Issuu

Volume 4 Issue 3

March 2022

LETTER FROM Then and Now

Technological Advances in Property Management I was thinking about how IT and Accounting have changed so much since I started at FRED 13 years ago. The first thing that comes to mind is that we were using a DOS Operating System. I am sure there are employees that have never heard of DOS. Thank you to our great IT Department. The second thing that comes to mind is that we used paper timesheets. I remember if you had someone with bad handwriting, it made it exceedingly difficult to check the timesheets on Monday. We would have to hand calculate the hours. It was not in minutes, but in ¼, ½, ¾ and one-hour increments. We had multiple occasions that an employee did not have their full forty hours. We also had to submit for PTO and Vacation on a paper form. Thank you to our great Payroll Department and Paycom. Next let us talk about payables. The payables would all arrive on-site. The Managers had a special stamper that they would use to stamp the invoice, hand write the code, description, amount, and then sign off on each individual invoice. When the Regional Manager would come to the site, they would pick up the payables, review them, sign off on them, and deliver or mail them to the Corporate office so checks could be generated and mailed to the vendors. This was not a streamlined process. I can remember carrying stacks of payables. The managers also did the bulk of the deposit accountings on-site, including deposit accounting forms, resident letters, and ledger entries. They also did a portion of the collections. The Regional Managers were also responsible for reviewing and approving all deposit accountings. They also were responsible for all the lease signings. Thank you to our great Accounting Department and Entrata. We should all be so grateful for technology and how it has aided us in our industry! Have a great day, everyone!

Michael Bingham Michael Bingham Senior Director of Property Management

DEPARTMENT UPDATE Finance

A "Best Seller" By Kristi Peirce, Director of Corporate Finance

Quite often people hear the words "finance" or "accounting" and they cringe. It sounds so boring. All those numbers! Who would ever want to do that? And then throw in that awful word “tax”, now you’ve done it. When I was in college, I thought Accounting was black and white, just a bunch of numbers. And then I took Advanced Accounting. It was about as painful as it sounds. The professor was in love with Shirley MacLaine and quite often we would “take adventures” with Shirley while he was lecturing. At first, I thought he was crazy, but then I realized that what he was attempting to do was to teach us that it’s not always black and white, but sometimes there is some gray. Brett loves it when I answer his question with, “well, it depends”.

While adventuring with Shirley, I learned that financial statements, which are full of numbers, help tell a story. How is the property performing? Why did I go over budget? Was a bill paid incorrectly, wrong account, or was there something unforeseen and will this happen again? One of our jobs in the Finance Department is to help guarantee that the story is a best seller. We are always evaluating the cash position at every property, making sure the best financing is in place, processing and accurately reporting on payroll, working with banks and title companies on new constructions and timely bill payment, and vendor compliance, just to name a few items. To do this, we utilize many systems, like Entrata, Paycom, Expensewire, Acumatica, Procore, IMS, and Quickbooks. The number of passwords we need to keep track of is ridiculous! Bottom line is (pun intended), we’re here to support our properties and our employees to help guarantee that each story is a success.

GOOD NEWS FRED Good News Submissions DANIELLE DAHL | Corporate My husband, TJ, and I welcomed our baby boy, Max Anders Dahl, on November 3rd, 2021. Max is now 17 weeks old and is doing great! As first time parents, we're learning a lot on the fly! We've had wonderful support from family and friends so far and enjoyed the holidays together as a family.

NORMA PAVON LOPEZ | The Bevy Through the Department of Homeland Security, I took my Naturalization Test for becoming a US Citizen and have passed! I had my ceremony on Thursday, February 17th. I am very proud to live in the United States and be an American citizen. I am very grateful, thank God!

WOMEN IN CONSTRUCTION

Women in Construction Week (March 6-12) is a time to highlight all of the great initiatives and work of women in the industry. Here at FRED, we want to take a moment to introduce and celebrate our four rockstar women in construction: Tiffany Walisiewicz, Danielle Dahl, Elisabeth Schmidlkofer, and Kris Slater!

SPECIAL FEATURE

TIFFANY WALISIEWICZ

DANIELLE DAHL

ELISABETH SCHMIDLKOFER

KRIS SLATER

PROJECT COORDINATOR

ACCOUNTING MANAGER

PROJECT ENGINEER

ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT

Works with Project Assists the Milwaukee Manages the accounting for Coordinates with the Construction team with all all FRED new construction Madison Construction team Managers, Superintendents, and owners to deliver a high projects from bid projects. Manages the on initial plans and quality product on time. throughout construction to construction draw process specifications for a project Assists in project schedule project closeout. Supports from inception through from bid through project creation and adherence, the VP of Construction, completion. Ensures closeout. Works to ensure Milwaukee Director of accurate and timely buildings are turned over on works with subcontractors on quality, schedule, and Construction, and payments are made to time. Controls project field issues. Documents Milwaukee/Seasons subcontractors/suppliers documentation and project progress and Construction team and collaborates with supports Project Managers, coordinates material members with various Project Managers on project Superintendents, and field delivery for tasks under her tasks as needed. budgets and commitments. personnel in day-to-day supervision. operations.

PROPERTY SPOTLIGHT

What Makes Them Shine The 85 at Maple Grove is FRED’s newest development located on the far west side of Madison consisting of Stacked Flats, Townhomes, and Apartments. The 85 welcomed its first residents in July 2021 and the final building is set to be completed in October 2022. Residents get to enjoy the well-appointed clubhouse that consists of a resort-style pool, fitness center, dog spa, and a clubroom with amazing architectural details. The Property Management team consists of Leasing Manager, Laura Christianson, Leasing Professional, Boone Baker, Weekend Leasing Specialist, Daniel Schultz, and Interim Regional Maintenance Supervisor, Rick Jahn. The lease up of The 85 has been nothing short of amazing so far. The team secured 50 signed leases during the month of January alone and have preleased each building to 100% before or shortly after opening! People are raving about The 85 and the 5-Star google rating is proof of how great this new property is shaping up to be!

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT

YANNAH ROSENQUIST

Area Manager

Arrabelle State Street Station Wells Street Station I started my FRED journey through the HSI Portfolio merge in October 2018. At the time, I was the Property Manger at Drexel Ridge Apartments, mid a successful new construction lease-up. Suddenly having a new employer through a management change can be quite intimidating, however, I quickly learned how fully FRED lives out their culture through team spirit, training & support channels, and employee appreciation. In August 2020 I welcomed my first daughter and knew I wanted to balance my time between work and watching her grow. Thanks to FRED and a Regional/Director who support me, I was able to return to work as a Floating Property Manager – filling in at properties and training new team members where needed. In February, I accepted a new position as Area Manager – thankful for a team that supports and pushes me to grow!

SPOTLIGHT! January Winner

RACHEL WAGABAZA Regional Property Manager | Madison

I want to give Rachel W a HUGE shout out for being such a change maker. She has created an awesome, impactful environment at FRED through the Inclusion Group where people are able to learn, share, discuss, and even challenge their own way of thinking. She is thoughtful in the way she speaks and is really just a force to be reckoned with when it comes to fighting for what is right. I admire her in so many ways and we are really lucky, as a company, to have Rachel on our team.

Nominated By: Erin Ball

FRED ANNIVERSARIES!

Welcome to the Team January 2022 / February 2022 SAVANNA TAULMAN

BRAEDEN STEGEMANN

Leasing Professional | The Bevy

Groundskeeper | 50Twenty

EDWARD SENN Groundskeeper | Barrington Place

JOHN FIELDS

Maintenance Supervisor | The Woodlands

ARIA GRZYNKOWICZ

Assistant Property Manager | Drexel Ridge

NICHOLAS THOMPSON Maintenance Tech II | Synergy

Promotions February 2022

CHARLES BORKENHAGEN Maintenance Tech II| Saddle Brook

FRED ON THE MOVE

January 2022 / February 2022 / March 2022 Congratulations to... Dehmry Wynn - 5 Years Property Manager | 22 Slate

Scott Schwenn - 5 Years

Property Manager | The Landmark

Nick Breidenbach - 5 Years

Maintenance Supervisor | Stone Point

Evan Diece - 5 Years

Property Manager | High Bluff

Charles Eggert - 10 Years

Maintenance Supervisor | Drexel Ridge

Clinton Chamberlain - 5 Years Maintenance Tech II | Domain

MARIHA STEWART Property Manager, Forté at 84 South Joined the FRED Team

MICHAEL SOUTHERN New Construction Property Manager, Seasons at River View Joined the FRED Team

JUSTIN LORD

New Construction Property Manager, Seasons at Mt Pleasant Promoted

COVER PHOTO: Women in Construction

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