Chapter 1: Putting Community First
Association management is a people business. Yet, for decades, we managers have focused our day-to-day efforts on technical activities such as rule enforcement, facilities maintenance, and dues collection. This emphasis, though functional, puts the proverbial cart before the horse. It doesn't address many of the human needs within our communities.
Managers need to rethink their jobs, switching the emphasis to service and community building.
Why this need for redirection? Because the association management industry, like our society, is changing rapidly. Managers must grow with society—even lead the change—or risk being left behind. Increasingly, our jobs are expanding beyond the traditional roles of neighborhood police officer, tax collector, or handyman. The notion of service, in and of itself, has become more important.
Some of these societal changes stem from legal issues. The concept of reasonableness is replacing strict letter-of-the-law covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&R) enforcement. Other changes are the result of municipalities running out of money, forcing associations to privatize traditional government services. Still other changes may be rooted in a board of directors' judgment. The board may decide that its community requires better service than a municipality can give in the wake of budget cuts. Many people also are feeling more disenfranchised by society. They desperately need to feel that they're a part of their communities.
Whatever the cause, community association managers are being called on to provide more service for their customers. And, as needs continue to change, so do the service requirements. Managers are, therefore, constantly trying to hit a moving target.
The historical measuring sticks of association management success—delinquency rates, the number of work orders processed, the number of outstanding rules violations, performance against budget—can no longer be the sole indicator of management effectiveness. In truth, these measures track only a fraction of overall performance. The management team and board of directors could achieve perfection in these areas and still have a problem community.
How is such a contradiction possible? Because an association's core purpose is not about buildings, rules, or money. It's a corporation to help people. Putting people first—building community for them to prosper in—is the essence of association management.
Association professionals and directors are catching on to this concept. Managers must be the lead architects of this community construction. We are more than maintenance supervisors, rule enforcers, dues collectors, and meeting planners. We are leaders and teachers as well.
Along with a change in priorities—away from the technical and toward the personal aspects of management—managers must adopt a different thought process. Here are nine steps that managers can take to put people first and build community.
1. Provide Leadership
Community building begins at the manager's desk. The manager needs to help the board and committees understand the importance of building community. Managers must help boards understand that directors are responsible for more than just the basics of meetings, buildings, grounds, and money. Managers must take the lead and set the agenda. Community building should be a fundamental part of both short-term decision making and long-term planning.
[This sample comprises about 15% of the total chapter.]