Recruiting and retaining agents is the name of the game for brokerages large and small, but for many, it’s a practice that boils down to being easier said than done. A hot topic at RISMedia’s 2017 CEO Exchange this past September, an esteemed group of panelists—moderated by Joe Rand, chief creative officer at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Rand Realty—offered their insight from a firsthand perspective...For Stuart Siegel, president and CEO of Engel & Völkers New York City, timing is everything. “Retention begins at the first recruiting meeting,” noted Siegel, “when expectations are set and the brokerage’s value proposition is explained.”
“It’s got to stop being about us versus them, and start being about what’s in the client’s best interest,” said Stuart Siegel, CEO of Engel & Völkers’ New York City operation. Though he doesn’t think StreetEasy is acting in the consumer’s best interest, he said his priority is maximizing exposure for his sellers. Engel & Völkers will take a 90-day evaluation period to see how things shake out. “I’m not about to compromise my ability to affect a material transaction for a client,” he said. “I’ve got to put my interests beneath theirs.”
