One Size Does NOT Fit All!

“One size fits all” is said to be the biggest lie told in retail. And we all know it’s untrue.

It’s the same with leadership. One management style does not fit all. Leaders who manage all salespeople the same way risk losing their best performers.

Pittard has a complete business system for building a profitable real estate agency called the Agency Profit System®. The newest version was ready for release in early 2020, but due to COVID-19 we have been unable to present it live.

Essential Element 5 is Training & Coaching. It is an important element that all leaders must continually develop.

There are three stages to Training & Coaching.

Stage 1 – Rookie Stage – Micromanagement

A salesperson is a rookie from when they start until they achieve ‘Professional Level’ – $300,000 gross fee production annually.

To get a rookie off to a flying start, and to make them as productive as possible as soon as possible, a leader must work closely with them to the point of micromanagement.

Micromanagement includes:

• Daily one-on-one meetings with the leader
• Examination of actions completed each day, monitoring of actions, especially the number of prospecting calls and appointments set
• Monitoring mandatory study requirements
• Testing on material studied
• Practising listing presentation in preparation for presenting to clients in the field

Failure to work closely with a rookie almost certainly dooms them to mediocrity.

Stage 2 – Leadership Stage – Managing the Professional

Micromanagement ceases in Stage 2. Once the salesperson has achieved Professional Level, they are no longer a rookie.

Professionals can be trusted to do the right actions. In this stage the leader becomes more of a guide than a manager.

Guiding by the leader is more in the way of suggestions. For example, “Your listings seem to be low – what do you think may be the cause?” Or, “Are you happy with your prospecting levels, or do you think you need to up the numbers?”

If the salesperson achieves targets, the leader continues guiding. Should the results fall below target, the salesperson is said to be in a slump and micromanagement recommences until the salesperson gets back on track.

Stage 3 – Mentor Stage – The Success Partnership

When the salesperson achieves a Gold Badge in Pittard’s Winners Circle®, the salesperson’s Training & Coaching moves to the Mentor Stage.

In this stage, the leader offers advice when the winner asks for it. One-on-one time is less formal – perhaps in a coffee shop, or over lunch.

Guidance by the leader takes the form of, “Is there anything I can do to help you?”. The leader constantly asks the winner what can be done to give him or her more support.

It is important that all team members are shown care, support and respect, but many leaders think their high achievers are ‘set and forget’. This is a dangerous practice, one that may see the winner walk into the leader’s office and resign.

Feel the Love

High achievers must ‘feel the love’ from their leaders. The relationship becomes a success partnership. Many of our leaders have given their high achievers a stake in the business, or they partner their winners in property investments.

Our goal as leaders is to help our high achievers become rich, to invest some of their high income, to grow and prosper. This is how you keep winners and prevent them from being poached by competitors.

When you look at this this way, Training & Coaching takes on a whole new meaning, doesn’t it? One size certainly does not fit all!

It’s more than just running training meetings – it’s bringing out the best in your salespeople. And isn’t that the leader’s job?

Gary Pittard