Today’s RealTrending features Smokey Garrett, operating partner for Keller Williams The Go Network, ranked No. 11 by transaction size, and No. 15 by sales volume in the 2020 RealTrends 500 rankings. Smokey talks about the upcoming market change, what brokerage leaders can do to prepare and the actions he took during the Great Recession to help his network through industry challenges.
Here is a small preview of today’s interview with Smokey. The transcript below has been lightly edited for length and clarity:
Tracey Velt: Over the past 10 years, RealTrends analyzed more than 700 brokerage firms that had been on the RT500 during that time. Of them, your firm ranked No. 1 in sales volume growth, transaction side growth and agent growth. He was No. 12 by increase in agent productivity.
What are some lessons learned that set you up for success through any market?
Smokey Garrett: We were talking earlier about growth and productivity. What we focused on every day was our growth, productivity, our profitability and our culture. And we tried to figure out what the key matrix were in each one of those categories that we looked at. And we looked at it on a monthly basis, and been able to look, as the future went, where of the business was going, what kind of things were happening, and how we were having conversations with our people, in order to help them really win in the market, and get true partnership with our people.
That’s how we went. Five years ago, then we kind of started seeing five, six years ago, and I think we’ll talk about this later, but five, six years ago is when we started seeing all right, scale begins to matter, as the market changes, and how we’re able to do that. Our scale matters and that’s, I think it was six years ago we created our GO Network in the organization, where we merged some people in, and merged some offices, and offices that we were working with, and started working at a different scale.
The biggest challenge I have had personally, as a leader, is just trying to move too fast. And as soon as I have moved fast, I’ve always gotten in trouble, and my people have always let me know, when we start moving out too fast, without taking time to explain the why and the how of where we’re going.
We run a partnership model, we run a very agent-centric model that shares our profits, shares our decisions, shares how we do things.I’ve always had to make sure that I’m making sure I’m in business and relationship, and listening to our people and understanding, and also taking time just to slow down.
RealTrending features the brightest minds in real estate. Twice a month, brokerage leaders, top agents, team leaders, and industry experts share their success secrets, trends, and lessons learned navigating this ever-changing industry. Hosted by Tracey Velt and produced by Elissa Branch.
