9.4: Part IV- Working in Teams
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)"Together Everyone Achieves More,” OR TEAM, rings true as it pertains to many real estate careers. Teams accomplish more than one person could ever do alone. New real estate professionals should seek successful teams to work with; experienced real estate professionals should create teams to build a sense of community, include new professionals, increase diversity, and grow their businesses. The process can include regular team meetings to discuss market trends, share success stories, and brainstorm strategies for client satisfaction. This collaboration helps new agents develop their skills and build confidence while benefiting from the expertise of more seasoned professionals. Building a positive team culture fosters camaraderie, mutual support, and accountability, ultimately leading to better outcomes for clients and the team alike.
Teamwork extends to other professionals involved in real estate transactions, such as lenders, appraisers, inspectors, and attorneys. These professionals often work together to ensure a smooth transaction process for clients. A real estate agent, for example, may collaborate with a mortgage lender to help clients secure financing or coordinate with a home inspector to address any issues discovered during the inspection.
About Teams
A team operates as a unit; a single person does not have complete authority, power, or control. Decision-making is a group effort. According to Jim Temme (1996) in “Team Power: How to Build and Grow Successful Teams,” the following are 13 traits of a team.
- Trust level
- Empowerment
- Authentic participation
- Managing team conflict
- Communication skills
- Delegation skills
- Innovation, Creativity, & Risk-taking
- Leadership
- Decision-making skills
- Integration of personalities
- Encouraging and handling change
- Goals and objectives
- Training
Team Power: How to Build and Grow Successful Teams by Jim Temme
Motivating Teams
The key to successful, productive teamwork is motivation. Leadership within teams has most of the responsibility of building and maintaining team motivation. For team objectives and goals to be met, team leadership has to begin with sharing expectations and roles for all team members. Some effective methods for motivating teams include:
● Ensure that team members have adequately challenging work.
● Provide teams with the tools and time needed to make decisions.
● Give teams both authority and responsibility to solve problems.
● Acknowledge and reward teams/groups when they achieve goals.
A good team leader ensures the team is working within a constructive culture (climate), one in which all team members can thrive. This environment encourages connectedness, risk taking, and positive change. Creative, innovative teams are more able to solve problems and create opportunities for business and growth.
Healthy team culture requires responsibility from all members, leadership transparency, and encouragement for each member to contribute to the team mission and goals. Successful team culture fosters a trusting atmosphere to boost team morale and motivation. High levels of trust and empathy in a team create an emotional connection that bonds team members and results in higher levels of performance. Successful teams’ members thrive on supporting each other whenever possible to move the team forward toward a goal or objective. Finally, a positive team culture provides members with a sense of belonging that reduces attrition and supports long-term stability that allows for meeting long term team and personal goals and objectives.
Collaboration. Collaboration and teamwork are sometimes used interchangeably. For our purposes, collaboration is the driving force behind a team's journey toward its goals, as members work together to achieve success. To begin establishing collaboration within a team, encourage active participation from all team members, which cultivates a sense of ownership and commitment to shared objectives. Additionally, assigning tasks and responsibilities based on individual strengths and expertise promotes a collaborative environment where everyone contributes to the team's success. Source: Browne, 2021
See also: How To Create A Collaborative Culture In Your Real Estate Brokerage (forbes.com)
Consensus. On occasion, team members will disagree on a method for accomplishing a goal. How can such situations be resolved? Begin by requesting a meeting to review the issues. Team members should outline the issues of the disagreement, withholding any judgment of others’ ideas. Team leaders should inquire of other team members which outcomes are most important and why. Once the issues and preferred outcomes are established, solutions should be brainstormed collectively for win-win situations for all members. No solution will be perfect, and compromise by all team members is necessary for a successful path forward. Finally, outline a strategy that all team members agree about implementing. Reaching consensus in this manner will build trust among team members, foster a positive work environment, and lead to reduced conflict and attrition rates.