CRBriefcase

By CRB, Real Estate Business Magazine, June/July 2007

2008 Officers Elected

2008 President
Jonathan D. Nicholas, ABR, CRB, CRS, GRI
Indianapolis, Ind.

Nicholas is a Senior Vice President for Obeo, where he directs the Sales and Marketing functions of their Global operations. He has been in residential brokerage management for more than 18 years and in that time has overseen brokerages with as many as 1,800 sales associates that produced more than $4.5 billion in sales. As an entrepreneur he has owned several industry-related companies and real estate brokerages. Commonly referred to as a change-master, his insights are widely sought after as a speaker and strategist on real estate topics both nationally and abroad. He is a frequent contributor to the national print media, hosts an industry and future trends blog and serves as an instructor for the CRB Council. Nicholas further serves on various committees for the National Association of REALTORS® as well as the CRB Council.

2008 President-Elect
James Kinney, ABR, CRB, CRS, GRI
Chicago, Ill.

Kinney serves as President of Rubloff, number one in average sales volume per associate in Chicago. In addition to that role, he served as the Chicago Association of REALTORS® representative director at the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois, and was President of that organization. He was named to the Illinois GRI Committee in 1996, and is past dean of the Realtor Institute. Additionally, he is a member of FIABCI, the International Real Estate Federation. He was named as a member of Who's Who in Luxury Real Estate in 1996 and in 2004 was honored with REALTOR® of the Year. In addition, Jim is the National Association of REALTORS® Presidential liaison to Ireland. Prior to entering real estate, he enjoyed a career in advertising. Kinney serves on the Executive Committee for the National Association of REALTORS®, as well as CRB Council committees.

2008 Finance Vice President
John Mayfield, ABR, ABRM, CRB, e-PRO, GRI
Farmington, Mo.

Mayfield has been a broker since 1981. More recently, he owned and operated three offices in Southeast Missouri, but remains a practicing broker. Mayfield is a graduate of Southeast Missouri State University. An avid real estate speaker and trainer, he serves as both a CRB instructor and a GRI instructor. Additionally, Mayfield has spoken to thousands of real estate professionals throughout his tenure including speaker at the National Association of REALTORS® conventions. He is an author of three books and creator of the 5-Minutes Series for Real Estate Agents. Mayfield serves as a contributing editor of "Sales Coach" for REALTOR® Magazine Online, and is a real estate writer for Hewlett Packard. Mayfield is also very active on a local, state and national level for the REALTORS® Association. In addition to serving on CRB Council committees, he is the National Association of REALTORS® Director for Missouri.

Bonnie Sparks-Gray, ABR, ABRM, CRB, CRS, GRI

Sparks-Gray will continue to serve on the Board of Directors as Immediate Past President.

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Board of Directors

New members with terms beginning in November 2007

• Laura Duggan, ABR, CRB, CRS, GRI, Austin, Texas
• Charles Foster, CRB, GRI, Cincinnati, Ohio
• Robert Imperato, CRB, CRS, GRI, Boston, Mass.
• R. Brian Matza, ABR, CRB, CRS, e-PRO, San Francisco, Calif.
• Adrienne "Abe" Wagner, CRB, CRS, e-PRO, Donegal, Pa.

Members with continuing terms for 2007–08

• David Cocks, CRB, Charlotte, N.C.
• Eugene Gibbins, ABR/M, CIPS, CRB, CRS, Port St. Lucie, Fla.
• Louis Ludwig, CRB, e-PRO, Boca Raton, Fla.
• William Trask, ABR, ABRM, CRB, CRS, GRI, Standish, Maine

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New Program Available!

Managing & Leading Teams

2 Day Course | 3 CRB Credits

This course is a must for team leaders, anyone thinking of starting a team, or those managing a team or teams within your office. This two-day program covers effective strategies and techniques to help organize, develop and manage teams. It provides a methodology for brokerage managers to transition to using teams effectively and helping leaders excel in a team environment.

Essential objectives include:

• Understand how team structure impacts your business.
• Develop effective leadership within your team or team leaders.
• Use team management and leadership skills to improve team performance.
• Build and strengthen team interaction to improve productivity.
• Improve communication, motivation, skill-development, coaching and counseling within a team environment.
• Construct a team compensation strategy.

For more information on this course, or to bring it to your company, REALTOR® board, or chapter, contact Kristin Carey, director of professional development, at 800.621.8738, ext. 4431 or via e-mail at kcarey@crb.com.

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Visit the CRB Blog!

http://crb-source.blogspot.com

The CRB Blog is just a link away!

Recently a team of CRB bloggers helped launch the site, posting insights and articles on the blog.

Connect to the blog today and comment on what you are reading, experiencing and hearing. This first-ever CRB blog exists to get the pulse of brokers, managers and owners and hopefully provide a valuable forum for thoughtful discussion.

Bookmark the CRB Blog as one of your must-reads!

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New Products Hit the CRB e-Marketplace

Topaz Software Inc.

Manage, motivate and direct individual agents and sales teams with Topaz Software's Symplifi. This is a highly effective online contact management, sales forecasting and reporting product for real estate agents and teams. Topaz offers two online products, and CRB members receive a 15% discount on monthly, six-month, or 12-month packages.

Visit the CRB e-Marketplace to read more about the Symplifi products and how it can 'sync' with your office!

Acxiom

The industry leader and innovator for background checks.

Acxiom has been providing the best background screening services available for almost 30 years. Now ACXIOM — your trusted partner in protective screening programs — can offer a web site for background checks that is specially designed to assist CRB members.

CRB members receive a 30% discount on ACXIOM's TRUSSTÅ Gold service which includes:

• ID Verification
• Unlimited County and Federal Region Criminal Record Checks, including alias and maiden names, searched from the addresses generated through the ID Verification.

Log on to the e-Marketplace today to read more about this product and sign up for service.

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A Quick Guide to the REALTORS® Conference and Expo

Las Vegas — November 11–16

CRB Day Is Thursday, Nov. 15, 2007
The CRB Council will once again have a dedicated day during the 2007 REALTORS® Conference & Expo.

Mark your calendars with these educational events!

The line-up of CRB Day speakers includes:

9–10:30 a.m.
John Yen Wong, CRB & David Cocks, CRB
"Real Estate Companies: Cash Cows, Shooting Stars, Dogs"

11 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
Carla Cross, CRB
"New Leadership for Challenging Times: Build an Unassailable Team"

3–4:30 p.m.
Jack O'Connor, CRB
"Profits, Fun and Leadership Skills for your Company"

Stay tuned to e-Connections and Real Estate Business for more details on CRB Day. Conference registration is available at www.CRB.com in the ABOUT CRB section.

Your Registration Supports CRB!

When you register for the REALTOR® Conference and Expo, be sure to mark "CRB" under the Primary Affiliation section. Part of your registration will then be credited to CRB. Don't procrastinate! See the registration information in this issue, on the facing page.

Make your hotel reservations early for this year's National Association of REALTORS® Conference & Expo. This November will kick off for the Centennial celebration for NAR. The Council's headquarter hotel is the Venetian Resort & Casino. Remember, you can always reserve your room now and cancel 72 hours before the scheduled arrival date if your plans change. This will ensure that you have a room at your preferred hotel at the NAR negotiated rates.

All CRB Council committee meetings will be held at the Venetian Resort & Casino. Council members and interested parties are invited to attend all open committee meetings.

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Hall of Leaders Recipient Announced

Harley Rouda Sr., CRB, GRI of Columbus, Ohio, has been selected as this year's inductee into the Hall of Leaders.

Harley Rouda Sr. of Real Living will be this year's honoree in Las Vegas. He served as President of the National Association of REALTORS® in 1991. Watch for the next two issues of Real Estate Business to read more about Harley.

Previous recipients have included Ebby Halliday, CRB, CRS, LTG, Ebby Halliday REALTORS®; Joseph F. Hanauer, CIPS, CRB, CRE, Combined Investments, L.P; Dave Liniger, CRB and Gail Liniger, ABR, CRB, RE/MAX International, Inc.; Art Godi, CIPS, CRB, CRS, GRI, Art Godi REALTORS®; William A. Watson, Jr., CRB, GRI, of Watson Realty Corporation; J. Lennox Scott, CRB of John L. Scott Real Estate; and Richard Mendenhall, CCIM, CIPS, CRB, e-PRO, GRI of RE/MAX Boone Realty.