When Sherri Flaherty entered real estate in 2015, the industry inherited one of the most effective leaders in Pittsburgh. Named one of the Most Powerful and Influential Women in Pennsylvania in 2010, Sherri is not only a natural leader, she is an experienced, educated, and practiced one. With over 30 years of experience in Human Resources, including 15 years at Cricket Communications as Vice President and Chief Human Resource Officer, Sherri's professional mission has always been-to help others succeed.
As a child growing up in Dormont, Sherri first witnessed what it meant to be a leader in her parents. Sherri's mother was a local leader who was involved in community and school-based activities, including active involvement as a girl scout leader, all on top of working two jobs. Sherri's father was an entrepreneur in the restaurant business and always available to give advice. Their strong work ethic was not lost on Sherri, who took their hard work ethic to heart, whether it be through selling girl scout cookies, working as a camp counselor, or even at the bank where she began working as a junior in high school.
After graduating from Keystone Oaks High School, Sherri went into the corporate world, where she started her career in Human Resources. She worked full-time while earning her undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Geneva College, and her master's degree in Leadership and Liberal Studies from Duquesne University. She married Denis, who is now a licensed Title Agent and REALTOR ®, and raised two successful children in the process. Their daughter, Brandy, is an attorney, and son-in-law, Geoff, is a police officer. Their son, Sean, is an investment manager/assistant vice president, and his wife, Kelly, is a teacher. Sherri and Denis also have a 2-year-old granddaughter, Makenna.
After traveling all over the United States with her corporate career, Sherri wanted a job where she could maintain the ability to help others, but be able to go home at the end of the day and kick off her shoes. When Denis became a licensed REALTOR ® in 2013, Sherri saw the opportunity that real estate offered to those who worked hard and worked well with others, in that they could ultimately be as successful as they wanted. So, she decided to join Denis in 2015 and start their own team.
Three years later Sherri obtained her broker's license and opened Realty ONE Group Platinum. "As an agent centric company, Realty ONE Group was a great fit for my HR background," says Sherri. "Culture is the most important characteristic in our office. When someone walks in, we want them to feel welcomed, respected, and comfortable. Our agents work well together, respect each other and cheer each other on. They consider their peers in the office to be part of their team, not competition."
As the broker/owner of two offices-one in Mt. Lebanon and one in Moon Twp.-Sherri offers up her HR coaching experience to every agent. They have weekly "think-tank sessions" or "masterminds," and in the Mt Lebanon office they have a wellness loft- a stress-free zone, where meditation and light yoga is offered to each team member.
"We have a diverse team and offer many different platforms for success," says Sherri. "We are building our offices one agent at a time to ensure we all have a great place to work. I am passionate about working with good people who want to be successful."
The mission of Realty ONE Group Platinum is "opening doors." "We are opening doors to our customers, to agents who want a great place to work, and to the other agents and customers we work with on the completion of a transaction," says Sherri. "The agents at Realty ONE Group earn 100% of their commission with a small transaction fee. We are a forward-thinking company that welcomes agents who are nice, ethical, and easy to get along with."
Looking into the future, it is Sherri's goal to make Realty ONE Group Platinum the best place to work for agents and the best company for clients to work with. When it comes to her vision for the real estate industry, it is her greatest wish to see everyone work well together and treat each other with respect and fairness.
For other leaders in the industry, Sherri offers the following advice: "Always do the right thing. Be genuine, be authentic. Treat everyone with respect. If you treat your agents right, they will treat the customers right. Set the culture at the top of the organization and do everything with integrity. Celebrate successes and learn from every experience."