it’s time to learn the reason. It is also appropriate at this time for the broker-manager and salesperson together to determine a course of remediation that will be followed over the next three months. During that time, should the salesperson show no improvement, he should be given a warning that termination is a likely event unless improvement is demonstrated. If the salesperson understands what is expected and continues not to meet those standards, chances are good that the salesperson will resign before you have the unpleasant task of terminating him. Conduct a Formal Exit Interview If a formal termination is necessary, the broker should hold an exit interview that should be conducted in private and preferably at the end of the day. The exit interview should begin by reviewing with the salesperson the broker’s reason for termination. If appropriate, the broker can make some positive remarks about the sales agent as an individual and, possibly, even suggest some alternative career possibilities. For example, perhaps a salesperson is not good at sales but would be great in appraisal or property management. To protect against any possible charges of discrimination, the broker must retain all notes and memoranda relating to prior discussions, evaluations, and remediation attempts with the salesperson. Also at the exit interview, the broker should discuss with the agent what is planned for his accounts or pending transactions. Although not all state laws require the broker to pay a sales agent once he has left the brokerage, it may still be the fair and ethical way of handling any remaining business. If the broker-manager does not believe the sales agent to be competent to complete his work or the broker does not want the agent to represent his office any longer, the sales agent must be advised that another salesperson in the office will be handling those matters and that the terminating salesperson will be paid a portion of the commissions received. If the broker can trust this salesperson, he should be allowed to complete any pending transactions and should be paid the full commission due him, state law permitting. The broker-manager should remind the salesperson that it is unethical to solicit or divert clients or customers obtained during his tenure with the broker’s office. Even if the salesperson takes only copies of files, he is guilty of break of fiduciary duty, which in some states is a misdemeanor. The broker-manager must further indicate that any commission due the salesperson will be paid at closing, but only if all outstanding debts have been paid and if all property belonging to the brokerage has been returned at that time. At the exit interview, the broker-manager must collect from the terminating sales agent any property keys, the company’s policy and procedure manual(s), office keys beepers, yard signs, and all client and customer files. Presumably many of these concerns are addressed in the company’s policy manual. When You Don’t Want Them to Leave Sometimes an agent you do not want to leave says goodbye to you. Again these circumstances should not be a surprise to either of you. An alert broker can see or sense when a sales associate is contemplating career changes. Some telltale signs: More time than usual out of the office, review of the termination section in the office policy manual. If an agent is a valued part of the team, the exit interview is critical. Done properly, the interview may even change the agent’s mind. Find out why the agent is leaving even if you suspect the answers to be painful. Agents leave for a variety of reasons. Most agents, when asked the reasons for dissatisfaction, respond: “I wasn’t doing the work I expected to do.” “There was no opportunity for promotion.” “I didn’t have a good relationship with the manager.” Surprisingly, research indicates that sales associates leave not because they can get more money working or another broker, but because they aren’t getting enough attention. Many salespeople are motivated by a desire for self-identification and self-esteem. Although money can satisfy some of those needs, the longing to be a meaningful part of the company and to be the best person in the company are also critical motivators for many top producers. Perhaps the salesperson wants to be a manager. Perhaps he wants a personal assistant. Perhaps she does want more money. And, perhaps, you can meet some of these needs. Sometimes agents leave to open their own brokerage companies. Some succeed, but statistics demonstrate that productive agents don’t necessarily make top brokers. Yet it is difficult to convince an agent who is having an entrepreneurial spasm to stay with your company. One possibility is to offer the agent the opportunity to run a branch office for you, and, if in a year he still wants entrepreneurial responsibilities, he can buy you out. Another possibility is offering profit sharing and or bonuses. Whether or not you can change the agent’s mind, the exit interview should accomplish several goals: To understand the real reasons the salesperson is leaving; to discover any misunderstanding; to retain the goodwill of the sales agent; and to prevent more agents from leaving. If you do not feel comfortable in asking the salesperson the necessary questions, an exit questionnaire can accomplish the same objectives. But this kind of problem on the broker’s part may reveal the problem for the departing sales agent. Under any circumstances, saying goodbye to a sales associate can be very difficult. Both parties can experience feelings of regret, relief, anger and grief. However, if the broker deals with the sales agent honestly and professionally, saying goodbye can be a healthy experience for both. Both the broker and the salesperson may learn more about their strengths and weaknesses and that may allow them to plan for a more successful future. Deborah H. Long, CRS, GRI, teaches real estate at Gold Coast School of Real Estate Inc. She holds a master’s degree in teaching adults and is working toward her Ph.D. in education. She also owns her own brokerage company, at which she may be contacted: Winter Harbor Realty, Inc., 1498 S.W. 15th Street, Boca Raton, FL 33486; 407/338-4262. "Right Way to Say Goodbye to Your Agents," by Deborah H. Long, Real Estate Business, Winter 1991, p. 45-47. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner, Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers. Further reproduction or distribution without permission is prohibited. More Resources: Retaining Top Personnel | |