Recruiting Insight: Recent Episodes

Ben Hess

The Recruiting Insight podcast delivers timely, relevant, and actionable insights for real estate leaders. Ben Hess is the author and syndicator of Recruiting Insight, which is also a daily e-publication read by hundreds of real estate leaders and managers every day. Ben is serial entrepreneur, writer, and coach who has helped hundreds of real estate companies, teams, and managers excel at recruiting. In 2007, he co-founded ThirdPool Recruiting, a new agent recruiting marketing and software company that operates in more than 60 metro areas in the United States. He also co-founded CoRecruit, a coaching and training company specializing in experienced agent recruiting.

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💡 Book More Appointments: The Exact Formula for a 30% Conversion Rate

Unlock the proven strategy real estate leaders use to consistently convert 30% of leads into appointments—and turn your pipeline into profit!

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A 30% conversion rate isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s a game changer. Whether you’re an independent agent or a team leader, this system helps you:
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Our theme this season is going to be: “How’d YOU Do That?”

And we’re going to talking to leaders who developed and executed a compelling recruiting strategy…that really worked.

This week we’re going to be connecting with Anthony Jackson.

Anthony is the Vice President of Finance and Operations of Lyon Real Estate --one of the most prominent real estate companies in central California.

About 18 months ago the Lyon executive team and managers set out to increase the % of experienced agents they brought into the company.

And they’ve had great success, increasing experienced agent hiring by 180% in 2023.

Anthony is going to walk us through this transition from a financial and operations perspective.

I think you’ll learn a lot from Lyon’s journey and capture of some take aways you start using right away.

Let’s get started.

Hey, it’s a great day to recruit, and thanks for joining us as we kick-off our summer season of the Recruiting Insight podcast.

Our theme this season is going to be: “How’d You Do That?”

And we’re going to talking to leaders who developed and executed a compelling recruiting strategy that produced incredible results under today’s market conditions.

This week we’re going to be talking to Carol Bulman.

Carol is the CEO of a Jack Conway--one of the most prominent real estate companies in the Boston metro area.

Under Carol’s leadership, Jack Conway has grown into a regional powerhouse with 19 offices stretching from the North Shore of Boston all the way out to Cape Code.

With just under 700 agents, Carol is no stranger to recruiting. She’s a fierce competitor, and fights for every agent that she and her team bring into company.

But what I admire the most is her ability to pivot and change course when things aren’t working and make the changes necessary to not only survive, but also thrive.

You’re going to love her story…so let’s get started.

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

In this Special Edition of the Recruiting Mastermind series, Mark is joined by coach Travis Robertson as they delve into the intricacies of post-settlement dynamics. Travis will present and discuss the components of an upcoming session tailored specifically for agents. He also outline essential steps for navigating the remainder of 2024.

Why Listen?

Leadership, guidance, and effective communication have never been more crucial. Watch this interactive session where we unravel complexities, share practical insights, and chart a course toward success in the transformed real estate landscape!

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by guest Dr. Bill Dyment, author of the empowering book “Fire Your Excuses."

Dr. Bill, renowned for his expertise in frontline team resiliency and workplace burnout prevention, has addressed over 678 organizations worldwide including Fortune 500 companies. With a track record of over 4,000 impactful seminars, he's a beacon of actionable steps that increase effectiveness.

In this dynamic conversation, Dr. Bill tackles the burning question: “What's realistic during this uncertain season—for you personally, professionally, or as a leader of your staff?” Whether you're seeking resilience, or leading others, this discussion promises insights for all.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Are you ready to grow and expand?

If you are, then you don’t want to miss this opportunity to join Mark and his special guest, Michael Guthrie, as they share their insights and secrets on how to attract, retain, and recruit top talent in the industry.

You will hear from Michael, who has over 40 years of experience in the real estate business and has achieved remarkable success in every aspect of it. He has been a top-producing agent, a leader of a large firm, a manager of small and large offices, and a regional director of 13 offices. He and his team have also successfully positioned the company for growth and acquisition.

Michael’s specialties include marketing, creating affiliated services, growing companies in profitability, recruiting new and experienced REALTORS®, and training people to find their own individual ways to be successful no matter what type of business.

This is your forum to hear another growth story from someone who has done it all and knows what it takes to succeed in growing a real estate office and firm. Whether you are a new or experienced recruiter, a manager, or a leader, you will find valuable tips and strategies that you can apply to your own situation and goals.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by Dean Cottrill, Associate Partner & EVP at T3 Sixty.

Dean and Mark have a lively, interactive discussion on the current state of affairs in the real estate industry and how they relate to your talent attraction and recruiting efforts.

In times of uncertainty, it can feel normal for your growth plans to slow down. But, we know from history that firms can grow and thrive through tough market conditions. Dean and Mark share several actionable strategies and tactics you should consider executing immediately to help your team flourish.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Do you have visibility of your recruiting pipeline through licensing?

Our ThirdPool and The CE Shop solutions give you more visibility to agents in your recruiting pipeline. Plus, the Agent Essentials modules provide a deep resource of tools that enable retention and attraction with relevant content to your agents and prospective agents.

Worried about the NAR verdict? During this session, we will cover some of the material available to help broker-owners, managers, teams, and agents better articulate their value, offering, and fees.

During our Mastermind, Mark, Nate, and Josh will cover many of the best practices for license visibility and continuing education to drive growth in your firm.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by David Childers, the CEO of Keeping Current Matters. David and his team believe that every family should feel confident when buying and selling a home, and they’re on a mission to improve the ways real estate advisors educate and serve their clients.

Mark and David will discuss the critical link between recruiting top talent and delivering a high level of service to clients.

If you are looking to find a competitive edge in today’s tough market, you won't want to miss this session.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by David Knox, the President and Founder of David Knox Productions. Mark and David discuss the differences and the importance of training, mentoring, and coaching in your talent attraction and recruiting efforts.

Whether you are a CEO, a recruiter, or an office manager you will receive tremendous value from this practical and insightful Mastermind session.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Dive into "The Simple Psychology of Real Estate Recruiting" to unlock the secrets of effective real estate recruitment. This guide illuminates:

Intentionality: Set a growth mindset, and apply your newfound knowledge practically.
Commitment to Learning: Embrace the Learning Curve. Revisit and understand content through repetition.
Action-Oriented Approach: Go beyond just acquiring knowledge; apply, commit, and act. Engage deeply with the material and be a doer.

Inside, explore:

Building Rapport (Chapters 1-4): Learn to establish trust and respect, emphasizing judgment-free listening and ego suspension.
Active Listening (Chapters 5-7): Harness the power of listening, using open-ended questions and staying mentally engaged.
Acquaintances to Hires (Chapters 10-12): Turn casual relationships into valuable hires by engaging in meaningful dialogues and finding commonalities.

In the world of real estate, recruiting success hinges on understanding and action. Let this audiobook be your ultimate guide to mastering both. Dive in and transform your recruiting journey!

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by Clayton Collins, the CEO and Founder of Housing Wire. HW Media is a business media and information company serving professionals across the housing economy. Clayton is building the “Bloomberg of Real Estate” and, as such, must be a talent attraction machine.
Mark and Clayton discuss the latest news in the industry and what that means to you and your talent attraction, retention, and recurring efforts.

If you're CEO, a recruiter, or an office manager and you are looking to leverage the latest real estate trends to grow your enterprise, then you're in luck!

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by Mike Simonsen, the CEO and Founder of Altos Research. Mark and Mike discuss current market conditions and the implications for your retention and recruiting efforts.

Running a real estate business or team is challenging, especially during times of economic uncertainty. That's why we want to provide you with insights and strategies that you can use to overcome any obstacles that come your way.

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

Recruiting Mastermind hosted by Mark Johnson, Managing Partner of Recruiting Insight.

Mark is joined by Steve Murray, the Co-Founder of REAL Trends and Partner in REAL Trends Consulting, which is the leading firm in residential brokerage throughout the U.S. and Canada with specialties in valuation, mergers and acquisitions, business analytics and senior management consulting.

Mark and Steve share some interesting data and practical ideas to help you with your recruiting strategy, systems, and execution.

If you're CEO, a recruiter, or an office manager and you are looking to grow, then you're in luck!

Learn more about Recruiting Insight by visiting: https://recruitinginsight.net

It’s a great day to recruit, and thanks for joining us as we kick-off our fall season of the Recruiting Insight podcast.

When the storm clouds start gathering on the horizon, it’s helpful to connect with some seasoned executives who have led real estate organizations through difficult times.

This week, we’ll be strategizing with Rich Davidson, the founder and CEO of Cairn Real Estate Holdings.

Cairn is a nationwide real estate investment firm focused on building a network of industry leading companies and professionals.

They currently operate in more than 70 locations, have more than 4000 agents, and completed over 30,000 transactions last year. And honestly, they’re just getting started.

Prior to starting Cairn, Rick was the Global CEO of Century 21 for seven years. In this role, he was responsible for the health and wellbeing of a network that spanned 80 countries, had 8000 offices, and 125,000 sales professionals.

At the same time, he served at the chairman of Easterseals—the largest health service charity in America which cares for 1.6M individuals each year.

As you might have guessed, none of these achievements happen without inspiring all types of individuals to get behind a vision and work towards something much bigger than one person could possibly achieve.

Is this not the essence of recruiting? I think it is, so let’s jump in and see what we can today learn from Rick’s achievements.

Hey, it’s a great day to recruit, and today we’re making a stop in Minneapolis to check in with Ryan O’Neill.

Ryan is the founder and team leader of The Minnesota Real Estate Team. This is an appropriate name because they have been the #1 selling team in the State of Minnesota for many years.

Ryan started his team in 2005 (long before teams were common in the real estate industry) and built it into an organization that is much larger and prominent than most brokerages.

Last year, they were ranked #14 on the Real Trends list of the highest producing mega-teams in the country. They got there by closing over 2,200 transactions and making $750 million in sales.

Of course, it takes a lot of recruiting to achieve this level of success, and Ryan is one of the best in the industry at attracting and retaining the best agents in his marketplace.

In fact, he’s so good at attracting talent, the Minnesota Star Tribune named Ryan’s team as the #1 Mid-Sized company to work for in Twin City metro area.

This isn’t just the top spot for real estate companies, this is #1 ranking among all companies. I’ve never seen a real estate company win an award like this, so he must be doing something special.

Let’s jump in and see what we can learn from Ryan’s achievements.

It’s a great day to recruit, and today we’re making a stop in Kansas City and checking in with Chad Dumas.

Chad is the Senior Vice President of Brokerage for Reece Nichols and manages one of their largest offices.

For you those of you who don’t know, Reece Nichols is the 800-pound real estate gorilla in the Kanas City metro area.

They have 27 company-owned stores and more than 25 franchises spread across Missouri and Kansas. And there are about 3000 professional agents who keep all of this running.

To build something this large and successful, you know it takes a lot of recruiting. But it doesn’t stop there. You have to build a culture that retains the high performers who have grown up and become successful in the organization.

There is no better person to help us understand how this all works at Reece Nichols than Chad. He started as a new agent, quickly became high producer, became the most successful recruiting manager in the company, and is now part of the executive team.

And he did all this from inside the Reece Nichols framework.

So let’s jump in, and see what we can learn from one of the rising stars in the real estate industry.

Many of the Recruiting Insight listeners are owners of single-office brokerages, leaders of real estate teams, or managers of offices that need to grow.

If you’re in one of these positions, I think you’ll find Sarah Zdeb’s story both inspiring and insightful.

Sarah is the founder and CEO of JPAR Carolina Living.

She started her franchise from scratch and grew it into a multi-office company with more than 100 agents.

And this year, she is on track to grow by a net 50 agents again.

This kind of growth is what most real estate entrepreneurs have in mind when they start a brokerage, and today Sarah is going to share some of her secrets on how she made this happen.

Also, near the end of our discussion, she describes an innovative process she’s developed to consistently generate experienced agent recruiting referrals.

It’s something you can quickly add to your recruiting process and start generating referrals.

Let’s jump in—we have a lot cover today!

There has been much debate over the years on the best way to structure the real estate recruiting function in a brokerage.

Some leaders believe it’s best to have first-level managers heavily involved in the recruiting process. After all, wouldn’t a recruiting prospect want to connect with the manager with whom they’ll be working?

Others believe a centralized approach is more effective. Doesn’t it make sense that results would be better if a recruiting team was exclusively focused on the difficult task of recruiting?

We won’t settle the debate today, but we will give you a peek into one of best run centralized recruiting organizations in the country.

Jeremy Lambert and his recruiting team at Your Castle Real Estate recruit over 300 agents per year, and he’ll share what he’s learned from leading a centralized recruiting group over the last decade.

If you ever thought of centralizing your recruiting function, you won’t want to miss today’s episode.

In today's podcast, we'll be joined by Rob Keefe. Rob is the founder and President of Relitix

Relitix helps real estate brokerages use data, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to make better management decisions, recruit and coach more effectively, and find new ways to stick it to their competitors.

Full disclosure: Rob and I have something in common besides real estate. We were classmates together at the Naval Academy some 30-odd years ago, and we both spent time as naval officers before jumping into the real estate industry.

Before starting Relitix, Rob led organizations in every corner of residential real estate, including real estate brokerage, real estate development, mortgage banking, title, and relocation management.

He also served as Chairman of the Wisconsin Realtors Association representing the state's 14,000 Realtors and has served as a board member of the National Association of Realtors.

Today we’ll be joined by Stephanie Robertstad. Stephanie is a recruiting coordinator for Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Fox and Roach Realtors.

For those of you who don’t know, BHHS Fox and Roach is the flagship franchise in the BHHS network. They were recently ranked #1, for the sixth year in a row, and show no signs of slowing down.

They are headquartered just outside of Philadelphia, but they have more than 5,500 agents and over 75 offices spread across Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

We all know that you don’t get this large and remain on top without recruiting. As you’d expect, they’ve been remarkably successful at attracting and growing some of the best agents in the country.

To pull something off this substantial, it only makes sense you’d need a team of talented individuals who are working on recruiting from various angles. Today, we’ll just look at one part of over their overall recruiting system, and that’s the digital sourcing and hiring of new agents.

Stephanie sits at the center of this part of their system, so let’s jump in and learn how the experts do this!

Today, we'll be connecting with Lisa Chinatti about recruiting and retention in the crazy world of real estate teams.

She is the person the large real estate portals have nicknamed the Beast of the Northeast, and today, you’re going to find out why.

Lisa and her business partner Jason Posnick were pioneers in the mega-team movement that has swept across the real estate industry.

What’s a mega-team? It's a team that is so large, it makes most brokerages look small.

And yet, it still operates like a nimble, tight-nit crew that can pivot and quickly capture new opportunities.

Nothing is easy when it comes to recruiting talent, but you'll save a bunch of time and headaches if you can learn from what Lisa and Jason are doing!

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Vanessa is the Managing Broker of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Office in Cary/Morrisville region of North Carolina.

She has been making a bunch of noise in the real estate industry for the last 18 years.

She established her career as a high-performing independent agent and later co-founded the Triangle’s “Real Estate Chix” team—one of the most successful real estate teams in the central North Carolina. Prior to real estate, she worked as a marketing and advertising professional for 14 years, specializing in small business marketing.

All of her experience has led her to the work she is doing today—leading and growing a group of amazing agents who she is inspiring to do their best work each day.

She recently told me she loves her new position, which she has been in for 10 months now, because it enables her to give and do work that is the best version of herself every day.

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Welcome to this episode of Recruiting Insight. It’s a great day to recruit.

Laurie Brill from Howard Hanna Real Estate Services stopped by to talk with us today about the great recruiting work she has done during her career.

If you haven’t met Laurie—prepare to be amazed. She has really done it all!

For the first 18 years of her career, she was a full-time, high-performing Realtor. During that time, she started and ran two successful teams.

She then founded and managed her own brokerage for several years before being selected to lead a Keller Williams office on the westside of Cleveland.

In 2015, she joined Howard Hanna—one of the most prominent real estate brands in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, and several other states--as the Director of Strategic Growth.

Altogether, she has been in the real estate industry for 35 years, and I think you’re going to learn a lot today.

Love Recruiting Insight? Subscribe to Recruiting Insight to get an email in your inbox on how to recruit better! https://recruitinginsight.us/

Ben Hess talks with Scott Nelson on the best way to hire full-time real estate agents.

Ben Hess talks with Gina Verbanac on how to get more agent recruits. Gina shares her best tips and tricks to achieve hundreds of hires.

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Learn Mark Johnsons' best recruiting secrets to success.

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Ben talks with Lee Gray on how to how to optimize the recruiting process.

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Robert Gideon, Owner of NextHome Central Real Estate in Oklahoma City, joins the podcast to share his experience building a real estate business from the ground open and juggling business operations with recruiting objectives. Robert and Ben also discuss the strategies that have produced success with both new and experience agent recruiting and how ThirdPool and CoRecruit have contributed to that success.

You can engage with other Recruiting Insight content by visiting https://recruitinginsight.us

You can also learn more about ThirdPool Recruiting by navigating to https://thirdpool.com

For coaching on experienced agent recruiting, check out CoRecruit at https://corecruit.net

Have you ever wanted to follow a high-performing recruiter or hiring manager around to see what they do to be successful? Ben shares the top three things that he has observed from recruiters and hiring managers who have been successful with experienced agent recruiting.

You can engage with other Recruiting Insight content by visiting https://recruitinginsight.us

You can also learn more about ThirdPool Recruiting by navigating to https://thirdpool.com

For coaching on experienced agent recruiting, check out CoRecruit at https://corecruit.net

Have you ever wondered why some managers are really good at experienced agent recruiting while other ones seem to really struggle? Ben shares the secrets that a high-performing recruiter used to overcome this difficult task.

You can engage with other Recruiting Insight content by visiting https://recruitinginsight.us

You can also learn more about ThirdPool Recruiting by navigating to https://thirdpool.com

For coaching on experienced agent recruiting, check out CoRecruit at https://corecruit.net

Reynolds Bickerstaff, Chief Experience Officer at Bickerstaff Parham Real Estate, joins the podcast to share his experience building, growing, and training his real estate team with help from of ThirdPool's unique solutions. Reynolds and Ben discuss selectivity practices, the importance of teaching new agents how to brand themselves and grow their business, and Reynolds' shares his journey from being an agent himself to becoming a partner and growing his team.

You can engage with other Recruiting Insight content by visiting https://recruitinginsight.us

You can also learn more about ThirdPool Recruiting by navigating to https://thirdpool.com

Sherry Trevor of Roberts Brothers Inc. joins Ben Hess for a virtual interview to hear about her experience working as a recruiting coordinator and agent with Roberts Brothers and leveraging ThirdPool's recruiting philosophy.

They discuss recruiting strategies, the benefits from hiring people from the "Third Pool" and Roberts Brother's comprehensive and unique training package for new agents.

You can engage with other Recruiting Insight content by visiting https://recruitinginsight.us

You can also learn more about ThirdPool Recruiting by navigating to https://thirdpool.com

Hart Kelman of Crye-Leike Real Estate sits down with Ben Hess for a virtual interview to share her experience working as an agent recruiter with Crye-Leike and using ThirdPool's recruiting system.

They also discuss recruiting strategies and Hart's recent transition to becoming a real estate agent herself with Crye-Leike.

You can engage with other Recruiting Insight content by visiting https://recruitinginsight.us

You can also learn more about ThirdPool Recruiting by navigating to https://thirdpool.com