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One thing that seems to be universally common in our understanding of this musical genre is that a large ensemble of players


will be led by a conductor. The conductor directs the overall performance of the orchestra, unifying the pla yers, coaxing nuances of harmonies from musicians, and painting symphonic landscapes with musical movement and tempo. That’s an awful lot of pressure on one individual with a baton, who didn’t write the music and doesn’t play an instrument!


In many ways, the management of a high-rise condominium association isn’t all that different from being the conductor of an orchestra. The conductor wishes to produce from myriad moving parts the beautiful music most pleasing to the listener, while the high-rise manager wishes to produce a peaceful and harmonious home environment amid the cacophony of city noise and mechanical realities. As the conductor works with the string section, the brass, woodwinds and percussion, the high-rise manager works with security personnel and doorstaff, the maintenance staff, owners and residents. The community’s governing board of directors is akin to the musical composer and the manager as conductor must execute the composition so the board hears the music the way it was intended. There are multiple moving parts and entities that need to be blended in both worlds for symphonic agreement.


The doorstaff members are like the orchestra’s brass section; bright, shiny and familiar. When you hear trumpets, trombones and tubas, you can easily recognize the sound. In the high-rise condo world, the women and men stationed at the front desk of the building are the beloved faces of home. Doorstaff members are there to wish you a good day when you leave home, and to welcome you back when you return home. The doorstaff provides service and security: hailing taxis, screening visitors, assisting with packages, directing traffic, opening and locking doors all day long, monitoring cameras, and much more. For better or worse, the residents of a building may typically rely on the doorstaff for the “real” news of the community. Residents will ask the people on duty at the front desk questions like: What’s going on? Why was the ambulance here? Who is that? What’s happening with the empty unit?


People always ask questions of the doorstaff because the person at the front desk is trusted and makes us feel safe. The exceptional doorstaff personnel will walk a fine line between providing friendly, courteous service and acceptable answers to sometimes inappropriate questions, while avoiding dissemination of personal information and downright malicious gossip. The folks on duty at the front desk will know more about each and every resident than people may realize, simply by observing daily life at the property. The manager has to refine and shape the performance of the doorstaff with great attention to detail and movement. The brass section stands out in any musical piece, and the doorstaff is usually responsible for creating the first impression of a building based on interaction with owners, residents, guests and visitors. The doorstaff or security personnel at the front desk really are the metaphorical face of a community, and should be acknowledged, trained and valued by the manager as assets in that role.


The owners and residents of the community are like the orchestra’s string section and woodwinds combined; a large variety of voices, all pitched ever so slightly differently. Like flutes, oboes and clarinets, violins, cellos and bases, the people residing in a community each have their own unique sound. People may harmonize beautifully, or strike notes of horrible discord. Addressing concerns of owners and residents usually presents the greatest challenge for the high-rise conductor, as each individual has a range of expectations that seemingly needs to be met. The community’s board of directors surely intends that all residents are happy in their homes.


In the effort to achieve harmony among these many instruments and voices, the most important skill for both the conductor and manager is to actively listen. Residents will have a wide range of concerns: security, maintenance, packages, mail, deliveries, remodeling, noisy neighbors, nosy neighbors, smoky neighbors, pets, elevators, fitness equipment, pool water quality, water leaks, water temperature, water leaks again, and more. While the manager likely can’t solve every problem that may arise, the manager can acknowledge the concerns of residents, validate feelings when appropriate, consider viable courses of action and work toward meaningful resolution. The reality of high-rise living is that sooner or later, something your neighbors do will impact you one way or another, and something that exists on the property will impact your home in an unexpected and perhaps unwelcome way. The conductor may stop the music with a quick wave of the baton,


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