Wait-- WHAT? You're giving me how many accounts???

The logistics of being handed a Big Surprise

...There you are, merrily managing 6 or 7 accounts, doing pretty good, things are under control, you like your Boards and have your schedule down just so. You are feeling pretty spunky! Then: Your supervisor ZOOM calls you to let you know…. You will be taking on another 9 accounts next week, and maybe another 3 the following week. The room spins, you feel nauseous… you may faint! In your mind, you’re thinking “no f’ing way man, no way!” Hold that thought, because yes you can! Taking on new accounts – even several at one time – is just another logistical problem to be managed that you need to wrap your mind around (as soon as you stop sobbing!).

First: Is your new account load temporary or the company standard?

Staffing problems happen, and while HR is looking for that new team member, you only have to work the logistics for a short period of time until a replacement is hired. If your new accounts are here to stay… and before you hit the panic button… look around the office. Do other managers have a comparable workload? If so, you need to embrace what has been given to you, and work the management problem of integrating those accounts into your portfolio – and then managing them day-to-day.

Mindset

You must have the right attitude when you take on multiple new accounts (temporarily or permanently), and that is to embrace the knowledge that you will not be able to provide perfect service to all of your new or existing accounts during this transition time. Understand that you will make mistakes because you aren’t operating with the knowledge and familiarity you have with your old accounts. Do the best you can do with the information you have and move forward. If you make a mistake, fix it and move on. People don’t care about the mistake; they do care about 1) how often they occur, and 2) how well (and how soon) you fix it.

Now organize!

Set aside one, uninterrupted hour – or two - to focus on initially integrating those new accounts into your existing load. Yes, you’ll spend more time than that in the coming days and weeks, but if you give yourself this initial breathing room to do nothing but focus on figuring out what you know now, and what you need to know next, things will go easier.

Two questions you need answered immediately: 1) Did the previous manager have a Master Calendar for these communities’ events; and 2) are there current Action Lists for the communities? If the answer is yes to either of those questions, your life in the next few days and weeks will be markedly easier. If not, here’s what you need quickly:

When are the next Board meetings? The whole management cycle revolves around the Board meetings, so this is THE top thing you need to know. Ask your supervisor, or the previous manager. If that doesn’t work because the previous manager has been fired and your supervisor doesn’t know (which happens more frequently than we’d like to admit) you’ll need to hunt that down by checking the last minutes or looking at the last Board packs, or…(Pro-tip): Suck it up, pick up the phone and call the Board president. Why not email? If the management company doesn’t know the date of the next Board meeting, that doesn’t look too good. It’s better to acknowledge that fact and apply a personal touch with some grace and humility on behalf of your company, even though this issue is not your fault. It is your job to manage it, however.

What are the important deadlines and when? Board meetings, annual meetings, budget dates and deadlines, reserve study updates, contract renewals and all the other deadlines will need to be integrated into your Master Calendar, and relatively soon so you can work out any conflicting dates between your existing accounts and the new ones.

What are the current top priorities and where? This will be a lot easier if you can talk to the previous manager, or your supervisor if she is familiar with the accounts; but since there is about a 50-50 chance of either being the case, you can find the information you need on your own. 1) Look through the most recent Board packs 2) read the minutes and 3) talk to the Board presidents. No, that won’t make you look dumb… In fact, just the opposite: you look smart and professional and you are doing your job. Honestly, whenever I took over an account, either as a portfolio manager or as an onsite GM, I learned more from the Board than my supervisors or the previous managers (who, in almost every case, were gone by the time I got there). It is what it is.

More stuff. Review at least the last 3 months' of financials, the contracts (including the management contract) and at least a years' worth of minutes. When you can, make the effort to review the CC&Rs, Bylaws, Rules and Regulations and the Architectural Guidelines of each community. Set a goal of reviewing these documents from two communities each week. You don’t have to remember all of it (hardly! Ha!); but at least you’ll at least have some semblance of understanding the basis on which the communities govern themselves.

Do you actually need help? Part of being a good manager means knowing when to ask for help. If you simply cannot keep up, it’s your job to inform your supervisor, verbally and in writing. As we all know, once a manager starts down the rabbit hole of missed deadlines… The snowball becomes an avalanche and its game over in short order. Ask for help before getting buried alive.

Most managers will be in the position, at some time in their career, of having to step up and take on several new accounts, temporarily or for the duration. A workload increase is never fun and it’s tempting to let yourself freak out. But if you stop, take a breath and recognize that integrating those accounts into your existing load is just another logistical puzzle for you to unravel (and what we do so well as managers). If you follow through the initial steps discussed here, you will then have the most important information you need to begin incorporating the new accounts into your portfolio, and manage them just as well as you do the others.

Stay strong! Manage on! You can do it!

c. 2020 Julie Adamen Adamen Inc.all rights reserved