Recently, going into the doctor’s office, I watched the team work. A friendly receptionist greeted me with enthusiasm and asked for my method of payment, so I showed my insurance card and made a co-payment. After waiting 30 minutes to see the doctor, I was called by a nurse practitioner (I guess even nurses have assistants) who weighed me and took my blood pressure. I was then brought into an examination room where I waited for what I thought would be the doctor. To my surprise, the nurse came in and asked me some questions, filled out a couple more forms, then said she would be right back. Lo and behold, a knock on the door with what should have been the doctor produced the physician’s assistant (PA) who was professional, friendly and knowledgeable. He completed his exam, made some recommendations and sent me back to the counter to schedule a follow-up appointment.
I never saw the doctor whose name was on the door. Was I disappointed? Did I feel cheated? The answer is no. All of my needs were met, everyone was an expert at their job, and I felt better after leaving.
This exact experience occurs all over the place on a daily basis, whether it be at the dentist, the doctor, the gym, the grocery store or pretty much every other business that has employees. All of these companies work as teams to create what they hope to be an amazing client experience.
As teams become more and more popular, it’s because they make sense. I’m sure the doctor could have greeted me and done all the preliminary work, because in her mind no one person would ever do the job as well as she could, but she’s discovered that she needs to focus on the most important and profitable part of her business: surgery and post-op care.
With the complicated nature of the real estate transaction, downward pressure on commission and the amount of information and misinformation available to our clients, it’s more important than ever to make sure you have the ability to focus on the most important part of the interaction so that the client is better served. By hiring specialists in each area of the interaction, everyone wins.
There’s no right size for a team. Every person has to decide how much they want to grow. We’ve discovered that the better the service the team provides, the more opportunities present themselves, which allows the team to grow organically.
Key positions on a team include:
- The team leader
- Administrative assistant or client care coordinator
- Buyer’s agents
- Showing assistants
- A listing partner (when ready)
Additional positions that can be added to a team include a sales manager, transaction coordinator, marketing department and runner.
Whether you’re a single agent or part of a large team, look at your business and ask yourself whether people are being underserved because of your inability or lack of interest in delegating to specialists. If the answer is yes, consider how your next visit to the doctor’s office would differ if there wasn’t a team in place.
Verl Workman is the founder and CEO of Workman Success Systems (385-282-7112), an international speaking, consulting and coaching company that specializes in performance coaching and building successful power agents and teams. Contact him at Verl@WorkmanSuccessSystems.com. For more information, please visit www.WorkmanSuccessSystems.com.
You may want to rethink your scenario regarding the doctor’s office for several reasons:
1. It is not likely that a Nurse Practitioner weighed you and took your blood pressure, only to be relieved by a PA. Educationally, a Nurse Practitioner and a PA are functionally equivalent. It is more likely that a medical assistant weighed you, took your blood pressure, et.
2. Your comment that “even nurses have assistants now?” was condescending and indicates a lack of understanding of this medical model.
I’m not a medical professional, but the inaccuracy of your points was ready evident to me and did not help your analogy re: the purpose of a team.
I totally agree, Beth. Those same points stood out to me in this essay. I too am not in the medical profession. And I found that I then questioned the author’s entire premise.
I agree with the 1st comment. I also happen to feel cheated when I get a PA instead of the doctor I was expecting…so there’s that…
When we go to the doctors office we would like to see the doctor. This is why he/she has his name on the door. I am surprised you are ok with someone else helping you. They are doctors for a reason.
I’m sorry but I don’t agree. If I make an appointment with a board certified doctor I should be seen by that doctor. The nurse or the assistant can be very qualified, but they should notify the patients before the appointment that the doctor will not be seeing you. You can then decide if you want to continue with that particular doctor or not.
I see many doctors due to a variety of medical issues I have. I interview ALL my doctors so they will be the ones who see me. PA’s and assistants come and go, but the doctor, the one who is in charge of my chart is whom I am paying to see me. My primary physician was out of her office for months while she was getting her Board certification and I as royally upset to the point that I was going to find another primary. I was never told why she was out every time I went and how long it was going to take her to take her specialty state tests. I am a 40-yr active Broker, owner of my own firm. I have agents, but I never move my clients over to my agents. Each client gets personalized service from me from the initial contact to the day of closing. Should I need to be gone for some reason, I will notify them of my absence and let them decide if they want to wait for me or be serviced by one of my agents during my absence. Usually they will wait for me to return. I know today’s team system works for some, but I am not one of them. I believe in being involved from start to finish, and you know what? I make darn good money and great referrals!!!!
I disagree with the author of this article as well. I’ve been selling real estate for nearly 19 years and I am involved start to finish. I take pride in not shoving my clients off to an assistant. I feel to do that is rude. And yes, if I made an appointment to see a doctor – I expect to see the doctor!