Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices CEO Candace Adams: “Character and Effort Trumps Skill”

As a part of my series of approximately sturdy woman leaders, I had the delight of interviewing Candace Adams, president and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England, New York, and Westchester Properties, who is chargeable for overseeing the emblem’s operations and 1,8000 sellers throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island. Over the path of her 20-yr tenure at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Candace has controlled incredible success and expansion both inside and beyond the employer’s footprint, including acquiring ten present brokerages and the release of 4 new places of work in three years. Chief many of the brand’s increase sports beneath Candace’s watch is the launch of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices’ first New York City location.

Thank you a lot for doing this with us, Candace! Can you inform us a story approximately what added you to this specific profession direction?

There changed into a specific enjoy that positioned me on the route of residential real estate. I was a younger mom of a new child and a 2-12 months-vintage, dwelling in a residence that had been in the marketplace for a yr. We were residing in two bedrooms with two infants, and we couldn’t appear to transport the home. We finally had a consumer involved, but because of the actions of our realtor, the deal fell aside. It became a messy state of affairs, and I vowed that it would by no means appear to another person if I could manage it.

Can you percentage the most thrilling story that occurred to you because you began leading your enterprise?

In actual property, we tend to recognition on sales numbers and money made as symptoms of success. Several years in the past, we determined to begin recognizing service further to greenback volume. We had an all-business enterprise assembly and entered each agent with a strong service record into a chance with a $10,000 prize. The person who ended up triumphing became no longer a high producer but had sterling popularity and gave exceptional service to her customers. This small choice greatly impacted our organization and stimulated our team to position a bigger cognizance on service rather than just creating wealth.

Can you share a tale of approximately the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you found out from that?

Buying and promoting a domestic is an entirely emotional enjoyment. There are tons of errors that you can make while you’re coping with households and people going via this transition. I can’t think about any humorous mistakes I’ve made. However there had been several conditions that were difficult simply because you’re managing such an emotional time in people’s lives.

What do you suspect makes your enterprise stand out? Can you proportion a story?

There isn’t any doubt in my mind that our intermediate values are what make us stand out. We stay and breathe them. Some people’ve left our business enterprise for one purpose or any other and end up coming lower back a yr or two later. When asked why majority of them say it’s because of our values. They need to be in an environment where moves communicate louder than phrases.

Recently, we had a consumer who changed into selling his mother’s domestic after she exceeded away. When our agent turned into taking walks via the home right before the sale, she observed that there had been a chunk of molding where this girl had measured the height of her kids over time. Before she left, she removed the molding to present to the patron. It’s those little actions that, in reality, make us stand out.

Are you working on any interesting new tasks now? How do you observe the way to help people?

We are working on a few technology initiatives that will circulate us to the leading edge of real estate tech. I can’t deliver away any info, but they may be rolled out through the stop of the year. They will help our team connect higher with their customers — I can’t wait until our crew is capable of using them!

What advice would you deliver to other girl leaders to assist their group in thriving?

I could tell them to be themselves, be confident, and to now not be afraid to be inclined and display that to your crew. Have high expectancies for yourself and your group, and set the example of meeting and surpassing those expectations.

Female leaders want to, without a doubt, embody who they’re. People will see through it while you’re looking to be something you’re no longer.