Nikitia Thompson is a leader.
Put her on a board and she’ll end up as its chair. At KUB she was the first African-American appointed to the board of directors, she served from 2003-2017 and was chair 2015-16.
Put her into real estate and she will outperform the field. As owner of Nikitia Thompson Realty, Realty Executives Associates, she was named Top 1% transaction agent in the nation by REAL Trends in 2017 – in the thousand top real estate professionals of 1.25 million Realtors nationwide.
Put her on the Knoxville Chamber board of directors and she will be chosen for the executive and CEO search committees.
Her accomplishments are legend: Leadership Knoxville 2015, Omega Psi Phi’s Citizen of the Year 2015, Knoxville YWCA Tribute to Women honoree 2016, and Realty Executives Diamond Award. Thompson holds the local listing contracts with VRM and HUD, and she manages foreclosure assets through the acquisition to the close.
Her bachelor’s degree is in mechanical engineering from Tennessee Tech (1991) and she worked as a project manager before obtaining a real estate license in 2004. She and her husband, LeRoy, have three adult children, Brooke, Dezmond and Tionna. Yes, that LeRoy Thompson. He played a little football.
But here’s the best part. We can learn her leadership skills by watching what she does.
On Facebook, she has started recognizing other leaders. She has an almost weekly write-up about a community business owner, one of her agents or one of her clients. Here’s an example of a recent story about her affiliate agent Allen Moore:
Allen Moore
She writes: “I am super Proud of Allen. It’s been a little over a year that I met him. He had not shown a house, wrote one contract, spoke to one bank or inspector. I did not see him where he was, I saw him where he could be.
“I can’t wait to see where he will be in a couple of years. He is Superstar in the making. He cares for his clients and most of all he is a man of great integrity. No short cuts!!! That is what I’m most proud of. I see you, Allen, and I am proud🔥🔥. BTW, he was in a multiple offer yesterday, and his client won. 🏠🏠🏘🏘.
“#skilled, #integrity,#patience, #ingodstime, #puttingtheworkin. Part of leadership is developing talent to take your place.”
After that endorsement, Allen Moore had to be grinning ear-to-ear. He wrote: “I am not your typical agent. I like to view myself as a Super Agent. … I find ways to use intellect, creativity and problem-solving skills in my everyday life. I am precise and determined to maintain 100 percent customer satisfaction. Enthusiast of personal finance, economic development and educational progression. Focused on helping others succeed and reach their highest potential.”
And this, my friends, is today’s lesson on leadership.
Sandra Clark is editor/CEO of Knox TN Today.