By Verl Workman
I recently read an article published by the National Association of REALTORS titled “What Top Agents Actually Want From a Brokerage” (January 9, 2026), and I want to be clear right from the start: I’m in complete agreement with it.
Not politely. Not academically. But in the “this is what I’ve seen play out for decades” sense.
When leaders take the time to really listen to top agents, the answers tend to be remarkably consistent. What makes this article valuable is that it wasn’t assumed, it was observed. And what it observed mirrors conversations I’ve had in conference rooms, coaching sessions, and late-night phone calls with broker-owners and top producers across the country.
Top agents don’t usually leave over splits or software. They leave when something more subtle shifts; when they begin to feel anonymous. I’ve worked with brokerages that doubled or tripled in size without losing their soul because leadership stayed visible, accessible, and personally invested. I’ve also been called in after the fact, when growth quietly created distance and leaders realized – often too late – that connection hadn’t been protected.
What separated those outcomes wasn’t size. It was attention.
The article also spoke to collaboration in a way that felt honest. Not collaboration as a buzzword, but as an atmosphere – whether it feels safe to share ideas, admit challenges, or ask questions without feeling exposed. I can think of more than one leadership team I’ve coached where collaboration changed almost overnight, not because of a new initiative, but because the leader started sharing openly what was working, what wasn’t, and what they didn’t yet have figured out.
Agents tend to follow that lead. When leaders share, agents share. Openness doesn’t need to be mandated, it comes naturally from the top and works its way down.
Another theme that resonated deeply with me was support. Most brokerages don’t lack resources; they lack follow-through. I’ve sat in rooms where leaders proudly rolled out impressive systems, only to circle back months later wondering why adoption was low. In almost every case, it wasn’t resistance, it was abandonment. The system was introduced, enthusiasm spiked, and then leadership moved on to the next shiny object.
The most effective support I’ve ever seen isn’t flashy. It’s someone pulling up a chair and saying, “Let’s finish this together.” Agents remember that kind of help long after they forget which tool they used.
I also felt accountability was framed correctly in the article. Top agents don’t push back against accountability; they push back against pressure without clarity. I’ve watched agents thrive in environments where expectations were clearly defined, commitments were remembered, and follow-up actually happened, not in a punitive way, but in a way that signaled, “This matters, and so do you.”
When done well, accountability feels less like oversight and more like leadership paying attention.
There was also a subtle but important observation about balance. The strongest brokerages I know manage to feel warm without being chaotic, and professional without being cold. That balance doesn’t happen accidentally. It’s shaped by leaders who understand that structure and humanity aren’t opposing forces, they’re meant to coexist.
I’ve noticed onboarding is another moment where trust is either built or quietly fades away. Even experienced agents can feel disoriented when they move – new systems, new processes, new people. The leaders who handle this well don’t rush it. They focus on clarity and confidence, making sure agents quickly understand how things work and who to turn to. I’ve seen firsthand how that early sense of confidence changes everything that follows.
Accessibility came up as well, and for good reason. I’ve watched loyalty erode simply because help became hard to reach. Support that technically exists but feels distant might as well not exist at all. Agents stay where answers are reachable and problems get solved without friction.
Finally, education. Top agents know when learning is designed to elevate them and when it’s designed to sell to them. They appreciate education that is practical, relevant, and attainable, especially when it helps them perform better in the market they’re actually in.
When education sharpens agents, loyalty deepens. When it feels transactional, trust fades.
My takeaway from the article, and from years of working shoulder-to-shoulder with leaders and agents, is simple, though not easy:
Top agents stay where leadership is consistent, support is real, and growth is intentional.
They’ve been communicating that message for years. The brokerages that hear it, and act on it, don’t struggle with retention. They earn it.
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