Carin’s Corner: Top Performers Find a Balance Between “Right” and “Now”
By Carin Rosengren, Keller Property Management
F
olks in the community association industry know how it feels to be under pressure. I don’t just mean the usual time constraints that come with a property manager’s full portfolio or added expectations by neighbors when a member decides to join the board. In the community association biz, both volunteers and paid individuals quickly learn that time is money, and not only that, but homeowners are demanding more for less.
“If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?” —
John Wooden
i.e. “getting it right,” which surfaced when her thorough reading of an insurance renewal uncovered an error and saved the association hundreds of dollars.
Excellence in Service Award winner Kim Schultz (pictured at right bottom), of FirstService Residential, oversees highprofile high rises and urban condos, where she earns praise from board members for In effect, efficiency becomes king. But it her hard work. Kudos like “consistently remains our job to see that efficiency does obtaining quorum at annual meetings” not become a dictator. Sometimes, when mean that Kim is working efficiently, as the homeowners to whom we answer are well. Without a quorum, an annual meeting demanding something “right now,” we have needs to be redone, costing the manager to tell them to choose: “Do you want it and the association twice the time, money right, or do you want it now?” That’s why and effort. the quote from John Wooden grabbed my attention when I saw it, although I didn’t Surely Franz Eisenbauer, the Above & know who Wooden was (he led a 10-time Beyond Award winner from Creekside of national champion basketball team), and Plymouth, should know a thing or two I’ve kept it tacked up in my office ever since. about efficiency: he’s been serving on that board for 16 years and has held most of This is the last of my series of columns the officer positions at different times. taking another look at the winners of the Eisenbauer has helped guide the association 2013 Vision Awards from the Minnesota through two large storm insurance claims Chapter of the Community Associations and two special assessments, in addition to Institute (CAI-MN). This year’s event was the laundry list of community living issues. the highest-attended in its history — a Volunteer or not, an inefficient person beautifully executed evening in May where would have found himself kicked to the the people who performed under pressure curb by the homeowners in a most efficient were applauded. Throughout the night way. and throughout the nominations, it was apparent that the winners had been able to Let’s face it — nobody gets it right every find just the right balance of responding to time. Sometimes, we make a mistake pressure and acting with efficiency. that forces us to do a task again, or to try it in another way until we get it right. Rookie of the Year Meggan Anderson Sometimes we simply have to do it over, (pictured at right top), of Community despite the inefficiency of it all. But how we Development, Inc., earned her Vision respond when that happens offers a chance Award in part by demonstrating the hard to practice professionalism and reintroduce work it takes to be a successful property efficiency. During one such opportunity manager. She also has attention to detail, years ago, I offered the following to a Board
of Directors, “I dropped the ball here and I am sorry. But, I can promise you this: you will not see me make the same mistake twice.” Now is that efficient, or what?
Vision Award Winner Meggan Anderson Community Development, Inc.
Vision Award Winner Kim Schultz FirstService Residential
November | December 2013
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