As a managing broker or principal of a CRE brokerage, navigating recruitment tips for commercial real estate brokers involves yearly pressures on broker performance and potential team turnover. This validates the saying that your greatest assets “are elevator assets and can leave at any point”, so as a principal you need a solid strategy to support, sustain, and grow the team through the turbulence that is brokerage management. 

Factors Influencing Broker Movement in the Industry

In understanding recruitment tips for commercial real estate brokers, it’s crucial to consider why brokers move within this industry. Here are some of the main reasons:

• Attractive commissions can be offered by other brokerages in the local area 

• Better listing opportunities may be available elsewhere 

• The branding of the brokerage and agency may have some impact on the marketing opportunities 

• The strength and commitment of the sales team builds a certain dynamic that will either strengthen or threaten the stability of the team 

• The administrative support for commercial real estate brokers needs to be available to remove the mundane work from the daily workload 

• The marketing efforts of the brokerage will help strengthen the conversions of listings 

Effective Recruitment Strategies for CRE Brokers

It is wise to develop a system and a plan; that plan then allows you to recruit and grow the team with the right people at the right time.  This can be done in a number of ways such as the following: 

• You can bring people through the team ranks through skill improvement and coaching 

• You can target new people from outside of the industry that are looking to earn more money and change career 

• You can pair up an experienced broker with a junior broker.  Providing the chemistry of the relationship is correct, the junior broker can support the senior broker and grow with the experience that they will learn.  That being said, the junior broker still needs to be rewarded for the efforts that will be applied to the process. 

• On a quarterly basis, you can run recruitment nights to invite new people to your agency for an informal presentation and workshop. 

• Within your property market today, there will be some brokers that are considered top performers.  They can be approached confidentially over time to encourage a potential change of brokerage at the right time. 

Key Strategies for Recruiting Top Commercial Real Estate Brokers

Below are seven key tips in recruiting the right brokers in commercial real estate: 

1. Get to know your target market

Before recruiting, it’s important to understand who your ideal broker is. Understanding their needs and aspirations can help you develop recruiting strategies that attract these types of brokers or brokers with a strong track record of transactions, you might target your recruiting efforts towards experienced agents who have worked at other successful real estate firms. 

Or if you’d prefer newly licensed agents that you can train in your own systems and procedures, then you’ll want to focus your efforts on recent real estate licensing school graduates. 

2. Develop a Compelling Brand

In order to attract brokers to your firm, you need to develop a compelling brand. Your brand is the image that your company projects to the outside world, and it should be attractive to the types of brokers you’re looking to recruit. 

There are a number of ways to develop an attractive brand, but some of the most effective methods include creating informative recruiting materials, participating in industry events, and establishing relationships with top real estate schools. 

3. Be Transparent About Your Expectations

When you’re recruiting, it’s important to be transparent about your expectations. Which specific goals do you expect them to achieve? Could you describe the type of work they will be doing? What are the company’s goals and how can they help to achieve them? By being upfront about your expectations, you’ll be more likely to attract agents who are a good fit for your team. 

4. Provide Incentives

One of the best ways to recruiting top brokers is to offer incentives. What can you offer them that will sweeten the deal and make them want to work with you? This could be anything from a higher commission split to extra leads and marketing support. By providing agents with an incentive to join your team, you’ll be more likely to attract high-quality candidates. 

5. Offer Training & Development Opportunities

Another great way to recruiting top CRE brokers is to offer training and development opportunities. Many brokers are always looking to improve their skills and grow their careers. By offering training and development opportunities, you’ll be able to attract agents who are looking for those types of opportunities.  This could be pairing a senior broker with a junior broker to allow for both to grow and build upon each other. 

6. Promote Your Positive Culture

Your company culture is one of the most important factors when recruiting brokers. Brokers want to work somewhere that they’ll enjoy coming to every day. Promote your positive culture and make sure that brokers know what it’s like to work at your company. 

7. Keep Them Engaged

Once you’ve recruited a top broker, it’s important to keep them engaged. You want to ensure that they’re happy with their decision to join your company. Offer them opportunities to grow their career and provide them with the support they need to be successful. 

It is a well-known fact that the industry is both challenging and rewarding.  Brokers who consistently apply effective recruitment tips for commercial real estate brokers can achieve substantial income growth. The industry is perhaps the most rewarding available for top salespeople.  For this reason, you need to offer a commission and reward structure that allows every broker to improve in a consistent way and reap the benefits in doing so.  Help every salesperson become a top achiever. By following these tips, you can work towards recruiting the best candidates for your company. Good luck!