How this broker manages a 10-person team

As Mr Hu’s career has progressed, he, like many brokers, made the decision to take on a number of support staff, as well as invest his time into training new entrants to the broking industry.

Recently, he shared with Elite Broker his tips and tricks on growing and developing from a single-handed broker into a team leader and manager, emphasising the need for strict procedure and a strong focus on the customer experience and outcome.

“I think that probably procedure is the most important thing if you manage a team,” Mr Hu said.

“In my little business here, [for] everything we do, we set up the procedure first.”

From the moment a customer comes through the door, or a referral partner decides to reach out, no matter who they speak to in Mr Hu’s team, the procedure for dealing with that individual is consistent across the board, according to Mr Hu.

He also noted that building rigid procedures is a great way to be collaborative with your team and work out a process that everyone can agree on.

“We actually talk to each other, we brainstorm together, [on] how to do the procedure right.”

The procedures are built to dictate how customers and partners will be treated by members of Mr Hu’s team end-to-end and ensure that everyone is kept up to date with the relevant proceedings.

Mr Hu believes this management structure is one of the key elements for maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction, which have contributed to his recognition in the industry as a leading broker in SA.

He noted that his team will inform their customers of “exactly what time” they will be provided with important documents and that there is a standard practice across his team for when and how to present options to customers.

“That’s how to keep our customers satisfied,” Mr Hu said.

Additionally, Mr Hu said his team works together with their partners so that each referral partner needs only one point of contact, streamlining that procedure and maintaining a highly efficient professional relationship between partners and their clients.

“So each broker will have their own primary contact [out] of our referrals, [and] they have to look after the [whole] group. 

“With that [referral partner], they have provided more prompt service and have to provide reliable options to their customers, because we don't want to ruin any [partner’s] professionalism in front of their customers.“

[Related: How the SA/NT Broker of the Year goes above and beyond for his clients]