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Respect goes a long way in one Perth agency, where diversity underpins all of its business success.
Professionals Stirling Clark Real Estate licensee and director, and REB Awards Industry Thought Leader of the Year finalist Cara de Buelle boasts 15 years of experience in the real estate industry.
Today, as one of the notable young leaders in real estate, she holds a keen interest and passion for recruiting and training staff, helping them excel in their chosen field and ultimately reach their career goals in sales, property management and administration.
Through the years, she has consistently upheld one critical part of her recruitment and training process: diversity.
According to Ms de Buelle, embracing equality in the workplace is a huge part of the culture within her company, and led Professionals Stirling Clark to being crowned Diversity Office of the Year at the Women in Real Estate Awards 2020.
In fact, Professionals Stirling Clark boasts an equal 50-50 shared male/female ownership and management: “We have amazing people in our business — both male and female. They bring completely different skill sets, experience and knowledge to their roles.”
The split means that “right from the top, the message is clear. Respect for each other is a non-negotiable for us.”
According to the licensee, attitude and determination comes first when recruiting and promoting staff. More importantly, team success is celebrated as greatly — and as often — as individual achievements.
“If one wins, we all win,” she said.
“The real estate industry is competitive enough without fighting for your place within your own office.”
As a result of the firm implementation of diversity principles and a one-team mindset, Ms de Buelle’s team “is cohesive and overall happier coming to work and making a difference”.
She highlighted: “We believe that if our team is happy and comfortable in their environment, the quality of the work they produce and the level of service they provide to clients is enhanced.
“A positive client experience is what drives repeat and referral business and that experience is in the hands of the staff managing their transaction, so it’s important we own that. It’s a responsibility we take very seriously.”
Ultimately, Ms de Buelle encourages real estate professionals and companies to be more open-minded in the way that they run their businesses. After all, “the way it’s always been” may not always be the best way to go moving forward.
Acknowledging that “we have come a long way” when it comes to diversity, Ms de Buelle conceded that “there is still progress to be made”.
She said “times are changing, whether you’re on board or not, and the traditional model of a real estate agency is evolving”.
“Be brave!”
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