Customer Relationship Management in an Association

In today's customer-driven economy, businesses and associations must move to a customer-focused personalized approach. The expectation of association members is that they are the customers of a BoD. Members want to feel important and they want to know that a BoD has the necessary expertise to manage their interests. The more you demonstrate your specific understanding of their problems, concerns and aspirations, the more quickly they'll support you, often without really understanding what you are promoting or deciding.

Therefore, the highest goal of customer relationship management for a BoD is making sure they are keeping customers (members) happy, discovering and solving problems. A problem is simply the difference between what you have and what you want. It may be a matter of getting something, of getting rid of something, of avoiding something, or of getting to know what you want. In order to do this, they must build and nurture relationships with the members.

As a business professional, you should ask yourself: "What business am I in?" The answer is quite simple: if your business has anything to do with people – and ALL associations do - you are in the business of building relationships. "Some BoD's think that if they manage an association, they are in the business of making business decisions. They aren't. They are in the business of building relationships – because that's how you make decisions that are compatible with the needs and interest of association members.

In every association and business activity, influential people succeed and non-influential people don't. You cannot influence someone unless he or she likes you in some way. People are motivated for their reasons, not yours. Rapport is the key to influence. Rapport and influence start with acceptance of the other person's point of view, their state and their style of communication. To influence you have to be able to appreciate and understand the other person's standpoint. And these work both ways: I cannot influence you without being open to influence myself.

Beyond making decisions as an individual, and as every BoD member knows, the landscape gets a little more complicated when you are a leader of an organization such as a homeowner or condo association. First, you have to make decisions in a group environment. This is very different than individual-based decision making and involves a whole different set of dynamics, considerations, challenges, and opportunities. Personality traits such as emotional maturity and the ability to get alone with others take on more importance in making these types of decisions and managing an association. Rather than focusing strictly on business acumen or technical skill, associations need BoD members who can persuade as well lead, and communicate as well as command. It is a different type of skill set than the traditional command-and-control personality. It is a more subtle, sophisticated type and requires someone who is an "influencer."

But, probably the most unique dynamic is that comes into play is that a BoD is made up from members of a community in which they live. The people who elect them and who they represent are friends and neighbors. Therefore, the health of the association is fundamentally determined by the relationship the neighbors have for each other and for the BoD. Make bad decisions or untimely decisions that do not adequately represent the views of the overwhelming majority of members and you will lose their critical support. Power freak BoD members, spurred on by expensive and egotistical attorneys, attacking neighbors with nasty letters including threats of fines is not how good neighbors treat each other.

For that reason, when making decisions in an association, everything possible should be done to create and maintain open and amicable relationships. Members of the community should be encouraged to attend board meetings, to form and join committees, and to express their needs and opinions and solve mutual problems together. Although in some circumstances they do not have the right to vote on a particular topic, they certainly they have every right to be involved in the discussion pertaining to that topic. Limiting discussion to a few short minutes might be appropriate for large organizations and/or city council meetings, but they are over-control and over-kill for condo or homeowner associations. In spite of well intended advice from professional management company people to be formal, experience would suggest that informality and friendliness are far more effective. Demands are resented. Requests are honored.

What Does a Good Association Decision Look Like?

Clearly, the top function of a condo or homeowner BoD is to make good decisions that are best for the association and its members. When a BoD does not make good decisions, it can alienate its members, create distractions, and build mistrust towards the BoD. Decisions won’t stick - they will be revisited again, people will implement actions not chosen, or the results of the decision will be invisible in a matter of weeks. But, what does a good decision really look like?

There are two critical components; the quality of the decision and the timeliness of the decision.

• Quality of the decision. How would you recognize a high quality decision for your association if you saw one? Many would give answers like:

o All the right people have been involved
o We had all the best information available
o Risk was considered
o A decision was made—action occurred!
o Everybody bought in to the process
o The process did not drag on and on and loop around
o We did not get bogged down in the details
o There was a clear set of choices
o We knew about the difficult trade-offs to be made
o Implementation went smoothly
o Etc...

These are all important considerations among a long list of others. Generally, they can be summarized into six categories:
1. Is the right question being answered?
2. Have we generated a small set of creative yet feasible alternatives (or choices)?
3. Do we have meaningful and reliable information, particularly about risk?
4. Have we identified clear preferences and trade-offs?
5. Did we exercise sound reasoning, and clear communication about complex issues?
6. Do we have a commitment to action?

• Timeliness of the decision. The second component of good decision making is its timeliness. Nothing slows down an organization more than paralysis by analysis – the inability to make even smallest decisions quickly. Unnecessarily delaying a decision or making no decision is just the same as making a decision. You have simply chosen the option of taking no action. It means you are defaulting to the status quo.

When you don't make a timely decision, there are a lot of other bad things can happen, even though the decision itself may be a sound one. It can cause delays in decision implementation which in turn, can result in a missed opportunity or make a bad situation worse. It can put the association into a "downtime" condition that brings it to a temporary standstill on the issue being examined. It allows the grapevine and rumor mill to churn, which now brings further complications that have to be addressed. But, probably one of the biggest problems that it brings is a loss of confidence in the BoD leaders. Hesitation or a reluctance to make a decision is often the sign of ineffective leadership and is a surefire way for a BoD to lose support of its members and thus its ability to lead.

When it comes to decision making, successful BoD leaders have learned that action is vital. They live with the reality of consequences and know there will always be uncertainty in their decisions. No one can see all possible ramifications; no one can predict every contingency; no one can absolutely prevent failure. Strong leaders know that failure is not final, it is a learning opportunity. The real danger surrounding decision making is not "will I make the wrong decision" but "did I make the best decision possible given the facts and circumstances in a timely manner". Good leaders will always recover from poor decisions - they learn and become wiser. But weak leaders will mess around and miss opportunities. And once they finally make a decision, chances are their decision will have no momentum, no passion and no urgency and probably too late.

Tighten The Financial Belt Of Your Management Company

If and how you use a Management Company to help manage your association duties, will be an important area to examine for cost reduction opportunity. This category of expense can run upwards of 30% of an association’s annual budget -- money that you may be able to spend more wisely. Depending on the nature and severity of your financial situation, you may be forced to take on more of those duties even though it may not be your first choice. Elimination of some or all of the services, rebidding/renegotiation of the Management Company contract, innovative use of private contractors or specialty service providers, holding Management Companies more accountable for cost reduction, and/or “partnering” to jointly attack cost reduction, are all within the realm of possibilities.

The reasons for an association using a Management Company can range from “convenience” for some to a “necessity” for others. But, if an association’s BoD is facing a severe financial condition, it may have to take on more of these direct management duties than it would prefer. Since the use of a Management Company can represent a major expense to an association, it is an area of cost reduction opportunity that cannot be ignored.

There are several things that should be highlighted regarding the use a Management Company.

• While management companies can simplify things for a condo or homeowner association BoD, they do not replace the BoD. A Management Company reports to and receives its direction from the BoD and not the other way around. The BoD has hiring/firing authority and can eliminate, replace, revise, or renegotiate a contract with a Management Company.
• Inexperienced BoD’s must guard against a Management Company “dependency” where the Management Company is calling all the shots and the BoD is merely a rubber stamp. A good Management Company can be a real benefit to your company. They do bring experience, an extra set of hands, and usually ideas tried and proven in a condo or homeowner association environment.
• A BoD has a fiduciary responsibility to the association for which it serves. This fiduciary relationship requires the members of the BoD to act in good faith and in the best interests of the members of the association and that they exercise due care and diligence. A fiduciary obligation represents the highest level of responsibility under the law. Unlike a Contractor, a Management Company acts as an agent of the association and is also held to the same fiduciary responsibility as the BoD. Likewise, it has a duty to manage association’s costs in the most effective way possible.
• A Management Company, like any company, is only as good as its people. They may not have the necessary skill sets to attack cost reductions and may have “blind spots” that prevent them from examining new ways to attack cost creep that will eventually come into play. Like the BoD, they too can also fall into the complacency trap of simply meeting cost increases by raising association fees. Today's Management Company must do more than review monthly budget reports, handle violation notices, or perform the daily maintenance activities. They must minimize costs at every opportunity and come up with creative ways for condo and homeowner associations to combat rising costs or economic downturns.
• The relationship between an association BoD and its Management Company is usually a deep one, and one that can last for a long time. The longer a working relationship lasts, the better the two parties understand one another and work together. But, it also may be more difficult for an association BoD to change suppliers or to address a lackadaisical cost reduction performance. A responsible BoD must take any action that is necessary and to set the expectation with its Management Company that cost reduction is one of its primary responsibilities. It is also their job to replace them if they are unable to deliver.
• If an association BoD chooses to use a particular Management Company, it should expect a relentless effort to help them reduce their costs. This is a new concept for many, as they are much more comfortable with just delivering the services outlined in the contract. Take a look at your existing contract or a proposal from a potential Management Company. Do you see a statement that says they will deliver cost savings to the association? Or better yet, do you see a statement that says they will deliver (X) % of cost savings to the association? A Management Company like any other supplier does not like to be pinned down. It often easier to just deliver the service and pass alone any cost increases to association members in the form of increased fees or special assessments. Management Companies should be held accountable for cost performance and a provision should be incorporated into their contract to reinforce that responsibility.

Shown below are some ways to cut your Management Company cost:

• Determine the level of self-management that you will use and that you can afford (Take apart the Management Company contract line-item-by-line item and explore alternative ways to eliminate, revise it, or have the service performed by someone else at a lower cost. Separate the association “needs” from its “wants”. Have the Management Company provide quotes for each line item in the contract. This will allow for an apples-to-apples comparison with self management or other suppliers. Use this eliminated or reduced service level as a basis to renegotiate a lower priced contract.
• Use consultants, freelances or part-time employees, instead of full-time employees.
• Often, one of the largest expenses is bookkeeping. If you have an active volunteer group that is willing to take over some management tasks, you can realize significant savings by hiring an accountant to handle the books and to process payments/receipts.
• Competitively source your small service projects. For small service needs, it is not necessary to have a Management Company or professional contractor perform small maintenance tasks or to fix every little problem. (Handyman Services. For condo or homeowner associations that can't afford a full time maintenance person, contract with a licensed, bonded and insured handyman who can perform a monthly "laundry list" of small repairs. Combine tasks to provide a full day's work. Moonlighters. In most buildings, the building staff moonlights as painters and general repair persons. Talk to your staff and see if they would like to make extra money by doing some of the work that normally a professional would do. The best example of this approach is touch-up painting in halls and stairwells. Develop a closer alliance with subcontractors to perform work in the neighborhood to get small projects done quickly and cost effectively. Volunteers. You may have members who have special skills/hobbies (engineers, contractors, woodworkers, gardeners, skilled trades, etc.) who may be willing to perform small maintenance duties or projects. Do no be afraid to ask for their help. The use of volunteers is an excellent way to help keep your costs down.)
• Jointly explore with the Management Company any changes that the association cold make to reduce the Management Company cost that in turn could be passed along to the association. (Eliminate or reduce the amount of time that a Management Company is required at BoD meetings. Shorten the length of BoD meetings. Hold quarterly meetings versus monthly meetings. Hold daytime meetings during normal business hours to avoid overtime. Move the Board meeting to the management office to save manager time and avoid mileage charges. With an approved budget, proper policies in place and a management planning calendar, the Management Company should be able to handle most issues with only occasional input from the president.)
• Reconfigure how a Management Company handles administration of insurance claims and damage reconstruction. Insurance matters can take many hours of a Management Company’s time. If the contract agreement specifically states that insurance claim work is an extra cost to the association, the Management Company can bill the insurance claim for the time it takes to administrate a claim and renovation work. A similar principle involves time spent on collections or legal action against an owner. This management time should be billed to the delinquent owner.
• Rather than having the association bear the cost for preparing sale disclosure statements to owners who are selling their homes and buyers' lenders, have the Management Company bill owners and buyers separately for this service.
• Scale back on the frequency of services that are offered.
• Limited office hours or lengthened response time
• Offer part-time services for security, gate/door attendance
• Send out association dues on a quarterly basis versus a monthly basis. Allow members to pay dues on a semi-annual or annual basis, if desired.
• Hold minor repair items until enough are accumulated to allow for a more efficient utilization of maintenance contractor’s time
• Conduct less frequent inspections for CC&R violations and batch process related notices.
• Use electronic communications to members and record keeping to eliminate paper, filing, stamps, mail handling, etc. Allow for electronic payment of association fees.
• Eliminate all overtime and transportation expenses for Management Company employees
• Include in the Management Company contract a specific reference to the expected level of cost savings efforts required of the Management Company. This could be in the form of a specific amount or a percentage of operating costs. Then, conduct a performance review with the Management Company on the progress being/not being made. It is not uncommon for companies to demand a 10-15% annual cost savings from their internal departments or outside suppliers.
• Go out and get competitive bids and bring them back to your current Management Company so they have the opportunity to lower their price for you. Large service contracts like a Management Company should be competitively bid every year or two. Even if you are totally satisfied with the service received and have no intention of changing providers, it will demonstrate to the membership that the BoD is practicing due diligence and good stewardship. Also, if a particular Management Company is maneuvering for a contract increase, a competitive proposal will work to the association’s advantage in negotiating or verifying that the current Management Company is entirely justified in the increase. If it is to the advantage of the association, negotiate a long-term contract with the Management Company that states in exchange for a competitive price, the association will not seek competing competitive bids for a certain period of time.
• Confront your Management Company if it announces a price increase and re-bid the order where appropriate.
• Request that your Management Company prepare recommendations on ways for the association to reduce association waste, increase efficiency, or save money.
• Develop a scorecard for keeping track of Management Company service, quality, delivery and pricing. Implement a monitoring program (metrics, customer complaint system) to better understand the service / issues.

Condo or HOA Communication Skills #101

Effective communication skills form the foundation for successful management of a condo or homeowner association. They are so fundamental that we sometimes forget their significance or assume we are skillful. Communication skills enable you as a Board member to lead others. You cannot lead without being able to communicate your ideas well. People will not go with you unless you have established with them your ability to lead. That requires trust which is a by-product of effective two-way communication.

Show me an association that is rift with problems (including, member in-fighting and discontent, distrust and a very active rumor mill, etc.) and I will show you either incompetent Board members or ineffective communications, or both!

The intent of this article is twofold. The first describes how you can improve your personal communication skills and the second describes a high return communication technique that can be used with your association.

Effective personal communication includes; speaking and listening, informing others, and fostering open communication. When you master these skills, you harness a great deal of power – the power to get things done through others.

Effective personal communication involves:

• Knowing who needs what information and communicating that information in a concise and timely way
• Choosing and effectively using the most appropriate communication medium – oral or written – for those who will receive the information and how it will be used
• Knowing how to listen effectively

Shown below are some important personal communication skills to master.

• Speak effectively. You should make an effort to get your point across when talking and avoid rambling. Outline in your mind what you are trying to say and then stick to it. Try to eliminate speech habits that may annoy others, such as talking too slowly, too rapidly, or too hesitatingly. Become more animated in your style by using appropriate gestures and body language to “punctuate” you discussion. Also, work at varying your volume, pitch, and pace to emphasize your major points in discussions.

• Foster open communication. To build trust and solid working relationships with association members, it’s important to be seen as someone who is committed to sharing information with others and who goes beyond communicating only what is necessary. Developing a climate in which you and your members are open with information is critical in order to function effectively. You should find out what members want to know. Most are interested in things that impact them personally. Use the informal grapevine communication network as a way of keeping others informed. Wander around, have coffee with people, ask them questions, and so on. A proven communication strategy is to “over-communicate” rather than “under-communicate”, even if it means that you may have to retract something in the future. Just preface those types of communications with the statement, “this is what we know at this time, but it could change in the future -- so don’t hold me to it.” In other words, don’t wait to communicate something important until everything is finalized. Provide on-going updates as they occur and if you don’t want to communicate something at a point in time, let everyone know when they can expect to hear something.

• Listen to others. Listening involves hearing the speaker’s words, understanding the message and its importance to the speaker, and communicating that understanding to the speaker. It is key to developing and maintaining relationships, making decisions, and solving problems. When listening always follow this order: 1) hear, 2) understand, 3) interpret, and 4) respond; don’t jump from “hear” to “respond” without making sure you understand.

Communications with association members should not be left to chance – it should be carefully planned and managed. A useful technique for a Board to consider is the development a “staged communication plan” that provides a regular flow of information that addresses the things on their member’s minds along with the things that the BoD wants to communicate to them. This plan identifies what information will be communicated (new information, progress to date, anticipated problems, decisions made), how it will be communicated (personal contact, letter or email, group meeting), by whom will it be communicated (President, Secretary, all BoD), and when will it be communicated (date, frequency). Below is a sample plan.

As required or immediate

BoD decisions, meeting minutes, CC&R reminders, rumor control, emergency situations, breaking news, status report on key issues, notice of special assessments (anticipated or assessed), volunteer recognition, informational items (impending legislation, changes in the property tax assessment, sightings of unique wildlife, special events, new bike riding trails, fall color tours in the area, increases in water/sewer/trash collection, etc), highlight real people enjoying the facilities (special gatherings, normal day-to-day use, etc), feature articles of members, their families, hobbies, special achievements etc., changes in operations, such as major repair work on the pool, etc.

Monthly

Financial performance (budget vs. actuals), President letter (status report on key issues, breaking news, informational items)

Quarterly

Encourage & recognize volunteers (look for examples and reasons to thank someone), feature article on a committee activity or a particular aspect of condo or homeowner association life, any special accomplishments,

Annual

Year end letter (accomplishments, future outlook, holiday wishes), annual budget and maintenance fees, annual meeting notice and minutes, event calendar, contacts and procedures for requesting vendor services

The Dynamics of an Association Board Leadership-Team Behavior

How Board of Director (BoD) members interact says a lot about the state of a condo or homeowner’s association

Leadership is the ability to make things happen by encouraging and channeling the contributions of others, taking a stand on and addressing important issues, and acting as a catalyst for change and continuous improvement.

Yesterday’s leaders in for-profit businesses could demand performance. Today they are faced with a more educated and democratically oriented workforce. In a volunteer organization such as a condo or homeowner’s association BoD, the problems and opportunities can even more complex and challenging. As a result, today’s BoD must encourage and apply the contributions of all of its members, both individually and as a group.

Shown below are some ways that effective and ineffective BoD teams act.

Ineffective teams: People shield those in power from unpleasant facts, fearful of penalties and criticism for shining light on the rough realities

Effective teams: People bring forth grim facts—"Come here and look -- this is ugly"—to be discussed; leaders never criticize those who bring forth harsh realities

Ineffective teams: People assert strong opinions without providing data, evidence, or a solid argument

Effective teams: People bring data, evidence, logic, and solid arguments to the discussion

Ineffective teams: The BoD president has a very low questions-to-statements ratio, avoiding critical input and/or allowing sloppy reasoning and unsupported opinions

Effective teams: The BoD president employs a Socratic style, using a high questions-to-statements ratio, challenging people, and pushing for penetrating insights

Ineffective teams: Team members acquiesce to a decision but don't unify to make the decision successful—or worse, undermine it after the fact

Effective teams: Team members unify behind a decision once made, and then work to make the decision succeed, even if they vigorously disagreed with it

Ineffective teams: Team members seek as much credit as possible for themselves, yet do not enjoy the confidence and admiration of their peers

Effective teams: Each team member credits other people for success, yet enjoys the confidence and admiration of his or her peers

Ineffective teams: Team members argue to look smart or to further their own interests rather than argue to find the best answers to support the overall cause

Effective teams: Team members argue and debate, not to improve their personal position but to find the best answers to support the overall cause

Ineffective teams: The team conducts "autopsies with blame," seeking culprits rather than wisdom

Effective teams: The team conducts "autopsies without blame," mining wisdom from painful experiences

Ineffective teams: Team members often fail to deliver exceptional results and blame other people or outside factors for setbacks, mistakes, and failures

Effective teams: Each team member delivers exceptional results, yet in the event of a setback each accepts full responsibility and learns from mistakes

Drive Your Association’s Management Company to a Higher Level of Performance

Are you a condo or homeowner association Board that just gets what you get from your Management Company (MC) … not what you want? Is your MC directing their efforts in the wrong direction or their advancing their own agenda? Are they moving too quick or too slow? Are they meeting expectations from key stakeholders and managing ones that are unrealistic? Is your association becoming better each year or is it staying the same, or worse, decreasing in performance? If you are experiencing these problems, it is time to take charge and do something about it. This article discusses a methodology that allows you to take a proactive position with your MC and “drive for results”.

Professional property management is a service industry, and some service providers perform better than others. To evaluate how your property's management measures up, it's necessary to assess both how the company functions as a whole and also how your individual managing agent is performing. To do that, it's important first to understand what a really good professional management is supposed to do and then assess whether or not your MC is providing you that level of service. If it is not, then you have identified an improvement opportunity that should be discussed with your MC and addressed.

In most associations, BoD’s think about reasons they hire a MC in terms of what they expect them to do, not in relation to the underlying role they're expecting them to play. In reality, both are equally important. Shown below are typical examples of each type of job responsibilities that may be involved:

Basic Services. These are the services provided that is typically spelled out in an MC contract. They generally contain a further detailed description of what is to be done and the frequency.

• Architectural and environmental standards
• The maintenance of common properties
• The provision of common services
• Internal communications
• Financial management
• General administration
• The procurement of insurance
• The preparation of tax returns and other reports
• Assistance to the Board of Directors on policy matters.

Role of the MC. These example responsibilities are more subtle, but none the less important. They describe expected role and demeanor of the MC. They are often the things that make or break a good MC.

• They are up-to-date on all association issues; delinquencies, foreclosures (pending and otherwise), violations, contracts, etc.
• They report everything to the BoD at our regular board meeting and notify us immediately if something requires immediate attention or of a situation that might become difficult to handle if not dealt with delicately.
• They prepare accurate and timely management reports for our board meetings and alert us to anything that requires attention.
• They always acts in good faith and acts in best interests of the members of the association, while exercising due care and diligence.
• They minimize costs at every opportunity and come up with creative ways for our associations to combat rising costs.
• They treat everyone with dignity and respect in carrying out their duties.

These above services can be considered as the basic “blocking and tackling” that must be performed in the normal course of duty. But, how do “stretch” your MC to above and beyond the call of duty? This can be accomplished with the use of mutually agreed upon objectives that plan for results and not just do the work. Identifying 3-5 objectives each year can provide outstanding benefits and progress over the long term.

MC objectives

Every association will have its unique needs which will drive the establishment of objectives. Some may want to focus on landscaping and some may want to focus on a new association website. Shown below are some typical examples.

• Reduce the operating cost for the association by 10% over the next year.
• Create a new association website in the next six months not to exceed $5,000 in development cost.
• Convert the landscaping irrigation system from well water to lake water by the end of the year.
• Increase co-owner awareness of standards and guideline requirements to improve compliance with condo covenants.
• Contact a tax specialist who operates on a contingency basis and request a quote for appealing this year’s association property taxes.

Using the above three categories of performance, you now have foundation for a performance management and feedback system to be used with your MC. Periodic reviews of their performance should be done to assess how they’re doing and identify both their strengths and areas where they could use improvement. But, before any of this can be used, the Board must fully understand and accept that the MC works for them and not the other way around. The BoD has hiring/firing authority and can eliminate, replace, revise, or renegotiate a contract with a Management Company. If the MC is unwilling to work with the BoD on a method of assessing and improving their performance, then it is time for the Board to look for a MC that will!

There are many different techniques to evaluating management performance. Some do formal annual performance reviews. Some do it twice a year. Others use a 360 degree feedback system where in input of peers/subordinates are built into the reviews. Many of these techniques require considerable time and effort for both parties to provide the necessary documentation. Shown below is a simple process that I would recommend for use. It has received many favorable reviews in my business world experiences. It is by no means the perfect assessment tool or the only one. But, it is effect and it does get the job done in a minimum amount of time. Here how it works.

Recommended Performance Management & Feedback Process

• Using the following templates, create three sheets – one each for Basic Services, Role of the MC, and MC objectives. For each sheet you should list the key responsibilities in the leftmost column.

Basic Service	Do More Of	Do Same Of	Do Less Of

Role of MC	Do More Of	Do Same Of	Do Less Of

Objective	Timing	Results/Status

• Review the sheets with the MC and/or Managing Agent and gain agreement on the accuracy of their responsibilities and the assessment technique to be used.

• Conduct two performance reviews during the year. One at the mid-term time frame and one at the end of the year. The performance review should be more of a discussion rather that a boss rating the subordinate exercise. This is an opportunity to take time out of one’s busy schedule to examine how things are going. It is not necessary to write anything down for these two reviews. You simply use each responsibility as an opportunity to say to your MC, “thing are going great on this item” or “this is an area where we need some additional emphasis.” With this system, there is no actual rating scale. The format reduces the stress level for everyone concerned and allows for a meaningful discussion on things that are going well and not so well. It is also a time for each party to work together and help each other be successful. Of course, the mid-year and end-of-the-year reviews are not the only reviews that should occur. The most effective feedback is when it occurs immediately after the action occurs. So, if the MC does something well, pat them on the back. If they don’t do something well, let them know that as well.

A complete description of this Management Performance and Feedback system and example templates are in available for purchase in electronic form at www.condopresident.com under the downloads section.

Lead Courageously

Leading courageously is a very important trait of any successful association BoD. Today’s environment demands that BoD members make decisions that involve risk, and take their stand in the face of ambiguity or adversity. BoD members who lead courageously confront problems directly and take action based on what they believe is right. They win the respect and commitment of others by standing up for what they believe; making tough decisions despite ambiguity; by supporting others who make difficult decisions; and by following issues through to completion in spite of adversity. The following are valuable tips to help you lead courageously:

Clarify what is important to you. Identify your most, deeply held convictions. What is most important to me? What do I value the most? What is worth “fighting” or standing up for? On which of my values will I never compromise? Then use those convictions to guide your leadership.

Take a stand to resolve important issues. Pushing to resolve important issues requires clear communication, a strong emphasis on paying attention to and working with others, persistence, and the courage of your convictions. When asserting your position, be wary of using tentative language like, “I might be persuaded to …”, or “I’m not sure that it’s the best way …”. Instead, use firm, assertive language to state your position.

Demonstrate leadership courage. BoD leaders are often faced with situations in which taking the most appropriate course of action carries with it a backlash of complaints, problems, and negative reactions. It requires courage to take action in these situations. If others perceive you as lacking courage, try the following; Support others when they make tough choices; confront tough issues head on; Say “no” when necessary; When you are reluctant to make a change, ask yourself what is behind your resistance?

Drive hard on the right issues. Remember the old adage “choose your battles carefully” when you are deciding how best to spend your energies. You can’t possibly do everything, but it is especially critical for you to address the issues that get in the way of, or further the development of, your mission.

Confront problems promptly. When important individual or team issues come to your attention, it is critical to respond quickly. Addressing problems keeps them from growing and conveys the message to your team that you are willing to tackle tough issues.

Be decisive. Indecisiveness may result in the perception that you cannot make tough choices or take a stand on issues. Consider indecisive behaviors that apply to you and then try to remedy them on such things as; difficulty in determining which of several alternatives is best, immediately turning to others before you formulated your own options, procrastinating on deadlines, second-guessing yourself, using tentative language when describing your ideas, loosing touch with what is important to you, concern for taking a stand that will cause others to dislike you.