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After helping shape the network he has led for two years, one major network’s CEO has decided to get back to the grass roots of the company by taking ownership of an office.
Harcourts NSW CEO Rob Forde has announced he will be stepping down from his current role to take ownership of the Harcourts Mosman office from July 1.
“It’s a bit of a change going from the CEO position into the office, but certainly one that I'm pretty excited about,” he told Real Estate Business.
According to Mr Forde, the opportunity to lead one of the group's largest and most successful offices couldn’t be passed up.
“I saw that opportunity in the Mosman marketplace and looking at what Sandie Dunne has already done there and the connections that she currently has, it's going to be a platform we can drive and attract the best people in the industry into that office," he said.
“The amount of resources and the product offering that Harcourts has now has made the decision pretty easy for me. Some of the resources we can tap into include the luxury property selection, the international marketing, the branding along with the training. The opportunity to grow and develop a team with these tools at our disposal is great.”
Mr Forde’s role as principal will be to attract and recruit big name agents in the industry, and to create and nurture the Harcourts culture in the office.
“One of the things I've learnt through the role with Harcourts over the years is how incredibly important culture is, so it’s going to be really important to get a lot of like-minded people in the office," he said.
“It’s going to be exciting, and we’ve already got a number of people who will be joining the team.”
And while Mr Forde admits he will be getting involved with sales as well, his first step is to find a replacement for his CEO position.
“I’ll be working closely with the recruiting process to look for the person who will be filling my role, I guess I’ve got a vested interest to make sure we get someone pretty good now that I’ll be a principal!” he said.
Harcourts NSW has had huge success over the past few years, with sales up 75 per cent over the past 12 months and a very strong start to 2014.
Mr Forde has also been instrumental in the creation of the Young Real Estate Professionals (YREP) group, which will be hosting a panel session with William Phillips from BresicWhitney, Adrian Wilson of Wilson Property and Kate Towerton from Harcourts Hills Living.
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