July 2024 CT

MANAGEMENT TRENDS... from page 36.

patient as many of the emails that management receives are requests for updates on the updates which takes

line with these projects and we must ensure they are properly navigated. Know Your Financials It is essential for boards to understand their community’s financials. You do not need to be an accountant to at least

away time to get the update. Trust in the Management Team

or how to navigate an insurance loss. Your community association profes sionals are always willing to jump in and attend an open meeting and provide literature to educate the com munity. Hearing information from the association attorney, auditor or insur ance professional direct will generally end a conversation or avoid further questions. Weekly Updates Boards and the management team should come to an agreement on an action list style that works best for their community. Some prefer Excel, others a Word document. This list should be updated by management and provid ed on a weekly basis to the board. During the course of the week, it is recommended that the board remain

The board must have trust in the management team of the association. Trust is critical to ensure that manage ment has the confidence to manage

“You do not need to be an accountant to at least get a feel for what you are presented by your management company.”

and not be micromanaged. Understand That Things Will Take Time

You as a board member must under stand that your community is held to the standards of the commercial property industry. Often, we all want “go go go;” however, in the end this could significantly delay the process. All projects should be reviewed at the start of the year with reasonable time frames. It will take a year to lift a major project and break dirt. There are a lot of people’s monies on the

get a feel for what you are present ed by your management company. Community association accounting is unique and your professional manage ment company can provide for you training on your financial documents. There are also many education plat forms that can provide training. Attend Industry Events & Tradeshows Take the time as a board member to visit industry events and tradeshows. You may be pleasantly surprised that what you think are unique problems to your community are not. And that there are proven solutions to what you think are unique situations. Lastly, it is best to avoid drama. By holding open meetings, being trans parent, communicating timelines to the members of the association, knowing your financials and seeing what is occurring in the industry. You will be able to look any of the community dissidents in the eyes with confidence knowing you are managing your com munity association as it should be and not as others perceive it should. n

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JULY 2024