Nominee Packet 2022

Nicole Martone, CMCA, AMS, PCAM: I am honored to have been nominated for the Candice Bladt Manager of the Year for 2021. As I reflect on what this nomination really means, I found myself questioning what makes a good manager. Is it my 20 plus years of experience in the property management industry? Is it my involvement in CAI and educational initiatives? Or is it my attention to detail and empathetic nature? These are all certainly aspects that help round out my management style, but there isn’t any one thing that I can really say is my magic recipe for success. I decided to ask a few of my colleagues what their thoughts are on this. Here’s what they had to say: “I have known Nicole for over six months and in it that short period of time, I have found her to be one of the most intellectual and hardworking individuals I have ever met. Nicole is very dedicated to the property management industry and to Associa as well. She possesses, in my opinion, all the qualities that allows her to be a very successful Vice President/Property Manager for Associa; but

more importantly, a wonderful and caring person.” - Anonymous “I am supervised by Nicole and find her to understand the intricacies of property management while possessing the ability to work with boards, owners/residents, vendors, etc. I have witnessed her in very volatile situations with Boards and her demeanor and calm responses defused potentially toxic outcomes.” - Anonymous “I have been reporting to Ms. Nicole Martone as my supervisor for three years. The patience, time, and guidance she spent mentoring me during my first few months on the job have been a blessing to me. Her knowledge and skills have added to my understanding of the job, making it easy to learn and work in the field. Ms. Martone possesses the qualities that make a good Manager, Supervisor, and VP of Operations; this is why there was no surprise that she was nominated for the CAI-NJ Candice Bladt Manager of the Year Award.” - Anonymous

Shirley Santos: I have been married to my husband Peter for 35 years. We have two wonderful sons, P.J. (Peter Jr) and Nicholas. In 2008, I started my career in Property Management with a great company. There I had the opportunity to gain experience with a talented team and evolve into a skilled Community Manager. In 2015 I moved on to Taylor Management Company, AAMC, AMO. At Taylor, I continued to grow and expand my management skills. The job of the Community Manager is broad and often complex. Every day there is always something new. Every day there are problems to be solved. I am a firm believer that it takes a team to manage a community and that is something at which I excel. Working collaboratively with and serving my Board, is a priority of mine and one of my greatest strengths. My personal leadership and management philosophy requires teambuilding, effective communication, transparency, building trust, developing, and executing strategies and watching the bottom line on finances. The past two years have been

difficult in every way possible but, with Taylor’s continuing support and leadership, I had all the tools needed to support my board and community. Working together, we made some extremely tough decisions that allowed the community residents to remain safe yet enjoy activities. I manage an Adult Community in Monroe. It takes challenging work, sweat, and yes tears (mostly mine) but we have transformed into a community that is properly maintained. Most importantly, the community is harmonious, and we all are thriving. I am honored to have been nominated and thank you for your consideration.