NAR CEO on the ‘very heavy lift’ of leading through a turnaround 

HOUSTON — At the Women's Council of Realtors fireside chat on Nov. 15 at NAR NXT 2025, NAR CEO Nykia Wright offered a candid look at what it means to lead the association through one of the most intense periods in its history — and why she sees herself as both a "tourist" in the role and a guardian of its future.

"This is a very, very, very heavy lift," she said of the CEO job. "This is not a load for one person to carry, to be clear."

Leadership as a team sport: Wright repeatedly redirected praise to NAR's Leadership Team and staff, making it clear that organizational progress reflects shared effort. "No time in our history has the Leadership Team met 50 weeks per year — and sometimes twice per week," she said.

NAR First Vice President Christine Hansen also took part in the chat and offered a window into how that culture functions, describing Leadership Team meetings as a place where hierarchy falls away. "We're a group, and we're collaborating and leaning on each other and using our skill sets," she said. That dynamic is rooted in mutual respect, confidentiality and a shared understanding that each role is what carries authority, not each person. "I'm in this position, but it's not Christine — it's the position that the National Association of Realtors has given me, and I'm only here for a short period of time."

And authenticity as a fiduciary duty: "The amount of energy that it takes to come in hiding some aspect of yourself is exhausting," Wright said. Leaders who hide are "taking away from your fiduciary responsibility to lead that organization." Hansen echoed Wright's statements, inviting leaders to "have that confidence, believe in yourself, be authentically you — and push through."

Wright credited the Leadership Team, of which Hansen is a member, for making it safe — and efficient — to be fully herself: "They have never questioned who I am or what I do." And, she added, if she can extend that same freedom to her reshaped executive team, "I do believe that NAR will be on a trajectory that it has just not witnessed before."

Building culture during times of change: Wright said culture is built choice-by-choice and hire-by-hire. "In a turnaround," she noted, organizations may see "a lot of people going out and a lot of people going in," which makes cultural continuity harder to maintain and even more important. So the goal isn't just to bring in smart people, but to ensure that NAR's values are "infused" in every person who comes on board.

A clear-eyed look at her legacy: Wright is working to leave the Realtor "family" stronger the day she leaves than it was when she arrived. "You are there to make a difference at the end of the day. You're a tourist, right? You are a part of history. Someone has passed the baton to you, you pass the baton" to the next CEO.

And when she moves on, her hope is that members feel she came in every day, "tried to move the boulders and gave it my absolute best." That is also, she pointed out, the kind of commitment consumers expect from Realtors. "It's non-negotiable," Wright said.