From the President — Don’t Be a Long Horn! (What it Means to Be Professional)
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t happens to all of us. A situation arises that we have never encountered before. We don’t know what to do; however, we do know we have the responsibility of communicating to our clients (if we are a manager) or our members (if we are on the board), so we do so very quickly. And as we are communicating on this issue, we are actually thinking to ourselves “I’m pretty good. I’m letting everyone know what’s going on at the property right away!” However, very quickly, the conversation turns to something we haven’t taken a moment to think about, others ask us a question; “Now, what should we do?” “What should we do?” We hadn’t gotten that far yet. We don’t know. So we do what a lot of folks do in this situation, improvise! We try to pull things together from our past experience (or lack thereof ), and we simply take a stab, a grasping at straws, at what the problem might be and what the association should do. It is in this instance we have become “a Long Horn”. You know: in our communication we may make a point here, or a point there, but in between those points is a lot of bull!
So what can and should we do in planning ahead for the unknown? These very moments that test us, allow us to demonstrate our credibility and value. After all, if everything went correctly, we wouldn’t have a job. Just as good experienced folks know that the successful running of any association is done with a well thought-out emergency action plan, everyone must also have a like strategy for themself to deal with the unknown when it arises.
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Minnesota Communit y Living
Take a Pause When something comes up that we have never encountered before, and we are not sure what to do, it is always a good idea to take a moment to pause, stop and think, and ask, what is really going on? I am not suggesting that you do not communicate to your association members, but why would you communicate before you really know what is going on? In my years in this business, I have noticed that when someone does not know the answers to a problem, they begin to worry. That worry leads them to do one thing—fill in the blanks. It’s basic human nature. When we are too quick to share a problem without the beginning notion of what is going on, or what can be done, we will simply be an instrument to stir things up. Once this has happened, we will find that we no longer have just one issue to deal with, but we also have all the others that are being construed by everyone else because they have just enough information to worry. In our desire to be quick, we have created a lot more work for ourselves. Do we really need to do this in the middle of a crisis?
Study One of the basic requirements for us in performing our fiduciary duty as an association manager or board member is “Reasonable Care and Diligence”. I like the way this requirement is phrased. While on the one hand we have a duty of diligence, taking the time to try to correctly assess what is going on, and what might be the wise solution; there is the understanding that no one can always know what to do perfectly, in every situation. That is why it is couched with the notion of “reasonable care”.
Example If a homeowner complains of water coming in through an upstairs ceiling, do we simply replace the entire roof? No, we first study
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Gene Sullivan | CAI-MN President
the situation. We ask questions. Is the leak in a bedroom or bathroom? If in the bathroom, is it around a vent? If it is in the middle of the ceiling, is there a gable valley above that portion of the roof? Did this happen after a rain, or has it been dry outside? Did it happen in the winter or during the spring? In this example, we can clearly see that the solution could be as simple as replacing a shingle, caulking around flashing or vent pipe, re-installing a vent cap, removing an ice dam, going into the attic to re-attach a disconnected vent pipe, or even re-soldering a leaking joint to a fire sprinkler system. The answer may not be that the entire roof needs replacing. Reasonable care suggests that we first think and come up with a plan of action that is measured and economical. After all, isn’t that what all associations are really looking for?
Candor and Conviction Lastly, our duty as a professional demands that after we have studied the situation and come up with several reasonable solutions to pursue, we should then show both candor and conviction in making a recommendation. Do not be afraid to make a recommendation. Our clients and members expect that of us. I know it can be a lot easier if we never take a stand, and it might be harder for others to put blame on us when something doesn’t go right; however, we may also find that over time, our opinion and value to the association may not be what it once was, and they find it easier to replace us. However, by taking a little time to investigate and study a matter before reporting on it, we may find that instead of going from giving a lot of bull, we take that bull by the horns, increasing both our credibility and value to others.