Hiring the Right People

Introduction

In commercial real estate brokerage, hiring isn’t “HR work.” It’s deal flow work. Every bad hire costs you more than payroll—because it slows down listings, delays marketing, misses buyer/seller follow-ups, and weakens trust with clients. The “Talent Funnel” is a hiring approach that treats your hiring pipeline like your deal pipeline: you attract the right people, filter fast, and onboard so they can perform.

For a broker owner, the goal is simple: build a team that can handle the specific pressure points of CRE—tight timelines, complex transactions, multiple stakeholders, and lots of client communication. When you hire the right way, your business feels calmer. When you hire out of desperation, deals stall.

Concept

The Talent Funnel has three parts:
1) Hiring (attract and filter)
2) Training (onboard to performance)
3) The Repellent Job Ad (filter for fit using intentional friction)

Used together, they reduce wasted interviews and speed up time-to-contribution.

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Hiring

Hiring is how you attract the right candidates and screen out the ones who won’t survive CRE reality. In commercial brokerage, “qualified” doesn’t just mean experience—it means comfort with cold outreach, document-heavy deals, and client-grade communication under deadline.

Broker-specific example (what the ad should signal):
Instead of posting “Looking for a sales professional,” a CRE firm posting for a leasing agent or acquisitions assistant should clearly describe the day-to-day:
- Calling and emailing property owners and tenants to build appointment pipelines
- Using listing and buyer databases (and updating them correctly)
- Managing follow-up so no lead “goes quiet”
- Working with deal managers on comps, marketing packages, and offer deadlines

A strong ad also names the hard parts: long sales cycles, constant follow-up, and the need to be organized with documents.

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Training

Training ensures your hire can do the work your clients feel. In CRE, “training” is not a one-hour video call. It’s a structured ramp that teaches how your firm handles:
- Market research and how you build a comp story
- Marketing package standards (photos, property highlights, disclosures you require)
- Showing and tour logistics
- Offer review and client updates
- CRM hygiene and deal-stage expectations

Broker-specific example (first 30–45 days):
A new acquisitions coordinator doesn’t just learn software—they learn your process. You run a playbook workshop on how to:
- Qualify inbound seller/buyer leads
- Create a first-touch script that matches your tone
- Draft a “property facts” sheet format you use
- Schedule meetings and produce a packet for the first call
This training should include role-play and scorecards so the person reaches minimum performance quickly.

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The Repellent Job Ad

A Repellent Job Ad is intentionally designed to discourage people who are not serious or who won’t follow instructions. The trick isn’t trickery—it’s clarity plus a small, specific requirement that demonstrates attention to detail and ownership.

Broker-specific example (simple filter):
In your hiring post, require the applicant to answer a short prompt that proves they understand CRE basics. For example:
- “In your reply, tell us what ‘rentable square feet’ means in one paragraph and explain why it matters in a lease deal.”
- Or “Include the subject line format: [YourName]-CRE-DETAILS.”

The candidates who skim will fail this. The candidates who pay attention will stand out immediately.

Conclusion

The Talent Funnel works because it forces you to hire like a broker: attract the right targets, run structured screening, and manage your process end-to-end. In commercial real estate brokerage, this means you get hires who can handle lead follow-up, deal documentation, and client communication—and you reduce the chaos that kills momentum.