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Hazards of the Journey

There is a huge gap in the way business is being done today, and our vision of the future. Before discussing how to best get from "here" to "there," it is helpful to look at potential issues that could make the journey cumbersome, expensive, even treacherous.

Agents Want to Stay in the People Business
A smooth, successful transition to a fully Net-integrated future in real estate first requires overcoming agents' resistance to technology and change. Agents resist change for the same reasons as most people: uncertainty and discomfort.Depending upon current market conditions, many rationalize they don't need to change because "my business is fine without that new stuff, thank you!"

The issue of why agents resist technology is more complex. For years, management has scratched its head trying to figure why their agents "just don't get it"-that technology will substantially increase their productivity. It's not that agents don't "get it." They certainly understand the benefits of using technology.

The problem is that productivity enhancement alone does not and will not motivate most agents.It works for the more entrepreneurial agents (the "adaptive learners" like Sally), but these represent a small fraction of today's overall agent population.Most fear that they will be working less with people and more with computers. Agents are "people-people," and no matter how grand the technology payoff, the trade-off of working with machines vs. people is unacceptable.

Management Needs to Check Its Bearings
Management has its own issues. They tend to see the Internet as "another costly technology" with major implementation headaches. Most would prefer to "write a check and get back to the business of real estate." But this attitude fails to acknowledge that the Internet represents a fundamental shift to the very nature of the business itself. As a result, most companies end up asking: "How can we adapt the Internet to our business?" when the question should be, "How can we adapt our business model to take best advantage of the Net?" The very future of the company can ride on which question gets asked and the resulting strategic initiatives that follow.

Another limiting factor for management is the control-based style that has ruled corporate real estate for decades. This desire to "encapsulate" ignores the very nature of the Net.

The Net is Uncontrollable. No One Does or Can Control It
To stay on top of the Net requires a continual learning process; the Net has a highly unpredictable evolutionary path-necessitating the need to adapt and change quickly.

Each of these agent- and management-based obstacles can be overcome to ensure a smooth, profitable, and strategically competitive transition to the industry's Internet future. The key is under-standing the nature of the Net and leveraging human nature to work for us, rather than against us.

Navigating from Here to There
The centerpiece of any company's successful Internet transformation is the establishment of an "Elite Core Group" (ECG) of agents who are excited, willing, and able to learn and use the Net for their business. They become the company's Internet "Skunk Works"-left alone yet supported. With proper management support and leadership, they become the fertile soil from which a company will "grow" its transition to full Internet integration from the inside out.

Contributing Author
Michael J. Russer
Michael J. Russer, President of RUSSER Communications, is an internationally recognized speaker, writer, and strategic consultant for the real estate industry about the Internet. His 22 years experience in the real estate field include the development of marketing and software systems as CEO for a high-tech mortgage consulting firm he co-founded. Also an authority on Internet risk management, he recently authored the industry's first comprehensive Internet policies and procedures manual for those companies that have agents active on the Net. He can be reached at (805) 882-1170 or mrusser@russer.com.