As a commercial real estate broker, you probably consideryourself to be professional, fair, open, and honest. Are youalso transparent? Completely? Follow these questions andcomments and decide for yourself just how transparent you are andwhether your clients view you the same way.

• Can you describe the basic principles behindSarbanes-Oxley?

• Do you tell clients and prospects that you will be transparentin your dealings with them and on their behalf?

• Are you really transparent in your dealings, or is that justmarketing hype?

• Do you keep your tenants and buyers informed about yourdealings on their behalf and about the compensation to which youmay be entitled when they complete theirtransaction?

• Do you only mention compensation to your tenant clients when alandlord offers you a discount, an unacceptable rate, or paymentschedule that takes too long or puts you at risk?

• Do you also inform your clients when landlords offer youcompensation bonuses or incentives?

• Do you disclose relationships to your clients that THEY may seeas being in conflict with your ability to properly serve theirinterests, even if you don't see the same conflicts?

• Are you really completely transparent?

• Are your company's relationships so vast and geographicallydispersed that it is often difficult to understand the manypossible conflicts-of-interest that may exist, let alone identifyand report them to your clients?
  
  
• Are you transparent with your transactional opponents andcompetitors? Should you be?

Being transparent is not a buzz word, it’s an absolute, a mustin business. You cannot be transparent on some issues, and not onothers, and then claim to be transparent. That's beingpartially transparent, which means you’re not reallytransparent. Either you're transparent or you're not!

Being transparent in your dealings is not that tough. Whatare you afraid of? Do you think your clients will figure outthat maybe you’re not as good as you said you were? Are youafraid that if you are transparent about your compensation thatyour clients may want some of it? If you are truly concernedabout this, then perhaps you should ask yourself if you really areworth what you expect to receive in compensation…if you deliversufficient value to your clients, so that they will recognize yourworth and entitlement to fair compensation.