Nearly one year ago, Bill Miles, EVP of Connecting Neighbors, wrote the following:

“The long term viability of the [real estate] agent, as a group or individual, is going to turn on their ability to deliver value to the real estate consumer. While there is great momentum in our society in favor of using a real estate professional when buying or selling a home, that momentum will slowly erode if the professional fails to deliver value to the transaction.”

Quite an interesting statement, especially in light of the dramatic changes that have occurred in the real estate and mortgage industries over the past year. It is exciting to consider that Obeo is perfectly positioned to assist the real estate agent in accomplishing exactly what Mr. Miles suggested in his statement: Deliver value to the real estate consumer.

As each of you is aware, it is clear that Obeo’s products, including HomeSite, StyleDesigner, SpaceDesigner and other products, add tremendous value to the services provided by real estate agents to their clients. And mostly importantly, our products-and the related shopping experiences-are exactly what the consumer wants! But it is not of this aspect of Obeo that I would like to comment in this newsletter, rather I wish to point out the tremendous value of our “human capital.”

It is people that create Obeo’s products. It is people that sell those products. It is people who will facilitate Obeo’s growth over the next several years. Truly, it is people that make Obeo what it is. And there has never been a better time than right now to be introspective of the value each of us contributes to our individual-and mutual-success.

With that thought in mind, let’s go back to Bill Miles’ comment about the long term viability of the real estate agent and replace a few words here and there. With a little modification, one could state that:

“The long term viability of Obeo and its employees and consultants, as a group or as individuals, is going to turn on our ability to deliver value.” 

There has never been a more appropriate time in Obeo’s history to reflect on the value that each of us-as individuals and collectively-bring to the table. Providing value is not a simple characteristic of what you ought to do, it is a necessary principle by which the business must be driven. If our/your product or service doesn’t deliver quality and value, we’d all have to reconsider the decision to have a business at all!

Atlanta real estate agent Ryan Ward learned a valuable lesson from his personal mentor when he entered the real estate profession. When Ryan was into his career about one year, his mentor asked him a question that even today Ryan says he asks himself every single day. That question is: “What am I doing to stay relevant?”

It would behoove each of us to become a bit more introspective and ask ourselves that very question every day as well. At times we may not perceive that our individual contribution makes that big of a difference, but it does. Collectively, our individual efforts make ALL the difference! Let’s all resolve to be more relevant and to continually add more value in everything we do. By doing so, we can be assured that our individual contributions really DO make a difference!

Brent Gray
Chief Operating Officer
Obeo, Inc.