Leadership 7th Edition by Andrew DuBrin, Ann Fisher, Andrew DuBrin

Exercise 1

Agents from Long Realty in Tucson, Arizona were eager to find a safe place to discuss the complexities of the real estate market after the housing bubble burst a few years ago. Some of the agents began exchanging Information on Facebook, but anyone could read their comments including clients and bankers.
Having that conversation on Facebook wasn't the appropriate venue, said Kevin Kaplan, vice president of marketing and technology at Long Realty.
As a result, Long Realty launched a revolutionary new agent-to-agent social media networking platform called Long Connects that enables their agents to connect to other Long Realty professionals in a safe, online environment. This is yet another way Long Realty is taking the industry lead to help their real estate professionals work smarter and more efficiently to provide the highest level of service.
For several years, real estate agents have been using social media for marketing purposes. By using photo and video sharing to make listings more attractive, many agents have been able to attract more buyers. An example would be presenting a story about an unusual home for sale. Real estate veterans also use professional networking sites to hone their sales skills. Yet using social networking to enhance teamwork within a real estate company is a recent development.
Long Realty is one of the first real estate companies to implement this type of internal social media network. It is an entirely new way for their agents to interact, network, and accomplish their work. By implementing this new online agent community, Long Realty is setting the technological standard to help further extend cooperation and teamwork among their agents.
Agents can network with each other and share information more efficiently to help match buyers and sellers. Long Realty agents can also use this new platform to learn from each other and from the company by keeping one another up to date with the latest industry developments, newest marketing and technology trends, and best business practices.
Rosey Koberlein, CEO of the Long Companies, says: "Long Connects uses the latest Enterprise 2.0 technology to empower our team of real estate professionals to provide the best service possible while increasing their knowledge and level of productivity."
"Long Connects uses a powerful social media technology suite in a secure intranet environment to connect our sales associates, Core Services teams and employees," states Kaplan. The features that enable the real estate professionals to connect with each other Include online forums, media galleries, micro blogging, and community groups. Long has taken a giant step forward integrating social media into Its everyday business practice.
Long Connects is making it possible for Long Realty agents to develop their professional relationships, advance their real estate skills, and grow their business into a robust business model that could help shape the future of real estate.
How does the internal social networking site Long Connects facilitate teamwork?