Recruiting and selecting job candidates can be tricky. A candidate’s résumé and interview can indicate that they will be a “right fit” for the job and the culture. But then the new employee starts work and he or she isn’t even in the “right fit” ballpark. Such was the problem for NRT – the largest residential real estate brokerage company in the nation.
With the goal of finding and fostering talent that would contribute to the organization’s continued growth, NRT realized the importance and necessity of building strategic and specific selection processes for its real estate agents, branch managers and regional vice president positions within the organization.
NRT partnered with TalentQuest to determine the profile of a successful candidate within the organization. From there, we identified specific technical and personal traits that were critical for success within NRT’s organization and for setting benchmarks for their ideal candidates.
Here’s a look at the custom competencies and profiles we designed for NRT’s assessment and selection processes.
Real Estate Agents
At the agent level, we identified top performers and created Peak Performer Profiles™ based on their critical characteristics and traits. Along with creating Peak Performer Profiles™, we developed the Real Estate Assessment Profile to customize selection and applied our Similarity Index (SI) – a specific subset of factors most predictive of success. After implementing these tools, TalentQuest and NRT analyzed 450 sales associates’ earnings over a year and discovered that real estate agents’ earnings coincide with their SI scores. The higher the SI score, the higher the annual sales earnings. With these findings, NRT launched this new-agent assessment process nationwide as the first layer of their talent management foundation.
Branch Managers
For branch managers, we reviewed existing processes at the management level and identified specific opportunities for improvement. By creating a core competency model for the branch manager position, we were able to design and build an assessment center for incoming branch manager candidates. To assess management skills and style, candidates are immersed in a one-day assessment process filled with on-the-job scenarios, simulations and role-playing. Then, candidates are measured on specific competencies and particular behaviors identified as success factors for the role itself. With the competency model and assessment center, NRT is equipped with processes to expand their management talent and bench strength across their operating companies.
Regional Vice Presidents
For the regional vice president (RVP) role, TalentQuest partnered with NRT to design an accelerated leadership development program. We determined the competencies required for success, created assessment methodologies to identify high potentials and designed a customized development program. NRT selected 17 RVP candidates to enroll in a yearlong leadership development program, targeting the skills critical for success in the RVP position. The program featured quarterly events with senior management, experiential training, interaction with external knowledge experts, and executive project presentations. Over the course of the program, five open RVP positions were filled by candidates from this group of 17; even more candidates were deemed ready to assume the RVP role when positions became available.
With rigorous, comprehensive, and proven talent selection and assessment processes securely in place, NRT is equipped to source, select and develop the “right fit” with increased accuracy and efficiency.
