One Sotheby’s International Realty represents 21 of the first 100 agents listed in the Wall Street Journal’s Real Trends Top Sales Professionals list, and that fact is no fluke according to Reginald Fairchild, executive vice president and managing director of the firm’s eight Florida offices.

“Something like that doesn’t happen by coincidence,” Fairchild said, adding that another large firm had 18 agents in the top 100, but that particularly company has nine times more agents than Sotheby’s.

The list, which ranks agents by sales volume, suggests Sotheby’s has a solid recruitment strategy, a crucial part of business in any industry.

Fairchild said he seeks career-minded, goal-oriented, top-tier agents. Noting that the Sotheby’s name began with the opening of a London auction house in 1744, Fairchild said there is a certain expectation of the firm. Sotheby’s has an image, and hopeful agents have to demonstrate they can protect that image, he said.

“If you were to say to someone, ‘I’m going to stay at the Four Seasons,’ whomever you say that to has an idea of what you’re going to encounter once you get there,” Fairchild said. “We have that same promise people conjure up in their minds when they hear the name Sotheby’s. It conjures up in people’s minds a certain image of service and luxury and quality.”

Prospective agents need to boast a minimum annual production with their previous firm in order to be considered to join the team, though Fairchild chose not to specify the amount. Once on board, a new benchmark of minimum production is set. Agents who don’t meet that threshold could be let go, though Fairchild said she has never let anyone go during her 10 years with Sotheby’s.

Fairchild estimated that there are about 300 agents across the eight offices, and said approximately 25 agents were added to the group in the last six months. He said he hasn’t let anyone go because he follows this cycle: recruit, train and retain.

No two agents are the same, he said. When he interviews agents he wants to find out what they want to accomplish. He recruits agents who want to take their business to the next level and utilize Sotheby’s international reach to tap into a market that is becoming increasingly global.

“If you’re joining Sotheby’s just to change the logo on what you already do, stay where you are.”

Reginald said he typically brings on agents with many years of real estate experience. However, he said he has hired agents who are new to the industry before, usually because of a rare set of circumstances where they have a door into a source of clientele that aligns with the Sotheby’s brand.

Regardless of experience, agents joining Sotheby’s receive initial training. Furthermore, agents attend monthly sales meetings and attend “building business” classes. The training, Reginald said, is tailored to each agent’s needs, reiterating that each agent calls for a different approach.

“There is no boiler plate, there is no template, there is no outline,” he said. “This is on a case by case basis. They’re independent contractors. Each brings their own skill set.”

Fairchild said agents who are tech savvy certainly help their case, but he neither hires nor turns down an agent based on tech skills alone, and neither does Chris Basick, managing broker of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell’s (EWM) Miami Beach office.

Basick took over his office a year and a half ago and increased the number of agents from about to 75 to about 100.

He said that EWM’s sophisticated clientele expects that their agents will be able to use the latest technology. With that being said, Basick insists social skills take greater importance, even if just by a hair.

“Beyond anything else, it’s all about the people-relationship thing,” Basick said. “You got to be able to relate to people well. You can bring in all the tech, but at the end of the day it’s about how you relate to people.”

Basick said he prefers that prospective agents send their resume to him, so that he can take an initial look at their background.

Many of the top producers in his office have worked in the hospitality industry, be it in a hotel, restaurant or other workplace. Basick said he will still meet with an agent if they prefer not to send a resume, but any selling or serving experience is a plus.

“Whether you sell shoes, coffee machines or real estate, there comes that moment when you have to be able to close the deal,” he said.

Basick said agents must be self-disciplined, too, especially in a market like South Florida where preconstruction projects are numerous. Agents need to have the will, he said, to go to every single preconstruction sales office and learn about the project.

Since real estate agents are essentially out for their own business, Basick said self-discipline is critical.

“As an organization we’re always here to provide you with the tools and the encouragement and coaching as much as we can, but at the end of the day, you yourself will make the difference,” Basick said.

As a non-competing broker, Basick said he is not allowed to sell real estate, meaning all that he works for is the betterment of the office and its agents.

The starting split of commission for new agents is 50/50, Basick said, adding that the split can increase in favor of the agent based on production and potential. EWM offers training every Monday and Thursday, and offers one-on-one support for agents who request it – whether it’s for cropping a photo, enhancing a photo, making a video or figuring out a new Smartphone application.

Basick said he typically spends about two hours interviewing a prospective agent. During that time he tries to get to know a person’s personality. He admitted that often times the decision to hire an agent boils down to a question of judgment.

Any apparent flaws in integrity, honesty and trustworthiness are sure to set off a red flag for Basick, who said those qualities are among the top characterizes required in a EWM agent, and the violation of them by a team member might be cause for terminating the contract.

“[Agents] have to instill trust,” Basick said. “If someone is going to come to you to look for a property, that’s a big investment, a big decision in their lifetime. [Agents] have to be able to relate to people to walk them through a very difficult process so that they can reach the right decision.”