The Unseen Process Behind Panelist Selection and the Impact of Sharing Models for Real Estate Success
In 2024, more than 70 KW®-affiliated agents took the main stage at Keller Williams’ annual Mega Agent Camp (MAC). They were invited to appear as panelists at MAC to share the practices they use to succeed in real estate, along with the personal stories behind their success.
Every year, agent panelists are chosen from across KW’s worldwide network of more than 160,000 affiliated agents. That got us wondering: What are the criteria for selection? How does an agent land onstage at the industry’s leading agent education and training event — and what does it feel like to be up there? We talked with KWRI’s manager of industry and learning, Joy Powell, along with past MAC panelists, to learn more about what makes MAC so special.
Proven Models for Success at Any Scale
MAC started back in the early 2000s, when a motivated group of top-producing agents convened in a hotel ballroom to brainstorm and share ideas, with Keller Williams’ founder, Gary Keller, serving as their guide and moderator. At the center of their discussion was one focusing question: What would it take to net a million dollars in personal income? Over time, the gathering was formalized into an annual learning experience for all KW®-affiliated agents, with a recurring focus on five key topics: leads, listings, leverage, wealth, and health.
While the venue has changed, the core concept behind MAC remains the same: Gather leading agents from across KW® market centers to share proven methods for success. And while the impact of the event extends beyond borders, the search for panelists begins at the local level.
Every year, KW® market center leaders are asked to nominate high-achieving agents to appear as MAC panelists. The search isn’t just limited to the U.S. and Canada, but includes nominees from Keller Williams Worldwide. From farming and selling strategies to open houses and investing, leaders are asked to identify why a nominee stands out and what makes that agent’s approach fresh or unique.
The nomination process, which starts every year in early spring with an online questionnaire, typically delivers 150-200 agent nominees. Joy Powell heads up the vetting and selection process, searching for real estate pros who have a proven model that can be effectively communicated, distilled into a one-page set of steps, and implemented by any agent in any market. It’s no small task.
And while MAC historically featured agent panelists with exceptionally high sales volume or closed units, and those with large teams, the event has evolved in recent years to include agents at a broader range of production levels, including solo agents and those with small or developing teams. Why the shift? As Joy says, it’s because good models are good models at any scale. Hearing from the most elite agents can be incredibly inspiring, but it can also be intimidating. Sometimes, it’s easier to learn from someone who’s just a few steps ahead of you.
An In-Depth Interview Process
Joy says the vetting process for panelists goes deep. It takes about four months to complete, and starts with a one-on-one interview. In addition to Joy, other KWRI leaders assist in conducting calls, while Jason Abrams and Gary Keller typically have the final say on panelist selection. Over the course of their search, the team may undertake multiple interviews with a candidate to ensure their model or system follows a replicable process. “We really do our due diligence,” Joy said.
Throughout the process, the KWRI team works to categorize each panelist’s contribution under the event’s five main topics and to identify new and emerging themes in the current market. It takes a special kind of alchemy to ensure each panel comprises a complementary mix of agents and models — not unlike trying to arrive at the perfect seating chart for a wedding reception.
As panels come together, a candidate may be asked to join a group live onstage, or instead, record a video explaining the details of their model and exactly how they use it in their business. In some cases, an agent may be asked to have their one-pager included in that year’s event playbook, even if they don’t appear onstage at MAC. As the process evolves, final speaker selection can change up until a few weeks before the event in August. It all comes down to determining the best possible value for the audience.
Maintaining a Learning Mindset
The question often arises around the benefits of attending an event that features the same core topics year over year. Joy says the answer can be found in the changing nature of the industry and the critical importance of maintaining a learning mindset. Or as Gary likes to say, you can teach someone something they don’t know, or teach them something they already know, but in a different way. By way of example, Joy explains, you may know YouTube can be a highly effective means of reaching prospective buyers or sellers. But it’s not until you hear firsthand how someone else successfully uses it in their business that you may be willing to do the same – and there’s no substitute for using a proven model that’s working right now, in today’s market.
KW® agent Will Van Wickler is one of the youngest panelists to have appeared on the MAC stage. While still in his first year in business, Will’s production increased from $200k to over a million dollars in GCI. He remembers talking with Donnie Brookman from the KW LABS team about his sales strategies; the next thing he knew, he was fielding a call directly from Jason Abrams. “I remember I was walking out of my market center, and I missed a call from Austin, Texas,” Will remembered. When he called back, Jason invited Will to appear onstage at MAC. “I was shocked. I mean, I was a very rookie agent,” Will said. He booked his flight for MAC that day.
Will was featured on the MAC main stage in 2023 and again in 2024. He says the momentum from serving as a panelist has opened up untold opportunities for traveling and speaking — and for helping other agents. He was also invited to join Gary’s mastermind community, and his business has continued to grow exponentially.
But Will says one of the best parts about serving as a panelist is being “behind the curtain” with other notable KW® agents, and realizing they’re just regular people. “These are all very normal people, but you wouldn’t know that when you’re sitting behind 5,000 other people [in the audience],” Will said. When it comes to the superstars of our industry, he notes, “The only difference between me and them is a system they follow.”
While Will says it’s a true honor to be a featured agent, his primary reason for attending MAC and other KW training events is to discover new models to implement in his own business. “I get the most value out of going consistently; they’re the only events I go to,” he said. Regardless of whether business is up or down, Will said, “It’s non-negotiable for me.”
A Pinnacle Career Moment
Susan Lombardo joined the Keller Williams Atlanta-North Fulton market center after a short stint at a smaller brokerage. While attending her first Family Reunion (FR) in 2018, she said she was blown away by the learning opportunities available to KW® agents. She recalled seeing Cody Gibson onstage at FR, talking about what he’d accomplished through KW. “I remember thinking, ‘Wow, that would be so cool if I got good enough at my craft that I could be on that stage one day.’” She said the seed was planted six weeks in the door.
Susan had earned her real estate license following a 20-year corporate career. Six years into her work as a solo agent, she was seeing success from her highly effective approach to farming. She was asked to serve as a panelist at FR breakout sessions a few years in a row, but Susan never knew she was in the running for MAC. At Mega Agent Camp 2024, she found herself center stage in a one-on-one interview with Gary.
“Understanding the caliber of who ends up in the funnel at the end — to get that far was kind of surreal,” Susan said. “I don’t think there’s anything that can make you feel more seen and legitimate than Gary telling you that he basically hand-selected you as a panelist.”
But what about nerves? When it came to stepping onstage for an unscripted interview with the founder of the world’s largest real estate franchise by agent count, Susan said she didn’t feel the slightest bit uneasy. She credits Gary with making her feel comfortable both backstage and under the lights — and the feeling of happiness she felt for other agents onstage, while sitting in the audience.
For many in the industry who experience success, “there are a lot of very deep climbs out of very big holes,” Susan reflected. As the first in her family to graduate from high school (and college), she includes herself among that cohort. It makes hearing stories of achievement all the more meaningful. “You just can’t not be happy for somebody at a pinnacle of success, of hard-earned commitment to their craft.”
When it was her turn, Susan brought that understanding with her. “I knew from sitting in the audience that every one of us wants to be that agent,” she said. “I had decided, before I walked on the stage, that nerves would not come with me, that I was going to thoroughly enjoy that moment.”
Sharing As a Responsibility
For both agents, sharing their knowledge at MAC has had a compounding effect. Jason Abrams has since interviewed both Will and Susan on The Millionaire Real Estate Agent Podcast, which was ranked by HousingWire in 2025 as the No. 1 podcast for real estate agents and brokers. Both agents were also quoted in Jay Papasan’s newest book, Rookie Real Estate Agent: Launch a Limitless Career That Lasts. Each interview or quote serves as another point of impact.
But what’s it like to share the details of your business with such a wide audience? Asked if they felt like they were giving away proprietary secrets, Susan and Will had a similar answer. Both feel a sense of obligation to give back in recognition of those who have helped them by helping propel other KW® agents to the next level.
When it comes to sharing his models and systems, Will explained, “I have an abundance mindset.” Even if everybody else were to use his approach, he knows there’s still room for him to succeed in his market. “I’m extremely transparent,” Will said. “I answer every question.”
Susan looks to her mentors and colleagues with heartfelt gratitude. “I feel an absolute responsibility for all the people who have stretched a hand out to me when I was new and growing,” she said. “If you’ve benefited from the wellspring of knowledge of other people that are willing to share with you, then you have to pass it on.”
“If anybody can look back on their career, and I said, or did, or shared anything that helped them along, that’s a win for me,” Susan continued. “I’ll be in the front row clapping for you.”
