Office rhythm, is yours off beat?

I think the word ‘culture’ is overused in business. 

For me, it’s more about the rhythm of the business. And if the rhythm is good you feel excited about coming to work, as a principle. And that's how I feel right now at Ray White Double Bay even though after 30 years I no longer own the business. 

Idea sharing happens...

Another sign is ideas flourishing. Team members start coming up with initiatives and sharing opportunities. One of the guys who just joined us, a young guy who is a very, very good salesperson said, "Why don't we have a meeting and share off-market listings and sales, but there has to be a lot of trust involved.” We had our first meeting the other morning at 9:00. It went exceptionally well, and already have a couple of deals out of it.

Egos get checked at the door...

The harmony is obvious, so collaboration overrides competition. Our admin staff have their own meeting each week. Egos get checked at the door, and they discuss problems inside and outside the business openly. When staff are sorting things out between themselves, without directors, the business rhythm is good: people stay back without complaint, particularly is non-sales or support staff are doing this, that’s a great sign. 

Rumours are a good sign...

The other thing is that you’ll hear rumors that are in the marketplace on what a great place your workplace is. I think that's a big piece, when people come up to you and they start telling you that they hear the environment in your office is great it is an excellent signal. When you start breaking that barrier (competition talking positively about your office), you know your team culture is on track in terms of rhythm, and rhythm breeds success. When people say they want to join your team? Well, that’s when you know you’ve made it. That's only just happened recently, perhaps in the last five years, people actually actively wanting to be in our business.

When the rhythm builds and builds, it becomes an orchestra of individuals with different skills and different ideas to contribute, playing different instruments if you will, but you’re all moving towards the same goals and achieving beautiful music together. 

Conversely, as a director or leader if you’re walking on eggshells when you enter the office, the beat is off. If you have silos that are uncollaborative, that’ll disrupt the rhythm. Of course you have teams, but teams don’t need to act as enemies. I saw the opposite of that the other day here. The other day the sales team were all in the kitchen, the assistants as well. All talking to each other, openly discussing stuff that could make them vulnerable i.e; listings, potential vendor names, opportunities they could lose to other agents and normally wouldn’t discuss. 

If you can’t change your people, change your people...

Reestablishing the business rhythm has cost us on one occasion $4million in lost revenue. In one year. Four million to the bottom line. That sounds crazy, but the truth is that harmony is worth that hit in the short term. We virtually had to rebuild our team. Some top performers were destroying the culture (the rhythm). We had to say goodbye to preserve the way we wanted the business to grow and look in the future. 

That saying, “if you can’t change your people, change your people” really resonates with me, it empowers leaders to take a hit to the bottom line to salvage the future. 

What about the big-hitters?

In the ego-riddled real estate business, you will come across staff who get so big that they imagine they are bigger than the business. They can become a real thorn in your side. There are others too who might be perfectly capable but are bad for the business. It’s helpful to develop a radar for knowing when an agent or team member is rotten for your business rhythm. 

How to let them go...

For me knowing when someone needs to go is easy. The minute I don’t want to work with them or go out on a listing with them, or there is just a blockage that makes me uncomfortable, it’s time to go. I’m patient with our people, but they need to reach out. If they’re not engaging me to help them , or seeking direction, or they’re not being part of the tradition here of reaching out for help from the broader community here, they need to go. 

Leadership requires a plentiful mindset

As a leader, over the years, you just work it out: blind faith and a plentiful mindset. Envisaging a bigger business with more people who are harmonious. The year we ejected four or five top performers and hit our bottom line we realised how important our future growth having a champion team not a team of champions. 

Are you walking on eggshells...

Before that, we’d come into the office and we’d all be walking on eggshells. I said to Craig Pontey, a co-director, “I can’t take it anymore.” He responded, “we either sell the business or get rid of these people.” And that answers your question. We gradually exited them out, one into their own business, others have moved around since and in fact some have tried to come back to us but... no way. I wanted us to be happy. I want to be alive, excited, and good at what we do. You can’t be in this business without some ego, we know that, but you can’t run a big business without a great, harmonious office rhythm. 

Watch your costs, or else

You’ll also knock your business rhythm if you’re not watching your costs. If you’re not watching costs, you can bet the costs are going up and by the time you start paying attention there's no way of stopping it. There's some fixed costs that you just can't avoid, but there are others you can. Identifying and monitoring those is a skill in itself. You might say, "Maybe we'll give it another month,” or “maybe we do need that person..”, but if someone or something is costing you $90,000 a year you need to be across it’s value and impact and constantly evaluating whether it or he/she stays or goes. The best time to re-tune and stay tuned is when things are humming along. When the market changes the re-tuning process takes so much longer

Are the instruments in tune? Is the percussionist missing the beat?

Constantly listen to the rhythm of your business.