The Houston Association of REALTORS® (HAR) honored President and CEO Bob Hale for 25 years of leadership on October 25 during a gala at the Houston Country Club that featured HAR officers and directors, past presidents/chairmen since 1968 as well as in-person and videotaped congratulations from top real estate industry executives and politicians.
Hale, who is credited with making HAR a household brand in the greater Houston area was saluted by leaders of the most influential real estate organizations today: Inman News (Brad Inman), Keller Williams International (Mark Willis), Move, Inc. (Errol Samuelson), National Association of REALTORS® (Dale Stinton), RE/MAX (Dave Liniger), Realogy Franchise Group (Alex Perriello), REALTOR.com (Curt Beardsley), Swanepoel Trends Report (Stefan Swanepoel), Trulia (Pete Flint) and Zillow (Spencer Rascoff). Attendees traveled from nine different states.
Hale has received countless real estate and communication industry honors over the years. In 2003 and 2006, Hale was named by the National Association of REALTORS®’ (NAR) REALTOR® magazine “25 Most Influential People in the American Real Estate Industry.” In 2008, Inman News named him “Innovator of the Year.” Every year from 2005 through 2012, Hale was designated by Inman News as being among the “100 Most Influential Real Estate People.” In 2010, Hale won the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC)-Houston Communication Leadership Award and in 2011, he was honored by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)-Houston as CEO Communicator of the Year.
“Bob is widely known and respected as an industry visionary and thought leader and we are so fortunate to be benefactors of his incredible talents here in Houston,” said HAR Chairman Danny Frank with Coldwell Banker, United REALTORS®. “Under Bob’s leadership, HAR has become the largest trade association in Houston and the second largest local REALTOR® association in the country. These are not small achievements.”
Click here to view more photos from Bob Hale’s 25th Anniversary.
Hale has been lauded as the driving force behind the use of multiple marketing communications platforms, including an online advertising campaign promoting the value of a REALTOR®, HAR’s use of social media, its HAR-TV video production service that has produced more than 600 programs that are available on YouTube, and the HAR.com Consumer Research Panel – made up of more than 6,600 home buyers, sellers, owners and renters who regularly share experiences and opinions about the real estate industry.
Hale also successfully pushed for establishment of the agent ratings system that enables consumers to evaluate a REALTOR’S® performance after each transaction. In addition, he spearheaded creation of the Next Generation REALTOR® Group (NRG), which fosters professional development among Houston-area REALTORS® age 40 and younger.
In addition to the gala, the office of Houston Mayor Annise Parker issued a proclamation naming October 25, 2013 Bob Hale Day in Houston.
