How Real Estate Operators Should Hire in the Age of AI | Robert Syfert

Robert Syfert (00:00)
So a lot of operators, me included, early on for over the first year, so stuck in no one can do it better than me. I can do this role better than anyone else. Every time I hire someone, they fail. the reality is most of that is all mental in your own mind and is not true. I had a guy in one of our masterminds early on tell me,

If you just hired three people, if they were half as good as you, they’re now producing 150% compared to your hundred. that hit home and it was when I actually started hiring people and have continued to do so.

Scott Bursey (01:04)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast powered by Investor Fuel. I’m your host, Scott Bursey. Glad you’re with us. Today we have an absolute powerhouse on the show.

Scott Bursey (01:14)
Robert Syfert. Roberts built

Scott Bursey (01:16)
And successfully exited three tech companies in the real estate space, taking one all the way to eight figures after years in property management and construction. Today, he’s leading HeroHire, an AI recruiting engine built to help business owners hire top-tier talent effortlessly. Listeners, you can expect a masterclass on scaling operations, leveraging tech, and placing the right talent.

in your pipeline. Robert,

Scott Bursey (01:44)
Welcome

Scott Bursey (01:45)
to the show.

Scott Bursey (01:46)
It is great having you here, my friend. And to help our listeners get up to speed, please give us the ninety second highlight reel, if you will, of how your career ignited and where you’re pouring your fuel now.

Robert Syfert (01:58)
so ignited is a great term. I wrote a book about this, but the bottom line is went from nothing to massive success in real estate, real estate software. and that ignition

was all the rooms that I actually was associated in, like rooms like investor fuel and many other masterminds like that. It allowed me to scale all the things that I was touching faster, learn from other people’s mistakes quicker. And all of that led to those exits that we discussed, the failures along the way that aren’t the huge things that people hear about, but I share.

And led me to the role that I have now in running and operating hero higher and solving another big problem for people.

Scott Bursey (02:40)
Thank you for that highlight. That is really fascinating. Robert, what really caught my attention about you was the way you’ve been able to transition from hands-on construction and property management right into scaling and selling high-level tech companies. I guess expanding on that, curious to know, what core operational strength allowed you to scale a real estate tech company?

To eight figures.

Robert Syfert (03:06)
I think it’s a twofold answer. So there’s the skill that everyone will understand and appreciate. The number one skill is sales. I’ve been through more sales programs and training than most people would comprehend in my life, from door-to-door ADT security systems to insurance and financial sales. And those sales backgrounds absolutely have fueled my ability to scale anything.

hire and train the right people comes through sales skills as well in my belief. foundationally, it’s my faith underneath all of that. none of this would be possible if I didn’t have a place to surrender, give it all up, and just trust in the a bigger power than myself to fuel those skills and talents I have and use them to the best ability that I’ve learned and been lucky to have been able to do.

Scott Bursey (03:58)
Appreciate you sharing that insight. And coming from traditional real estate industries like property management and construction, that presents unique hurdles. Looking back, what internal bottleneck held your operations back the most early on?

Robert Syfert (04:14)
It’s ironic that it was something I caused, and meaning that all those things kind of like whirlwinded together. And it was the positive ability that helped me to scale, which was saying yes to all these opportunities. So I started doing real estate, wholesaling real estate.

Figured out that we were doing a lot of rental properties for a big customer, said yes to doing property management for them, said, which expanded and grew us in multiple ways, said yes to doing and handling construction, which was a natural addition to the property management. And then when we scaled the most and opened the door for much higher levels, was when I started pruning away all those things that were the constraint and the blockers, which was all the things I said yes to that helped me get to where I was.

were also the things and opportunities that I had to say no to and release and let go of in order for the one to take off the most. So we just looked at what seems to be the most profitable, most purpose driven, and most enjoyable thing out of all these. And let’s focus all our energy on that and say no and get rid of everything else that I’ve accumulated along the way.

Scott Bursey (05:23)
Robert, hiring top talent remains one of the largest growth opportunities for real estate operations today. Wanting to dive into where are you seeing the biggest untapped hiring advantage for operators right now?

Robert Syfert (05:36)
the biggest one is any time that there is an opportunity to buy back your time. So a lot of operators, me included, early on for over the first year, so stuck in no one can do it better than me. I can do this role better than anyone else. Every time I hire someone, they fail. the reality is most of that is all mental in your own mind and is not true. I had a guy in one of our masterminds early on tell me,

If you just hired three people, if they were half as good as you, they’re now producing 150% compared to your hundred. that hit home and it was when I actually started hiring people and have continued to do so. So sales and administrative work, especially in real estate, are probably the biggest two that absolutely are the biggest opportunities to hire the right people to scale and get yourself to where you want to go faster and get your time back. They take the most consuming of time.

Scott Bursey (07:07)
Curious, Robert, how can owners capitalize on that immediately, implement that, and take that the ball and run with it?

Robert Syfert (07:16)
I mean the first thing they have to do is a lot of people that think they need to hire aren’t ready to hire yet, which is hard coming from a guy who helps with hiring, But the truth is they’re just not. Unless you can clearly define exactly what that person is taking off of your plate, and we’ll come from a KPI perspective, if the indicators that say they’re successful in that role, then you’re not ready to hire yet.

And you already know them, you just probably haven’t articulated them into some documented source. So if you structure if I had an administrative assistant that did all these things that you’re currently doing and success looked like X, Y, and Z, now you have a roadmap for who you’re looking to hire and what they solve for you, then you’re ready to hire that person. And as soon as you do, they give you all that time back. But you have to get clear on what that is first.

Scott Bursey (08:04)
Thanks for pointing that out. And Robert, you don’t rapidly evolving technology and AI tools bring serious disruption to traditional recruiting and real estate models. Fascinated to find out what industry shift or threat could catch unprepared real estate business owners potentially off guard?

Robert Syfert (08:24)
the biggest one is the people that don’t believe AI is going to take over and do a lot of things. And so if you’re not already playing with AI at a minimum and seeing what it can do for you in your business, you are going to get shell shocked over the next couple of years when this other company over here that took it seriously is you can’t compete. you won’t be able to compete with an AI ran business or at least one that has AI.

running throughout its business with the right humans on top of it.

Scott Bursey (08:53)
In your view, what’s the best way to stay ahead of that curve, that risk?

Robert Syfert (08:58)
it’s a either easy you make one of two choices. One, adopt and have a platform and company that’s doing that for you and keeping you up to date. You don’t have to know everything, That’s the easy path. If you have the money to do that, spend the money. or two, take the time and spend 10 minutes a day playing with some AI tool to see what it can do for you. Just ask it what it can do for you. it’s pretty advanced today. It’ll tell you what it can do for you and help you step by step do it.

Scott Bursey (10:01)
The integration of AI automation is reshaping how investors recruit and scale their teams eager to discover what emerging AI trend, Robert, will completely change how real estate firms hire talent over the next few years.

Robert Syfert (10:18)
The The biggest one is that there is some talent that you don’t need to hire because AI truly could replace it. And it’s adopting that sooner than later, but also knowing and being aware that while that’s a true statement, the flip side of that is there still has to be a person that validates, verifies, and confirms that AI did.

replace that role and is reporting accurate information. And whether that’s you or someone you hire to take that over, there will always be people that have to be involved in the scenario, in my opinion. But AI will definitely replace some regular roles as we think of them today that you’re probably spending thousands of dollars per month on that is unnecessary spend.

Scott Bursey (11:01)
I guess the big question is how should owners prepare for that shift today?

Robert Syfert (11:06)
It’s again coming back to get into some AI tool right now. And as a core minimum, if nothing, you simply just ask it the question like, Hey, how could my business be run out today? And what could I do to prevent that? And it’s gonna tell you. And then keep asking questions and going back and forth. Be inquisitive with the AI and the AI will guide you into the answers, which is kind of crazy at the same token.

Scott Bursey (11:31)
For those of our listeners that are thinking to themselves, hey, this is really a neat concept. this is something I’d like to learn more about. What would you like them to know first about HeroHire?

Robert Syfert (11:42)
a HeroHire is simple. we’re a perfect fit for someone that is hiring, doing that right now. So you’re either experiencing a volume of applicants coming off the traditional LinkedIn indeed job board postings and you’re overwhelmed with that, especially with today, because hundreds more applicants come thanks to AI. and then on the flip side of that, I need a person in the seat, and I don’t want to do all that stuff and spend all that time. That’s a HeroHire is perfect for that. They’re not perfect for.

someone who wants to figure it out, who wants to do their own recruiting, Or just not. And we’re only good for again, if you already know who you’re looking for and you’re trying to find that perfect talent and get them in the seat as fast as possible without having to do all the work to get there, then we’re the company in the air that’s gonna do that for you. simply said.

Scott Bursey (12:28)
What does your next big move look like?

Robert Syfert (12:31)
right now our big move is one we’re making right now. We identified exactly what I’m saying out loud, even the people that we’ve done hiring for and we produced the best AI possible to solve the problem, we found in looking at our own data that half of our customers got their roles filled. They did exactly what we said, and then the other half are still, I don’t want to call them lazy, but it’s human nature to not want to do things, even if there is stuff for you to do.

So we went even further upstream and said, okay, we recognize half of you won’t do the things that you need to do when we find you the perfect candidate, like log in, call them, interview them. So we’re now solving that problem with humans on our team to say, hey, we’ll use our own platform and we’ll do everything for you and literally hand you the final hire. and so it’s just, it’s same thing I did in termkey real estate and everything else in real estate is like it seems that every business has ever evolved. There’s always a percentage of people.

That are gonna want you to do one hundred percent of everything for them, completely ducked. and hiring has not been any different.

Scott Bursey (13:35)
Robert, you have had a tremendously successful career. Really curious, what have you found as far as value during your career that has perhaps even propelled your career being around the right people, like-minded individuals?

Robert Syfert (13:50)
Hands down, unequivocally, I wouldn’t be in the opportunity I am today. I wouldn’t have evolved into all those other companies. I wouldn’t have exited software companies, let alone built. I’m not a tech guy or write code. So to have said I’ve built successful software companies and exited them all came from a culmination of the rooms, experience and wisdom that I was in.

And helped me circumvent not making a lot of mistakes that a lot of them have made. But also the flip side of what people don’t see on success in hearing about a successful career is all the failures along the way and the people in the rooms that can help you see quicker where the mis you made mistakes, you got yourself too busy, you chased too many shiny objects, you weren’t able to stay focused on the thing. And having that level of accountability.

from people you can know like and trust and get to know better. hands down, I wouldn’t be who I am today without all the rooms I’ve been associated with and all the coaches and mentors I’ve had along with.

Scott Bursey (14:57)
That’s an incredible breakdown. Robert, you’ve sold multiple companies. Keen to hear, what’s the most effective framework you used when preparing your software companies for a lucrative exit?

Robert Syfert (15:10)
and it took coaching and mentoring and got in specific rooms to help with that, Because the problem that most businesses that are unsellable is that they create something for themselves and they’re not actually creating a complete business. So it’s making sure that you’re structuring it with every department, every function, and the less hats you wear in those functions, the better, because then it’s truly operating as a business.

And then becomes a sellable product. And it’s making sure that down to one of the biggest ones that I had the biggest challenge with was finances. it’s very easy, especially in real estate, that my bank account’s my bank account. but not from an exit standpoint. So you need to keep personal, personal, and business, business, and make it a clear delineation between the two and keep your books and records extremely clean about what is and what isn’t. And that doesn’t mean don’t run

Personal stuff through a business, obviously get with your CPAs, your tax advisors, et cetera, do what you need to, but make it very clean and structured so it’s easy to exit and clearly identify what those are to a new buyer.

Scott Bursey (16:14)
Gold nuggets right there. And Robert, you have given us a lot of gold here today, but is there any additional words of wisdom or advice that you would like to leave with our listeners?

Robert Syfert (16:26)
one that I keep coming back to and it seems no matter how old I get, how long I’m in business, everything I fail at, or anything that succeeds, and it’s simply focus. Focus, focus, focus. I said it multiple times on purpose. And it’s an acronym that goes with that is follow one course until successful. Every time a business has stalled on me, every time I have lost money, every time I have had any level of failures, quote unquote.

It is because I have added on more things. The fix at the root of all of it has always been, even right now with HeroHire, is always been thrown away, say no, focus. What can I focus on? One thing. Gary Keller wrote a book, great book, One thing. That’s it. I’m always constantly reminded what’s the one thing? And let’s get rid of everything else that’s not the one thing.

Scott Bursey (17:18)
Powerful perspective right there. Robert, for those of our listeners that want to keep this conversation moving, stay in your lane, perhaps even collaborate with you on future deals, what’s the best way for them to plug into your pipeline and reach you directly?

Robert Syfert (17:33)
depending on where you’re at, any social media channel, send me a DM. I’m on all channels, of course. HeroHire.ai. If you have a hiring need, you can actually talk to our AI directly on the website and she’ll tell you what you need or reach me at directly on my email if you prefer email at Robert at herohire.ai.

Scott Bursey (17:50)
Robert, thank you for joining us today on the Real Estate Pros podcast.

Robert Syfert (17:54)
Thanks for having me, Scott. It’s been a pleasure.

Scott Bursey (17:56)
It has been an absolute pleasure and a master class at that. And to our listeners, we appreciate you. If you receive value from today’s episode, please subscribe. We’ll be feeling your tanks with the lineup of elite guests, just like Robert Syfert, who are accelerating and setting the pace for the rest of the industry. Until next time, keep your standards high and your vision clear. We’ll see you on the next episode, everyone.