Condo Media - November 2021 - 24

Board Expectations vs. Managers' Available Time
THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM
The board and manager surveys provided
a very valuable, very candid glimpse into
the mind of board members through their
own eyes and words, and through the eyes
and words of the managers who work
with them. Each has their truth as they
experience it. The bottom line is this:
1
2
3
The client board has
expectations that are
not being met.
The client board member
is often not knowledgeable
about their role or duties.
The management company,
not the individual manager,
has the obligation to address
those issues.
l Meeting client expectations.
The clients are saying they want
better and faster service. The
managers say they can't go any faster.
Has anyone told the management
company executive? If not - the only
time they may find out is when the
client quits. This reactive method of
managing staff and clients doesn't
work well in heavy customer service
industries. Executives need to have
l Helping the association board
understand their role (for their -
and the manager's - benefit).
Board members treating meetings
as social hour, not being prepared,
sabotaging each other... Yes, they
are common problems within associations.
One way to help alleviate
these issues is to encourage - and
provide a framework for - yearly
planning sessions wherein the
board adopts goals and objectives
and reviews or creates mission and
vision statements. This can be done
and on a larger scale for portfolio
management companies - hold
mass planning sessions with several
boards at once, wherein they are
guided in the process of annual
planning. Not quite as effective as
having a one-on-one, but still gives
the boards a starting place to work
as a group and understand their
roles and responsibilities.
l Are management companies
promising more service than
the manager is able to deliver?
Especially when it comes to marketing
presentations, I encourage
companies to be realistic - no,
you really can't do it all in an
instant for one low price.
Conversations need to be had between managers, management
company executives, and boards on mutual expectations and
deliverables so everyone can have a more satisfying relationship.
candid conversations with their
managers about how much time
each account is taking per week and
what the individual challenges are in
meeting client expectations for faster
and faster levels of service. With
that knowledge in hand, the executives
can be proactive in managing
the needs of clients in terms of how
quickly work can be accomplished.
If the client wants more hours per
month from their manager, it can be
explained to them, clearly, how much
more that will cost.
24 CONDOMEDIA November 2021
l It's on the management company.
Because managers are being paid
for the service, it's on the management
company to understand the
client expectations and either meet
them where they are, or, guide them
to where they need to be; otherwise
the client will stay unhappy and
frustrated. It's also the management
company's job to help boards
get where they need to be in terms
of their roles and responsibilities
so managers and staff can better
do their jobs.
What we know for sure is that
management companies are in
the service industry and their
purpose is to serve the clients.
To that end, management companies
must understand the frustrations
clients have and make real
efforts to help overcome them.
Conversations need to be had
between managers, management
company executives, and boards on
mutual expectations and deliverables
so everyone can have a more
satisfying relationship.
RECONCILING
WHAT BOARDS WANT
WITH MANAGERS
AVAILABLE TIME
I've given managers and boards
some practical advice in how to
manage expectations, however,
in the long run, we need to have
real, candid conversations between
managers, their boards, and management
company executives
on their mutual expectations.
Why don't we? In my experience,
boards won't clarify their expectations
because they are afraid their
fees will rise, managers won't
because they think the board will
be angry, and management company
executives don't because
they fear losing the contract.
The result is everyone is unhappy
with the relationship. As my colleague
Rolf Crocker, Principal
and CEO of OMNI Community
Management in Fair Oaks, CA,
says " I want to go where I'm
celebrated, not tolerated. "
To be there, we must have
better relationships.
n JULIE ADAMEN IS
PRESIDENT OF ADAMEN INC.,
A CONSULTING, EDUCATION
AND EMPLOYMENT FIRM
SPECIALIZING IN THE
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT
INDUSTRY. JULIE CAN
BE REACHED VIA EMAIL AT
JULIE@ADAMEN-INC.COM.
Condo Media - November 2021

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