In our Creative Cultures series, contributor Crystal Henrickson spends a day inside companies to learn how hiring, onboarding and company culture play a role in employee happiness. From startups to design firms and all in-between, we’re pulling back the curtain on what it’s like to work in inventive and productive environments.
It doesn’t seem to matter the occasion, whether family function or a dinner party with friends, guests congregate in the kitchen. Today, I find myself seated at the communal table at Rennie, a guest among the firm’s tight knit family-like unit. Piles of cookies keep me company as various advisors, marketers, and operators of Rennie’s team introduce themselves while snatching up one of the freshly-baked treats.
Sweetening the pot
It turns out that cookies are part of Rennie’s DNA. Every new employee is put to work in the kitchen with a baking challenge on their first Friday and, no you can’t cheat —this team is discerning and they can tell store bought from the real thing. “I think I’m going to like this place,” Marketing Manager May Globus remembers thinking when she first arrived to her new Rennie home. “The reason why I wanted to come to Rennie is because I liked Bob and the team. I could tell it was a supportive environment. There are a lot of real estate companies out there, but I think Rennie is different in the sense that it’s more than real estate, it’s lifestyle.”
The Rennie brand doesn’t just manage the homeownership and investment process for purchasers of quality real estate with its brokerage service. Rennie Marketing Systems works with developers acting as as the sales and marketing arm for more than 80 developments and has a portfolio including such landmark properties as the historic Woodward’s redevelopment, the Estates at the Fairmont Pacific Rim and the Village on False Creek.
A family affair
Bob Rennie, the firm’s founder, proves that company values are not just words on a wall — he also walks the company values walk. At Rennie, “Everyone is allowed to be an individual… allowed to be themselves and allowed to have an opinion and accept the diversity of thought.” Every year, Bob invites head office to take a team development trip together in the spirit of “keeping family values” and in making time together, away from work, a priority.
It doesn’t matter if it’s staff or clients, they feel that energy as they come up. It’s a happy place to be. – Kevin Wong, Director of Operations
It’s more than just a work family affair for long standing employee, Brittany Dawson, Contract Administrator, who owes her start to her mom. When she needed a hostess for an event nearly 15 years ago, she asked Brittany for a hand. And Brittany has been a member of this family ever since. “These people are my family, they’re my friends. You can just be your real self. I’m ‘Auntie Brittany’ to a lot of kids that have been born through the office.”
The human touch
The office spans four floors. On the main floor is the bullpen. This is where Rennie’s realtors, called advisors, convene. Advisors at Rennie aren’t just helping close property deals; they want to understand your long-term objectives and get you started on the right property investment path to help support those choices. Rennie looks for really good humans who are candid, consistent, and empathetic, and who demonstrate a good work ethic. And they won’t take on any agent who is just willing to pay a desk fee; advisors must be aligned with the brand and interested in being part of a team. To promote stronger bonds amongst the advisors, a Monday Morning Coffees has been initiated to help advisors be their best. It covers everything from market updates and tech/productivity tips to compliance updates and case studies.
Up the stairs to the second floor, music often plays upon ascent. It comes from the desk of Kevin Wong, Director of Operations. “It doesn’t matter if it’s staff or clients, they feel that energy as they come up. It’s a happy place to be. That’s my role, to ensure everyone is happy and safe. This includes showing people they’re valuable, acknowledging their input, recognizing a job well done and making everyone feel they are part of the team.”
An artful impact
Occupying the same building, is the Rennie Collection, a private exhibition of contemporary art. Each exhibition encourages a different commentary, perspective, medium and aesthetic to communicate a message – something that both the team and the public can be inspired by. With every new exhibition, the museum offers free tours.
From the art collection and free museum tours to its youthful, creative and collaborative way of working, word is getting out about Rennie. With over 100+ advisors, 50+ head office staff and growing, this dynamic team is changing the way real estate is done.
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