Shawn Riley

CONTINUING THE LEGACY OF INFLUENCE

By Robbyn Moore

Photos by Stylish Detroit

Photos taken at Lombardo Homes — Concord Park in Canton

Shawn Riley has found great success by making a difference in the lives of others. While he has brought joy to the masses through his music with The Shawn Riley Band, he has also been a source of influence and leadership in the real estate industry for more than 25 years.

When Shawn looks back on his journey in real estate, he is quick to recognize mentors, coaches, business associates, friends and family members who have greatly impacted him in becoming the leader he is today. Shawn’s genuine gratitude toward others exemplifies his humble, kindhearted and grateful nature.

As the second oldest of five children, Shawn grew up in the Bloomfield Township area. His father, Ed, was an executive with Ford Motor Company, and his mother, Joan, was a stay-at-home mom. Both parents were big influences on Shawn. While his mom was the glue that held the family together, his dad never missed a family activity, had a keen attention to detail and was a great listener.

The path to Shawn’s leadership was filled with other influencers, including teachers and coaches at Brother Rice High School who educated and guided him. Two in particular were William Dogan and Al Fracassa. Both encouraged Shawn to expand his talents, which resulted in live performances in the theater and lifelong lessons on the importance of making a positive impact on the lives of others.

Shawn’s younger brother James helped to shape several of Shawn’s career decisions, including the summer after college when the two of them worked on Mackinac Island. It was there that Shawn began his musical performances, which served as a springboard into a music career that has lasted for over 40 years. Shortly after getting married in March of 1986, Shawn’s brother stepped up again and asked Shawn to join him in running a restaurant in Livonia. “I remember our conversation like it was yesterday,” Shawn recalled. “He needed me to be the conduit between 85 employees and the upper level of management.” However, after a few years, James switched gears into real estate and approached Shawn in the fall of 1995 to discuss getting into residential real estate. “The rest is history,” Shawn said.

Originally licensed as a salesperson in January of 1996, Shawn acquired his associate broker license in 2001 after he was considered for a management position at Coldwell Banker – Bloomfield Hills by Paul and Kathy Schweitzer. “Thanks to Paul and Kathy, I was given an opportunity to lead,” Shawn said. “They challenged me to be myself. They encouraged me to use my sense of humor to my benefit and create an authentic culture within my team. Their advice continues to serve me well.”

In 2003, Shawn moved to the Northville office as an associate manager. When the company aligned itself with The Mike Ferry Organization, Shawn honed his skills as a business coach. “I began working with the agents in the Northville office in a oneon-one coaching environment,” Shawn said. This experience led Shawn to become the managing broker at the Plymouth office in 2005, where he remained for nine years.

“Mike Galliers and Cindy Edelen — both top-producing agents at the Plymouth office — were great sounding boards and offered great advice to me as a rookie manager,” Shawn explained. “I followed in the footsteps of the legendary Neal Lanphear, which was an extraordinary challenge. However, Mike and Cindy offered heartfelt, yet direct, advice that made a significant difference in my leadership style.”

During that time, the market began to plunge into a turbulent economy. “We all had to learn to understand the foreclosure and short sale market in a hurry,” he said. “I was fortunate to be working alongside some premier agents; however, I had to start hiring and coaching my own new agents. I was grateful for my previous years of leadership, which prepared me to thrive during that time.”

Shawn emphasized the importance of teaching new agents good habits, especially during uncertain times. “It’s paramount to be laser-focused when learning the necessary skills, scripts and dialogues to be successful,” he said. “During my nine-year run as the managing broker of the Plymouth office, we owned the local market share, increased our sales eight of the nine years and built up an amazing culture. While I had a great administrative staff, Becky Veit helped our team excel beyond belief. She had a primary goal to deliver outstanding experiences at every point of contact, which allowed me to focus on helping agents grow.”

After years of focusing on others’ success, Shawn challenged himself to practice what he preached. In 2014, he stepped back into a sales role and asked his agents to hold him accountable and challenge him, just as he had done for many years. He surrounded himself with like-minded people who were accomplishing more than him. Shawn watched and listened to new agents who were joining their company and noticed that while they were learning the basics of real estate, they were missing out on key factors that took agents to the next level. “They needed a more defined and structured coaching environment,” Shawn said. “The reason my office excelled in 2007-2008 was due to the mindset of my agents who challenged each other, cared about each other and created a culture of support.”

After studying their main competitors and calling a couple of broker friends, Shawn proposed a success-tracking program to Jim Willis, managing broker at the Northville office. From there, they met with Education Director Robyn Walker and CEO John North and created the Success Track Coaching Program. The group still meets every Monday for an hour and includes a one-on-one coaching call at the end of the week. In addition, Shawn created a Mastermind Group with top-producing agents Jessica Tremonti, Jim Littlepage, Donna Bousson and Chris Kemp from Flagstar that meets every Thursday.

Today, Shawn is a REALTOR®, success coach and associate broker at Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel in Northville. The company has 18 offices – half of which are in Metro Detroit. They have a culture of success and of caring for one another, along with a focus on family.

For 35 years, Shawn has been married to his wife, Dorene. She is a designer for ISCG, a contract furniture company in Royal Oak, and together, they have two adult children. Colin is an English teacher and assistant cross country and track coach at Northville High School. Their daughter Clare is a floral designer at University Flower Shop in Ann Arbor. She and her husband, Steve Pravato, have a 1-year-old Golden Retriever named Maui. As a family, Shawn and Dorene enjoy vacationing in northern Michigan, traveling to watch marathons and seeking out great restaurants, breweries, wineries and distilleries.

Whether it’s with his band or his Mastermind Group, Shawn is very passionate about surrounding himself with outstanding individuals. “I love being inspired during live performances with my band, and likewise, I embrace a great brainstorming session with impactful leaders in real estate,” he shared. “On all accounts, they make me better for sure!”

Shawn’s best advice to anyone stepping into a leadership role is to be consistent and learn what makes your team tick. “Get to know them, be a great listener and lead with your heart.”

Shawn Riley - Celebrating Leaders