If there’s one thing Adrian Knowles would change about the real estate industry, it’s the common mindset among agents of just selling rather than building a relationship.
It’s a bugbear that the Harcourts Australia chief executive has seen time and time again throughout his career spanning about two decades.
Mr Knowles has been passionate about shifting the real estate industry away from a transactional mindset to one focused on long-term relationships and service.
“I would change every agent’s dialogue and their core purpose away from saying, ‘are you looking to sell?’ to a more service-based approach,” Mr Knowles told Realestate.com.au.
“I want to see more approaches start off with ‘here is some information about your marketplace that’s relevant to your property, I would love to keep you up to date with what’s going on in your market’ and take it from there.”
For Mr Knowles, it’s all about building trust between agents and customers that will last beyond the first interaction or transaction.
He’s weathered the highs and lows of the Australia’s real estate market and said he had done his best to take clients along for the journey over the years.
Adrian Knowles started out in real estate as a leasing agent in Brisbane. Picture: Supplied
Of course, it means telling hard truths sometimes that customers may not want to hear.
In an industry where real estate agents are often under pressure to close deals quickly, Mr Knowles believes that radical honesty — even when it’s uncomfortable — is the key to building trust with clients.
“We should have radical honesty with everyone,” he said.
“If someone’s not willing to be radically honest and give you feedback, then they’re just telling you what you want to hear, and you’re going to live in a glass box of your own opinions for the rest of your life.”
Mr Knowles sees the push for radical honesty as more than improving the client experience – it’s about changing the perception of the real estate industry as a whole.
Mr Knowles was promoted to CEO of Harcourts Australia in 2021. Picture: Supplied
“If we live by our values, we can change the way people view our industry,” he said.
“We can change clients from being cynical about what we do to being advocates for what we do.”
From leasing agent to CEO
Born and raised in rural Queensland, Knowles’ early career was shaped by a mix of ambition, mentorship, and a bit of chance.
After a brief stint at university and a dashed dream of joining the defence forces due to colour blindness, Knowles found himself at a crossroads.
He landed his first job in real estate as a leasing agent in Brisbane in the early 2000s with the help of a mentor.
Mr Knowles found himself questioning whether real estate was for him, so he left on an 18-month backpacking trip with no plans to get back into real estate.
When he returned, he landed back into the industry with a renewed sense of purpose.
He worked as a sales agent, director and business owner, but he said he found his calling when he moved into a business development role to help other professionals.
“I found my purpose which is to help people achieve their ambition, not my ambition for them,” he said.
“I found joy and fulfillment in a coaching role, helping people achieve their own goals rather than pushing them towards mine.”
Family is everything for Mr Knowles, pictured here with his wife Rachael and their three sons. Picture: Supplied
From then on, Mr Knowles embraced coaching and mentoring roles, where he found passion in helping others succeed.
In 2021, Knowles joined Harcourts as their CEO for growth, and within six months he was promoted to CEO of Harcourts Australia.
Beyond the boardroom
Outside of work, Mr Knowles’ personal life revolves around his family and his home tucked away in the Gold Coast hinterland.
He said he relishes the time he spends with his wife Rachael and their three sons, and tending to their avocado and flower farm, where they grow varieties such as dahlias and chrysanthemums.
“It’s our Eden, and it’s a place that means a hell of a lot to us,” he said.
Mr Knowles is passionate about coaching and mentoring others to help them reach their goals. Picture: Supplied
With his fast-paced schedule, Mr Knowles said he had prioritised his family and his work over other things at this stage in his life.
“I choose my family and I choose Harcourts because I can affect more change,” he said.
His desire to be present for work and family comes with one drawback – a two-hour drive to the company’s Brisbane headquarters that he said wasn’t all bad in the scheme of things.
Next steps
Looking ahead, Mr Knowles said he was focused on empowering the Harcourts team through the idea of ‘plus five’.
“Plus five is our war cry,” he said. “It’s everything to us right now.”
The concept is simple: whether it’s five more phone calls, five more transactions, or five percent more market share, the goal is to always strive for improvement.
But it’s also about building a community of like-minded individuals who share the company’s values.
“People join a community of like-minded people that they align with here,” he said.
“That’s how Harcourts has grown over the last three and a half years, by showing people what we stand for and taking them on a journey of being stronger together.”
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