1.
Do a preliminary requirement assessment.
BACK TO TOP
 It’s
critical to assess your needs before you hire a corporate real estate
service provider. This way, you’ll know your objectives and
understand the scope of the work. You must define your needs before
you can choose a service provider with the right mix of experience,
knowledge and resources. These days, one person can’t do it
all in the corporate real estate world. Good professionals differentiate
themselves with certain knowledge, experience and specialization.
You want the right fit. Do the homework – What services do
you need? -- in conjunction with your personnel department, your
engineering people, etc. Going through this process not only will
ensure you find the right professional, but also it will help you
to trust that your eventual hire is a good one. Next, request proposals
from service providers who may fit the job, then schedule face-to-face
meetings with those who respond.
2. Get to know each candidate’s
history. BACK TO TOP
Ask
for specific information about a candidate’s experience that
is relevant to your specific project, but don’t stop there.
Professional real estate agents are not commodities, whereby one
is interchangeable with another. Request a sample marketing plan.
Ask for a resume. What is the service provider’s training?
Specialty? In what ways has he or she continued an education? What
professional conferences has he or she attended? Designations and
affiliations are important. Attendance at seminars, classes and
conferences signifies a professional who is receptive to learning
and growing in a dynamic field such as commercial real estate. What
has he or she accomplished recently? How relevant is that to your
project?
3. Find out about each candidate’s professional
affiliations. BACK TO TOP
A commercial
real estate agent’s professional affiliations are important
considerations.
4. Ask for recommendations
and more. BACK TO TOP
The
only way to truly evaluate a real estate professional is with references.
Request letters of recommendation from all candidates – and
be sure to follow up with discussions with the agents’ previous
clients. The recommendations are most valuable if they add credence
to the candidates’ character and shed light on his or her areas
of expertise and experience.
But
talk with more than the people who have hired the person: Additional
discussions with bankers, lawyers, economic development officials,
architects, contractors, and other commercial real estate agents
who’ve worked with the candidate should help to further define
candidates’ skills, talents, energy, effectiveness and integrity.
5.
Learn the candidates’ firms’ histories and capabilities. BACK TO TOP
What
is the history of each candidate’s firm? What is its experience
in the marketplace? What is its reputation? Does the firm have the
capabilities you need? Successful fulfillment of real estate transactions
involves a combination of research, planning and skills. Of special
importance is the capability of the firm’s research division:
Often, it serves as the backdrop for investment and site selection
decisions. Determine if a broker’s firm has in place the personnel,
skills, tools and experience to meet your needs. Investigate the
firm’s completion of transactions involving various types of
properties.
|
|
6.
Interview, interview, interview. BACK
TO TOP
Interview
to evaluate a firm’s personnel. Request an interview with all
people handling your account. The individual or project team will
represent the firm’s capacity to successfully execute the transaction
in the time frame you establish. Discuss the real estate professional’s
current workload. Can he or she give your project the time it requires
and deserves? Take note of the energy level of everyone involved.
A high energy level reflects an enthusiastic – and valuable
– commitment to your project. If a potential candidate or firm
seems uninterested in your project, go elsewhere. Interview to evaluate
compatibility. This relationship should be built on trust. You must
feel confident in your agent’s ability to communicate and to
perform all aspects of your transaction – and future transactions.
Keep in mind the compatibility factor throughout the interview and
other interactions. What are your impressions? Does the individual
seem honest, ethical and confident in his or her own ability? Could
you stand to spend five hours in an airport with this person? Get
to know the candidate professionally with such questions as: What
separates you from the others? What is your competitive advantage?
What is your area of expertise? Of specialization? (Don’t put
these questions in writing before the interview. You want fresh
answers).
7.
Check out each candidate’s ethics. BACK
TO TOP
Ask
other brokers. Contact your local board of Realtors and your state
real estate licensing authority. Ask local economic development
representatives, and municipal/county planners and managers. If
the candidate is a member of the Society of Industrial and Office
Realtors, he or she is held to the Society’s strict code of
ethics. A real estate service provider should never, ever put his
or her interests before a client’s.
8. Make the final selection. BACK TO TOP
Get
marketing plans from all remaining candidates. Request and compare
the marketing plans. The plans will allow you to assess whether
your transaction will be conducted in a thoughtful and disciplined
manner. Now that you’ve done the work, you can choose your
real estate professional with confidence.
9.
Create a follow-up plan. BACK TO TOP
Your
work’s not quite done, though. Set a timeline for reports and
reviews. They’re essential not only for good business but also
for ultimately helping you evaluate your – ideally – ongoing
relationship with your new professional real estate service provider.
Once you find the right person, you will want to revisit the needs-assessment
with him or her. A good agent is an excellent resource to help you
gain efficiencies. The person you choose will help you refine the
assessment, bring ideas based on experience and also may bring in
other needed professionals, such as an architect to suggest more
effective ways of configuring, workspaces, or a process engineer
to determine if automation, for example, could reduce your space
needs.
|
