Sometimes a company is built around a product, birthed from the creativity of its creator. Sometimes a company is built around a cause or social issue. Sometimes a company is built around an idea or passion. Other companies, like IMPACT Properties, are built around offering services.
A service organization like IMPACT Properties has no product to sell, no unique cause to champion, and so it requires a different set of ideals, processes, and systems to deliver service at the highest possible level.
When I founded IMPACT Properties I started with focusing on the core of who we were as people and then determined to build a company around that core.
To begin, I identified 7 Core Values: Compassion, Commitment, Courage, Competence, Communication, Cooperation, and Conviction.
These seven core values embody the person we are trying to be as we serve clients in the real estate buying, selling, and leasing process.
An eighth core value was added by our team because it also defined who we are as people: Contribution. We are people who give back to our communities in which we serve.
These core values, our 8Cs, serve as our guiding principles that determine what we will and will not do as we serve our customers and each other.
Once we selected our core values, we then created a layer of expectations for all who work here. I had to answer the question, “How do I continue to preserve a company that is dedicated to preserving these core values?” I realized through trial and error and through some bad hiring decisions that I needed a better hiring process.
Unlike most real estate companies, we are very selective about who we hire. It’s not easy to work here. We put our prospects through multiple interviews and have them conduct multiple online personality profiles all before making a hiring decision. We are looking for ImpactDNA. Do they share the same values we do?
This heightened standard allows us to protect the core values and ensures that as the organization grows it will maintain its commitment to the 8 Cs.
Once a new team member is hired, we surround them with the tools and training needed to carry out our core values in the communities we serve. We coach them, train them, support them, and help them set goals throughout their various roles and responsibilities to live out our core values.
Why such a focus on our core values? As we have seen over the last two decades, the real estate industry continues to evolve and change with technological advances and I firmly believe that at its core, we serve people who need to be the recipients of the core values we keep. People need Compassion, Commitment, Courage, Competence, Communication, Cooperation, Conviction, and Charitable Contribution.
We only offer service and we are only successful when we deliver on that service in the best way possible.
Service companies that lose focus will be replaced by companies that can clearly define their mission and values. As the tides of culture change and technological advances continue, companies that can keep their eyes on the horizon minimize the risk of losing themselves.
If you are looking for support in this area, I offer coaching to CEOs and owners who are seeking to improve their company cultures by focusing on internal processes and structures. Let’s connect today.
IMPACT Properties is now expanding nationally through our Franchising division. If you are a real estate broker or team leader and would like to connect, send me a message. I will personally respond and see if we should take the next steps together.
