Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties push into technology helps agents thrive in pandemic

When the coronavirus struck Connecticut, real estate agent Marla Byrnes thought she might have to give up selling homes all together to keep her and her family safe while riding out the pandemic.

© Kassi Jackson/The Hartford Courant/Hartford Courant/TNS
Candace Adams in the president and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties. She is shown in the lobby of the corporate headquarters in Wallingford.

But Byrnes quickly found that the push into technology and training by her company, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties, made it possible to list and sell homes almost without having to step foot outside her own house.

“And the fact that the market has been so robust, and I’ve been selling houses and listing houses in some cases without physically walking into the houses that I have been selling has been pretty remarkable,” she said.

The forward-thinking culture of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices plus a careful eye on training in technology without losing touch with local branch offices is part of what made the company No. 1 in The Courant Top Workplaces survey for 2020 in the large employer division. It won the same award in 2018.

Employees gave the company high marks for flexibility, both working from home and striking a balance with family; high standards for ethics and integrity; and, notably, valuing suggestions for changes that will improve the workplace.

Candace Adams, the Wallingford-based company’s president and chief executive, said the company is certainly focused on the bottom line, but that takes a back seat to the well-being of the workforce.

“We have a completely different culture. It’s based on the people in the real way. You can say it, or you can do it.”,”additional_properties”:{“comments”:1/83/8,”inline_comments”:1/83/83/4,”_id”:”FXI44WAPSZBDNKERYP6HL43AVQ

Candace Adams, president and chief executive, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties

“We have a completely different culture,” Adams said. “It’s based on the people in the real way. You can say it, or you can do it. It takes a long time to build that culture. It doesn’t happen overnight to have everyone understand what that is.”

Adams points to agents who have been with the company and its predecessor, Prudential, for years.

“I think our competitors are more transactional,” Adams said. “They are trying to get that deal done, and go on to the next one, go on to the next one because it is a highly competitive business.”

Byrnes, who joined Berkshire in 2009, said those in her office in West Hartford are close-knit, not necessarily a given because the agents are technically independent contractors. Often, there is collaboration through brainstorming, or even helping out with property showings.

“The fact that the Berkshire Hathaway culture has fostered that type of environment for its agents is special, I think,” Byrnes said. “Everyone could just stay in their own cubby and put their head down and do their own job. We don’t. We are there to support one another. And we really do.”

Everyone could just stay in their own cubby and put their head down and do their own job. We don’t. We are there to support one another. And we really do.”,”additional_properties”:{“comments”:1/83/8,”inline_comments”:1/83/83/4,”_id”:”NMCL7UZMEZGYPJWP2P746ZIDRY

Marla Byrnes, real estate agent, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties

With a workforce of 1,940 and 57 offices in three states — the bulk of them, 1,600 workers and 50 offices in Connecticut, there certainly has to be organization and accountability. But Adams — never a fan of top-down mentality when she was an agent — says she encourages a culture of communication among the different levels of the organization, from branches to the corporate office.

“I always feel that I could call her if I had a reason to,” Lori Meyerson, an agent in the West Hartford office, said, of Adams.

The pandemic put an abrupt stop to Adams’ employee town halls and visits to offices around the state and personal contact that is a hallmark of the company.

But Adams said about a year before the pandemic Berkshire Hathaway had made the decision to invest more in technology and training — often one-on-one tutoring in branch offices. That essentially brought training to agents, making them comfortable with the technology. When the pandemic hit, agents were ready to use it.

“We went into the Zoom world,” Adams said. “We’ve communicated every single week with our agents via email, via videos, via town hall meetings. We’ve had all-company Zoom meetings where we’ve had a psychologist come on to talk about the path forward, what does this mean and how do people feel.

“So, we’ve been very nurturing making sure we’re considering both the physical implications that distancing impacted as well as the emotional and that’s not over by the way. We’re still in a situation where people psychologically are feeling isolated.”

Adams said she believes the pandemic will reshape the residential real estate business permanently, with more virtual showings, open houses and closings that can be done remotely.

“It’s catapulted our business into that platform of all online business which makes me smile and makes me happy because we were already there,” Adams said.

Adams admits she was reluctant, at first, to make an even deeper move into technology.

“It was my team,” Adams said. “These younger people who pushed me. They are very, very persistent, and they wouldn’t take no for an answer. They brought our whole company along.”

Liz Barnum, one of the company’s trainers, said the experience has been energizing and its still in its early stages. She is already working on virtual classes that agents can tune into at night, while unwinding at home and not having to carve out time during the business day.

“I definitely feel that I am listened to,” Barnum said. “They have trust in you and you feel supported.”

Contact Kenneth R. Gosselin at kgosselin@courant.com.

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