Dr. Oscar Gonzales is President of “the gonzales group” and a strategic consultant to the Houston Association of REALTORS®.
He is a nationally & internationally known speaker & author on topics as they relate to real estate trends, affordable housing, emerging markets, generational differences, consumer behavior, and business modeling and planning.
His professional experience includes over 15 years with REALTOR® associations in executive staff positions. Prior to joining the REALTOR® organization he worked as a senior tax and audit manager in public accounting firms.
Dr. Gonzales was recently named by REALTOR® Magazine as 1 of the 25 Most Influential People in Real Estate Nationwide, and as an “Industry Icon” by BrokerAgent Magazine and awarded the prestigious “Associations Advance America” Award in 2002 and 2003 by the American Society of Association Executives.
He serves on the Fannie Mae Southwest Regional Housing and Community Development Advisory Council and is a founding director to both the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals and the newly formed Asian-American Real Estate Association of America.
He has been active in various organizations including the American Diabetes Association and various college advisory boards, chambers of commerce and economic development councils.
You can reach Oscar at oscar@thegonzalesgroup.com
There a several major changes occurring through out the real estate industry but, without a doubt the most dynamic changes are being generated by the consumer. Information abounds and today’s real estate professionals must be prepared to address the consumers’ needs and expectations while at the same time validating their value proposition. IBM’s Tom Watson was once asked how long it takes to become excellent to which he replied, “About a minute.” Consumers expect nothing less than excellence.
Additionally, real estate professionals lack “standards of practice.” Brokers may unknowingly find that they are being influenced by others who want to control the transaction through subtle changes in the way they conduct business with brokers. Relinquishing control to others outside your scope of practice can be lethal to an industry, just ask physicians and their relationship with HMO’s.
One of the interesting dynamics to watch unfold was Associations and their MLS’s getting their members, albeit kicking and screaming, onto computerized and internet based MLS systems. Unfortunately they spent their time automating yesterday’s procedures and practices never considering that the consumer had a whole new level of service expectation.
Associations and their MLS’s must focus some degree of their attention to the behavioral patterns of the consumer and in turn help their members better understand the influence these dynamics play on the brokerages profitability.
Organizations should not be afraid to destroy their businesses before their competition does as GE’s Jack Welch suggests. At a time when brokerages are pushed to reduce cost, improve the quality of their service, locate new opportunities for growth and increase productivity, brokerages need to look beyond the traditional ways of brokering property. The old bureaucratic cultures of most brokerages can smother those who want to respond to the shifting conditions in the industry.
Disruption always creates new market growth and to tap into it, disrupted organizations should go on the offensive, seeking customers who are off their radar, for example the emerging market consumer.
The role of the Realtor Association and MLS should be that of a partner to the brokerage. The Association through its collective power among all its members can provide opportunities that a broker cannot single handedly address. There is a term that rings true in our industry and the term is “innomediaries”.
These are organizations that mediate between customers seeking to make buying decisions and the companies that want to reach them. Realtor Associations are by their very nature innomediaries. Consumers often feel that the information they get directly from the company is biased or reflects a vested interest. Associations can span these structural holes by creating virtual bridges between brokerages and consumers and enable brokerages to engage different kinds and larger number of homebuyers and prospects.
What I envision myself doing to affect a positive change in the industry is to get Realtor Associations and their brokerages to look beyond their own backyards and lose their myopic tendencies. Other industries have gone through the same shift we are experiencing now and we stand to learn a lot from them. For example, the opportunities that lie within the emerging markets are phenomenal but getting Brokerages and Associations to see that opportunity is challenging. With 90 percent of the future growth coming from the emerging markets and more than 50 percent of them nearing the home buying age, Brokers and Associations often ignore this explosive opportunity and stand by not understanding why their profits are dwindling.
I read countless books and periodicals to see the relevance they may have to our industry. It is important to marry outside of the family and not get caught up in just what is happening inside the real estate industry. I would recommend the following books:
-Re-imagine! Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age by Tom Peters
-The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner
-Leading Change by John Kotter
-Heart of Change by Kotter and Cohen
-Good to Great by Jim Collins
-Geeks and Geezers by Bennis and Thomas
Pick up a copy of the Harvard Business Review…….don’t let the name scare you, it is an easy but relevant read.
