Condo Media - March 2020 - 39

Best

Practices

Industry executives suggest these best practices for minimizing the problems and maximizing the benefits of both
employee and outsourcing arrangements.
Make sure workers have condominium experience.
This is equally important for workers you hire and for vendors
with whom you contract. "Condominiums are a whole different animal," Jared McNabb, CMCA, PCAM, general manager at the Brook House Condominium Trust, notes.
Consider work history. How long have the workers
remained in previous positions? This is an obvious concern
for people you hire but you also want to know about the
vendor's employee turnover rate because that will affect
the consistency of the service you receive.
Look beyond the fee the vendor is charging. "You also
want to know how much the vendor is paying its employees,"
Pat Brawley, CMCA, AMS, PCAM, principal in Central Management and Consulting Services, says, because the compensation workers receive will affect the service they provide and the
frequency with which they come and go. "If the vendor increases the fee by 3 percent when you renew the contract, you want
to know how much of that increase is going to the workers."
Consider the vendor's staffing level. Is it adequate to
serve your community and others on the vendor's client list?
Also consider how much equipment the vendor has. One
snowplow might be enough for your community-but if it's
serving 10 others, it might be a while before your parking
lot is plowed.
Don't hire a vendor's employees. "That will shorten the
search process," McNabb says, "and I'm sure some associations do it, but it's bad form" and a bad idea, he says, "if you
want to maintain a relationship with the vendor."
Create a clear, detailed job description. This is equally
important for vendors and for employees. "You can't assume
everyone is making the same assumptions" about what the
job entails, and what the association expects, Brawley says.
"You have to be very specific. Who changes the light bulbs?
How often is the laundry room cleaned? What's involved in
cleaning the laundry room ? All these silly, little details have
to be spelled out."
One association's contract with a cleaning company specified
that the job included cleaning the pool area, but the cleaners
only worked Monday through Friday. "By Sunday, the pool area

BEST PRACTICES
SUGGESTIONS TO CURB
OUTSOURCING HEADACHES

looked like a locker room inhabited by teenagers," Brawley
says, "because the area wasn't cleaned on Saturday."
Lack of detail also created problems in a contract requiring cleaning of the association's common areas. The vendor
said workers weren't required to clean the dog-walk areas,
because "they weren't walkways or parking areas" and so
weren't common areas covered by the contract. Cleaning those areas would be billed separately at an additional
hourly rate. "Did I think about that?" Brawley marvels. "They
looked like common areas to me; who knew they wouldn't
be considered part of the vendor's responsibility?"
Have a contract with vendors. "Have it reviewed by
the association's attorney to make sure it includes all the
protections the association needs," Doug Troyer, a principal
in the Massachusetts law firm Moriarty Troyer & Malloy LLC,
advises. "The needs of communities and the expectations of
their homeowners are unique," McNabb adds. "You want to
make sure those unique requirements are accounted for in
the contract."
But don't have a contract with employees. A job description explaining what the employee is supposed to do
and what the association expects is essential, Troyer agrees.
An employee manual or its equivalent, explaining the rules
and procedures the employee must follow is also necessary.
"But an employment contract isn't necessary in a condominium," he believes. "It may not cover every situation that
arises," and it may limit the association's options as a result.
"It's always best to retain the employment at will in a relationship, if possible," he suggests.
Classify workers correctly. If they are employees, classify them as such, Troyer advises. "Talk to an attorney and an
accountant to make sure you follow all the rules, and follow all
the [applicable] regulations and reporting requirements."
Treat all employees equally. Establish ground rules for
performance and behavior and "apply them consistently
across the board," Troyer advises. "Be respectful and transparent" in dealing with employees, he adds, "and document
everything"-disputes, reprimands, disciplinary actions,
bonuses and promotions-all should be documented in an
employee's records, Troyer says. If you get involved in an
employment dispute, "an affidavit is not nearly as persuasive
as a detailed written record."
March 2020 CONDOMEDIA

Condo Media - March 2020

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