Condo Media - August 2013 - 43

Appointing People to Positions that
Don’t Suit Them. Anytime it’s possible, boards and their management
staff should try to match the volunteer’s
strengths with positions best suited for
them. By taking into account whether or
not that person has the required skill and
personal attributes and can commit the
time involved in the volunteer position,
the volunteer will be able to contribute
to the greater good and the community
will reap the benefits of the volunteer.
Unproductive Meetings. How
many meetings have managers, board
members, and committee members sat
through with their eyes rolling back in
their heads, waking up only to check
their watch every 10 minutes? Way, way
too many. There’s endless debate over
meaningless minutia or non-agenda
items. So make your meetings productive by 1) speaking only to those items
on the agenda and 2) knowing that if a
decision can’t be made in five minutes,
the board is not ready to make it. Period. Unproductive, long, and — well,
stupid — meetings kill volunteerism.

guideline on how the committee is
expected to conduct itself in relation to
committee meetings, management, the
board, owners, and vendors.
Conduct Annual Strategic Planning,
Facilitated by an Impartial Third
Party. This can save boards and committees hours of time over the course
of a year by giving the entire volunteering entity (and staff) clear direction on
which goals are important to achieve
on behalf of the community.
Acknowledgement: Long and Loud
and Public. At every turn, the board
must, must, must acknowledge its
volunteers and their hours of hard
work and service in newsletters, in
person, at meetings, and on the website. It is particularly incumbent upon
the president to “spin the halos” of
each and every one of those valued
team members who work for the
common goal of the betterment of
the community.

Outstanding, Positive Communication
with all Owners. Positive communication
from the association fosters volunteerism
because people want to be a part of
something positive. This means a monthly
newsletter that is more than “Don’t park
here!” and “Pick up after your dog!”
Good news means good morale. Good
morale means more volunteers.
Most of the tips on developing and
retaining volunteers are easy and take
very little time from the board. Why
must leadership nurture volunteers in
their communities? They are the fresh
thinking future board and committee
members, and current volunteers will
feel like a welcomed and appreciated
part of the process. CM
Julie Adamen is president of
Adamen Inc., a consulting and
placement firm specializing in the
community management industry.
Julie can be reached via email at
julie@adamen-inc.com or through
her website www.adamen-inc.com.

The Fix

The good news is, volunteerism can
be saved, resurrected, and made to
thrive with a few simple operational
tools.
Adopt a Mission and Vision Statement. Adopting a Mission Statement
and a Vision Statement give the board
(and community) focus on where
they want to go and how they will get
there.
Adopt Governing Policies. All
boards should adopt a governing
policy, or a method of standardized
operation. For example, adopting
Robert’s Rules of Order prevents
disorganized, long, and unproductive
meetings and gives boards a tried and
true platform on which they can hold
more effective meetings.
Adopt Policies Governing Committee Operations. All boards should
give their committees a standardized

Nancy Mandino, VP,
Property Management

True Service –––“It requires staff trained to
excel in the face of whatever comes up — from
a dandelion to a hurricane.”
Nancy helps to ensure that our staff is among the most skilled and well trained in the
industry. “Whether you’re talking landscaping or emergency preparedness, we want
our clients to know they’re in good hands.”

781-533-7200
Info@TheDartmouthGroup.com
Learn more at TheDartmouthGroup.com

THE
DARTMOUTH
GROUP
True Service: You define it. We deliver it.

Condo Media • August 2013

43
http://www.adamen-inc.com http://www.TheDartmouthGroup.com http://www.TheDartmouthGroup.com
Condo Media - August 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Condo Media - August 2013
