Reimagining your Relocation Department for the Future
Real estate brokers are facing a lot of Relocation Director retirements. Actually, it’s not so much an industry aging problem, it’s more of an “I’m worn out and I don’t find joy in this anymore” problem. Every day I hear about more Relocation Directors who are considering retirement or moving on to something else. Many of whom are not even retirement age. When we have done something for a long time, particularly in one company, we can find ourselves feeling stuck. The changing industry and stresses of the pandemic can be a lot to process.
As painful as it is for a broker when a long-time Director leaves, the key is to prepare and have a solid succession plan. Directors hold a lot of institutional and industry intelligence in their heads. It’s hard to download that kind of valuable knowledge. After all, our industry is based on relationships and experiential events that we have all gone through together. Not to mention the role they play in establishing company culture.
But when faced with the reality that a valued staff member may be leaving, it could be a time to revisit the entire department. Is the department positioned to head into the future? Could it be time to revisit the referral fee structure, policies, staff roles, and the existing team of agents? Should it even be called a Relocation Department any longer? What other business lines might be serviced by the staff? What other sources of income can be tapped?
Honor their legacy
I am not saying that a real estate broker cast aside the legacy of the Director who is leaving, but I am suggesting that sometimes a new perspective and a fresh eye is just what might be needed based on the rapidly changing dynamics in the real estate and relocation industry.
It is important to engage the departing member to help hire and train their replacement, but with the input of many others who are left to continue on. The key is not to attempt to replicate the person leaving, because times may call for a completely different take on things. Bringing in someone with a different skill set and personality traits may be what is needed to evolve the business.
If you are lucky enough to have a successor already in the company, then the gradual transition of leadership is critical. But my advice is to not let certain structures or policies be handed down if they don’t make sense anymore. Sometimes we perpetuate policies when it is actually the perfect time to reimagine the entire department.
Time for a reboot
Changing things doesn’t mean we don’t value their input, but I have heard many times when asked why things are done a certain way, “that’s the way we have always done it”. Not the answer I was looking for.
Changing sources of business, rising referral fees, network demands, and increasing performance metrics are all causes to take a look at what might have worked in the past but don’t any longer. By looking at a broker’s historical referral and closing numbers, policies, and sources of business we can start to build the plan of what might need adjusting to not only maintain the business but to increase it and position it for the future. You may even find that doing a deep dive into how to reimagine the department, might reinvigorate the very Director who was thinking they wanted to move on.
It is also a time to take a look at your staff. Is everyone still suited to the role they are performing? Can your software be used in a more effective way? What kind of marketing can you do to ensure your company is on everyone’s lips?
Changes can be uncomfortable, but they can also be the perfect time for a reboot. Take the departing employee’s contributions and honor them by tweaking them to carry their legacy into the future by ensuring a healthy and productive department positioned for long-term growth. Let me know how I might help.
One of the things we often miss in succession planning is that it should be gradual and thoughtful, with lots of sharing of information and knowledge and perspective, so that it's almost a non-event when it happens. — Anne M. Mulcahy, former chairperson and CEO of Xerox Corporation
