Vice President
Director of Mentor Program
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Mentor Program:
One of the most important developments in Fillmore agent education this year is the Mentor Program.
The program was created 4 years ago by Jean-Paul Ho, manager of the award-winning 9317 Avenue L office.
The program's aim is to empower all agents with the knowledge and actual experience that Fillmore's top producers possess, and assist the managers by creating a winning, cooperative, self-sufficent sales team.
Agents join the program as mentees (trainees), receive instruction and participate in actual transactions with assistance of their mentor, and acquire mentor status themselves upon graduation, after completing specific goals and passing exams.
Once the first round of mentors graduates, they can go on to teach in other offices. Eventually, we should have at least one mentor in every office, spreading knowledge and offering day-to-day guidance. Jean-Paul also commented that he would like to see a variety of mentors, speaking different languages and specializing in various aspects of real estate.
Aside from the wealth of actual experience that the Mentor Program offers agents, there is another important difference between Filmore's Mentor Program and training offered by other real estate companies. The relationship between the mentee and the mentor is beyound the traditional "teacher/student" interaction. As Jean-Paul said in the interview, "It's like a marriage - a firm commitment and a trust relationship." Even after the mentee graduates and goes on to teach, the bond with their teacher is still strong. "It's a long-term relationship - people graduate from the program, afterwards they still get help, they still have that person they know they can rely on." The impact of this program on teamwork and levels of trust has been tremendous.
The mentor is like a sports coach or a personal trainer - their goal is not limited to explaining the basics. A good coach makes sure their trainee is mentally ready to tackle the project, and follows that initial push with helpful advice and words of encouragement when things get tough. Knowing that you've got a capable instructor and advisor works wonders for your confidence.
The program's success is evident in the rave responses from graduated agents: "I would recommend this program to all new agents", says Beverly Gordon, while Brandon Pierre calls is it "the best program in the world". Every graduate has already put what they have learned in the program to good use - with several contracts and at least one listing each. The initial response and results have show this method's undeniable success. At this time, the Mentor Program is being implemented in five Fillmore offices, with more to come.
Not only does the program create well-trained agents who are comfortable with all tasks required to market themselves, get listings, and sell properties - but it also instills habits of due diligence. Making sure all the legal and financial aspects of a transaction are covered seems like a lot of extra effort, but it will prevent many problems. Pre-qualifying buyers is only one part of due diligence - as your manager what other "safety measures'' you can take to ensure the success of your deal.
Some of the obligations that mentees have include achieving time-management and productions goals. Other objectives are focused on learning the online tools offered by Fillmore and other sites, marketing and self-presentation skills, and writing effective ad copy and property descriptions. After the "look / listen / leran" phase, action demands like "The 30 Rule" come into play, as well as demonstrating familiarity with various tools and resources. Overall, this program incorporates almost every aspect of the real estate process, and produces informed agents who are proficient in every state of real estate sales.