• Building a strong business culture involves shared values and practices that align with organizational goals to foster collaboration, trust, and adaptability.

• A diverse, inclusive all-women team can better address challenges and drive creativity and innovation. This method similarly reflects the multifaceted views of clients and communities.

• The real key to attracting and retaining these talented female professionals is having clear hiring practices in place. Prioritize building inclusive job postings and developing relationships with women-centric networks.

• Creating leadership opportunities, skill development, and mentorship programs along with mechanisms for recognition empowers your team, enhances morale, and fosters professional growth.

• An empowered all-women team improves team performance, strengthens workplace morale, and builds stronger client relationships through diverse insights and inclusive practices.

• Flexible policies, open communication, and equal opportunities for growth address issues such as gender bias and workplace culture. These strategies have built a collaborative, diverse, and inclusive workplace.

Building your real estate business culture starts with hiring an empowered, all-women team. An engaged, diverse, and inclusive team fosters a workplace culture of collaboration and innovation. Women’s unique set of skills and perspectives can enhance decision-making and problem-solving to become more robust and effective.

Empowering them requires opportunity—not only in the form of leadership opportunities, but also flexibility and professional development. It’s more than just hiring the right people; it’s about building a culture where everyone feels valued with the freedom and encouragement to thrive.

This approach builds loyalty, drives productivity, and attracts clients that value your firm’s commitment to diversity. By fostering women in the workplace, your real estate company will be the trailblazer, the progressive, the forward-thinking company.

It’s a smart strategy that will pay dividends for your empowered team and their contributions to your business success.

What Is Business Culture

Business culture is the collective values, norms, and assumptions that shape the way an organization operates. It affects how teams communicate with each other, how they prioritize, and how they do their jobs. As a real estate business focused on creating an empowered all-women team, culture is really key.

It is the bedrock of success and accelerates the team’s contributions.

Definition of Business Culture

Positive business culture fosters collaboration by promoting open communication and teamwork toward common objectives. For example, a collaborative, transparent real estate team will have a much easier time coordinating their efforts through a difficult property negotiation.

Consistent, clear practices create trust with clients, leading to long-term relationships and repeat business. Additionally, a strong, resilient culture fosters resiliency and adaptability, more important than ever in our rapidly changing, dynamic environment—especially in the real estate business.

When the inevitable challenges come—whether it’s an economic downturn, a pandemic, or something else unexpected—a team with a well-built cultural foundation can weather the storm. Businesses that put family-friendly practices and inclusivity first see a more satisfied workforce that results in improved bottom lines.

Role of Culture in Real Estate

In the real estate industry, culture is a central part of fostering an environment of diversity and inclusion. Putting women at the heart of decision-making cultivates the diverse perspectives of clients which fuels innovation.

Research shows that businesses with female decision-makers experience a profitability increase of 21%. Encouraging an inclusive work environment allows for the removal of obstacles women frequently encounter, like societal norms or lack of guidance.

Incentivizing team members to communicate accomplishments, both within the organization and on social media, helps bolster camaraderie and enhance healthy competition. A transparent culture creates space for women to negotiate on behalf of and with each other.

This has a multiplier effect of success that extends the impact on a local and national level.

Importance of a Strong Business Culture

A strong business culture is the backbone of any successful REET. For any all-women team, it lays the groundwork to build a collaborative, inclusive culture that will foster creativity and long-term success.

A female-led executive team fosters a culture focused on values, connection to community, and work-life harmony. These positive traits are crucial for luring and retaining the best talent to you.

Author Impact Around 68% of women in the real estate industry aspire to hold executive roles or to launch their own firms. This underscores the importance of a supportive culture that encourages their ambitions.

Defining Clear Hiring Objectives

Recruitment starts with intentionality, with the goal to uplift more women. Diversity commitments on job postings would promote the business as inclusive and family-friendly.

Connecting with women-focused networks, like professional associations or online communities, expands the candidate pipeline. In interviews, the use of unbiased techniques allows you to evaluate candidates on their skills without falling back on assumptions.

Providing flexibility in the workplace, such as remote work or adaptable schedules, makes the opportunity even more attractive to top-tier talent with varying lifestyles.

Enhancing Team Collaboration

Leadership development opportunities prepare the next generation of women leaders, promoting leadership potential throughout the ranks. Intensive training programs and mentorships link seasoned pros with new talent, forming a vibrant, self-perpetuating cycle of professional development.

Celebrating victories raises the boats of everyone, making the success of a few contagious to the many.

Building Trust with Clients

An inclusive culture in real estate reflects the diversity clients increasingly value. Collaborative teams, including female brokers, produce innovative solutions, strengthening client relationships while boosting workplace morale.

Driving Long-Term Success

Additional training and open communication can help real estate professionals combat implicit bias and improve team dynamics. Transparent advancement tracks ensure that ambitious women have an equal opportunity to grow, laying the foundation for long-term success.

Why Choose an All-Women Team

We’ve seen that creating a real estate business culture that embraces an empowered all-women team makes good business sense and fits with the values of equality, diversity, and innovation. Women’s Equality Day, which commemorates the suffragists’ victory in achieving women’s right to vote, serves as a reminder that the march toward workplace equality continues.

Since the 1920s, women have been fighting for an equal playing field. Voting rights led to economic freedom, including the right to get a mortgage without a man co-signing—a landmark change that happened only 50 years ago. Over time, these struggles have opened doors for women in industries like real estate, where earning potential grows with effort and expertise.

Promoting diversity and inclusion

Though we’ve made strides, real estate is still a very male industry, especially in the commercial space. Organizations such as SIOR are taking steps to build equity and begin to fill the gaps in representation. Changing the industry is a long-term commitment.

A team that reflects diversity, including women, brings new perspectives and results in a more powerful end product. By prioritizing inclusion, we can help dismantle barriers that women face to enter and thrive in the industry of real estate.

Leveraging unique perspectives

Women leaders help advance inclusive perspectives and practices to the real estate industry, and so find a deeper connection to leadership and service-oriented careers. Early-career hurdles, like lack of mentorship, underscore the need for connection.

Conferences and cohorts create environments to exchange wisdom and develop assurance away from male-dominated atmospheres. Women’s aesthetics and design perspectives are big client assets too.

Fostering a supportive work environment

Being in this workshop with an all-women team helps foster a positive and encouraging environment for women. Networking events and conferences foster professional development, something 86% of Gen Z women say they would have liked to start earlier.

Engagement not only improves technical skills, it fosters a sense of community and self-assurance. For women who are unsure about participating in these kinds of events, that reassurance is to know that you’re not the only one taking these first steps.

Strategies for Hiring an All-Women Team

Each intention will help to foster a culture of growth, inclusivity, and balance that is crucial in building a strong, empowered, all-women team within real estate. Ultimately, it’s all about making the workplace conducive to career advancement while respecting the importance of life outside of work.

Here’s a breakdown of actionable steps:

1. Define Clear Hiring Objectives

Create a clear vision for your team. Diversify your brand by looking for women who have the skill sets and out-of-the-box perspectives CRE needs. Promote credentials, like CALP or CAM, that add to expertise and encourage candidates to work toward them.

An amendment requiring ongoing education, such as training on emerging high-profile markets, keeps them at the top of their game. Mentorship is another key component—pairing new hires with seasoned agents encourages professional development and mentorship, while boosting self-assurance.

2. Create Inclusive Job Postings

Write job descriptions that emphasize their potential for leadership, their commitment to celebrating accomplishments and creating environments in which women flourish in CRE.

Showcase the women who are already succeeding despite the odds of our industry, inspiring the next generation of small brokers to reach further. People are inspired when you recognize their contributions, and it creates momentum for them to stick around long-term.

3. Partner with Women-Focused Networks

Organizations like CREW or NAWRB offer networks that foster community and advancement. True leaders should demonstrate virtues of humility and a collaborative spirit, putting the needs of the team and clients first.

This approach advances organizational culture and mission in addition to gender equity.

4. Use Unbiased Interview Techniques

Structured interviews help minimize biases, leading to more equitable evaluations. Showcase equity initiatives and inspire women to push for decision-making positions.

Collective action drives workplace equality, benefiting every team member.

5. Offer Flexible Work Arrangements

Flexibility improves overall work-life balance. Flexible policies such as remote work or adjusted hours demonstrate consideration for personal responsibilities.

By providing open communication, collaboration, and feedback, the employer-everywhere promise promotes continuous improvement for the organization and its employees.

Empowering Your All-Women Team

Creating an effective, all-women real estate team involves more than just making hires. It’s important to create spaces where women are empowered to build skills and develop into leaders. Creating an encouraging environment for diverse perspectives helps strengthen impactful and strategic planning.

Further, it builds better team dynamics by promoting women to decision-making positions. Having gender balance at the executive level will ensure that more innovative and inclusive strategies are implemented, which will pay off in spades for your business.

Provide leadership opportunities

Designing networking events specifically for women in the real estate community is another way to build meaningful relationships. These events foster environments where women can learn from each other, discover new opportunities, and cultivate networks that propel their careers forward.

Trade organizations such as Women’s Council of Realtors or CREW Network are centered on female empowerment and offer support networks and imperative skill-sharing opportunities. Highlighting success stories, such as Talisa Bealum’s journey as a branch manager, illustrates the tangible career growth that networking can enable.

Encourage skill development

Mentorship programs, either formal or informal, can help aspiring women find and build relationships with experienced leaders, providing guidance and inspiration. Reciprocal mentorship encourages two-way learning, benefiting both mentees and mentors.

Or consider Lindi Braddock, who focuses on making intentional decisions to develop herself and her business. Mentorship empowers and prepares women to seek leadership positions with confidence.

Offer mentorship programs

Meaningful recruitment campaigns that speak directly to the needs and interests of female candidates will bring in a wide range of talent. Social media platforms, such as LinkedIn or Instagram, expand your audience, but collaborations with universities play an important role in attracting their new generation of professionals.

These efforts help build bridges for women to come in and thrive in the real estate sector.

Recognize and reward achievements

Providing resources such as leadership training and workshops on the ever-evolving industry landscape, along with access to continuous learning, fosters professional development. Whether through awards or formal promotions, acknowledging accomplishments inspires your team and further cements their worth in your organization.

Arnold adds that women walk a double-edged sword when it comes to juggling their professional aspirations and home life. So, recognizing their efforts is all the more worthwhile.

Benefits of an Empowered All-Women Team

There are tremendous benefits to building a real estate business around an empowered all-women team. This approach allows us to create new opportunities for greater workplace diversity, encourages innovative collaboration, and builds stronger relationships internally and externally.

Successful organizations prioritizing community engagement, uplifting internal team morale, and building deeper client relationships will win out. This practice cultivates an environment of inclusivity and collective prosperity.

Improved Team Performance

Taking your new team out to engage in community service and outreach initiatives develops that collective purpose. Collaborating with local organizations, like housing nonprofits or local neighborhood organizations, fosters trust and visibility in the community.

The Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) at RioCan organizes events that introduce their employees to external stakeholders. These meetings create an atmosphere for networking and collaboration towards common objectives.

This alignment fosters camaraderie among the team members, which increases productivity and staff retention as well.

Enhanced Workplace Morale

Holding themselves accountable through measurement of the success of diversity initiatives pushes the team to be more self-aware and still committed. Taking stock frequently of how the team is feeling and working together allows for adjustment before cracks form and issues arise.

WIN’s advocacy at RioCan, including training female WIN leaders, bringing in guest speakers, and creating resources, have dramatically changed the workplace culture for female employees. This data-driven approach keeps everyone focused on continuous improvement and helps create a workplace experience that retains top talent.

Strengthened Client Relationships

A long-term, demonstrable commitment to gender equity builds client trust. Setting clear, tangible objectives like raising the percentage of women in leadership positions demonstrates that the company is committed to building an inclusive culture.

WIN’s success at RioCan should make anyone take notice. With women currently achieving 37.5% of senior positions, this momentous win goes to show that these efforts help develop confidence and loyalty in clients.

Challenges and Solutions

Building a real estate business culture centered on an empowered, all-women team requires addressing unique challenges while fostering effective strategies. By tackling gender bias, improving team dynamics, and ensuring equal growth opportunities for female brokers, businesses can create a supportive environment that drives success.

Create employee resource groups to support women and promote networking

As Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) gain popularity, they play a significant role in assisting women to succeed in the real estate profession. These groups create intentional spaces for connection and community, fostering mentorship opportunities and allowing for cross-team learning and sharing experiences among female brokers and agents.

For instance, an ERG focused on career advancement might organize monthly workshops around negotiation skills or leadership strategies tailored for real estate professionals. These informal gatherings enhance workplace camaraderie among women and make them feel more connected to their peers in the real estate field.

ERGs can serve as effective strategies for pushing for internal change, such as better maternity leave offerings or equal pay initiatives. Supplementing this with outreach to engage women in professional development and education advocacy groups continues to deepen this support for female representation.

Enrolling staff in relevant professional associations, such as CREW Network, equips employees with focused industry training and knowledge. This involvement fosters a culture in which women are seen as valuable contributors and empowered to achieve their best selves in the real estate development landscape.

Overcoming gender bias in the industry

Flexible work policies are key to combatting gender bias. Providing alternatives such as telework and flexible scheduling enables employees to fulfill family obligations without sacrificing professional development.

For instance, flexible scheduling could allow a working mom to participate in school functions and still complete project due dates. When employees are supported in their home lives, they show up more engaged and productive at work.

Open, public discussions about these policies foster transparency and inclusivity. Frequent team meetings can be a good place to start, either as a way to celebrate successes or brainstorm where the process could improve.

These conversations help normalize nonstandard but equally valid work arrangements and signal the organization’s commitment to a work-life balanced culture.

Addressing team dynamics effectively

Encouraging open dialogue is key to overcoming negative team dynamics. Creating safe channels for employees to report back on progress towards gender equity will help make sure issues are raised and addressed quickly.

For example, if one team member observed that all the work was not being divided evenly, they could propose instituting a rotation system to make it fair. When the organization supports initiatives that challenge traditional gender norms, including workshops for staff to discuss and recognize unconscious bias, this positive environment is even more fortified.

By creating this culture of advocacy, businesses are letting employees help build a healthier workplace. Publicizing these efforts, whether in internal newsletters or through employee recognition programs, reinforces their value and encourages others to continue to engage.

Ensuring equal growth opportunities

It’s key to keeping an empowered team. Spotting trends such as the increasing demand for sustainable real estate can help create new opportunities for women to thrive.

Inspire your team members to explore new markets such as sustainable housing and renewable energy projects. This will expand their skillset and make them known as thought leaders across the industry.

Encouraging innovation from within the private enterprise has been just as essential. Regular ideation sessions or innovation competitions are great ways to generate new ideas and identify hidden potential.

For example, a team might develop a mobile app to streamline property searches, showcasing their creativity while addressing market needs.

Conclusion

Building your business culture isn’t easy, but the benefits speak for themselves. The hiring of an empowered all-women team can lead to new ideas, enhanced collaboration, and ultimately, driving success. When you focus on hiring strategies that match your values and help you build a workplace that fosters growth and innovation. When you support your team with the tools, trust, and opportunities they need to thrive, you empower them to build their confidence and performance.

Nothing may be perfect, challenges will arise, but solutions are always possible when you remain steadfastly focused on your vision. A strong culture doesn’t only draw top talent—it retains it.

Join us October 29, 2020, for an empowering shift in how you build your real estate business culture and all-women team. The positive impact will be felt not just in your business but in the lives of the people who make it successful.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is business culture, and why does it matter in real estate?

Business culture is your business’s mission, attitude, and atmosphere. In the real estate profession, a positive culture fosters female empowerment and helps attract the best talent, creating trust and collaboration within diverse teams, which drives success.

Why should I consider building an all-women team for my real estate business?

An empowered all-women real estate team offers fresh insights, promotes effective teamwork, and cultivates a constructive atmosphere. Women tend to be better communicators and relationship builders, abilities that are key to success in the real estate profession.

How do I ensure my all-women team feels empowered?

Create leadership opportunities for real estate professionals, foster open communication, and provide professional development resources to empower women in the real estate field.

What are the benefits of an empowered all-women team?

Empowered teams, especially in the real estate profession, are more productive, creative, and morale-boosting. Their diversity and representation among real estate professionals contribute significantly to building stronger client relationships and fostering a positive company culture.

What challenges might I face when hiring an all-women team?

Challenges faced by real estate professionals include avoiding unconscious bias, identifying qualified candidates, and ensuring diversity in real estate management. Combat these through transparent hiring practices and an emphasis on skills and experience.

How can I attract top female talent to my real estate business?

Promote your inclusive culture, provide information on flexible work arrangements, and feature examples of female brokers thriving on your real estate team. Utilize effective strategies like strategic job postings and industry-specific networking events to recruit the most talented real estate professionals.

What strategies work best for building a strong business culture?

Set clear values for your real estate team, model them as a leader, and encourage collaboration among diverse teams. Communicate goals consistently, celebrate wins, and invest in training to foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.