Maintaining the Realm

By Martin Stone, AMS, PCAM HSR Property Services, LLC

W

e have all been there. Whether as the King (president), the Royal

Council (board members), or the Hand of the King (manager), we have all had to bear witness, at least once, as the People of the Realm (owners) attempted to rise up against their King and claim the throne.

Perhaps his/her Grace had recently decreed a raise in taxes in order to combat the Kingdom’s sudden poverty resulting from the Long Winter. Perhaps the People simply grew restless and intolerant of their cries and demands being ignored for too long. Or perhaps you, as the King’s Hand, failed to properly identify and to advise his/her grace of the rising coup, and as a result, the walls could not be armed, the canons could not be manned, and the portcullis could not be lowered in time to fend off the usurper and their army.

And now it’s too late to ask thyself, what is the meaning of this coup? Hasn’t your King been kind to you, oh good people of The Glen or noblemen of Shenandoah? Has he/ she not maintained thy lawns? Has he/she not repaired thy roof? Has he/she not sealed thy driveways?

Now, as the rebellion armies march down upon you, 8 | COMMON INTEREST®

proxies in hand, the only question left to ask

is…how long before the head of the King’s Hand winds up on a spike next to that of his/her Grace? The answer: not long.

To avoid such disaster, it is essential for a manager to understand the dynamic between board members and owners, and what communication there is (or is not) so that you can repair that which is broken and replace that which is missing.

Ask yourself, of each of your associations, what is the current dynamic between the board and its owners like? Is it the same three happy people coming to board meetings, or is it the same horde of complainers that keep you there until 10 o’clock at night? If the former, then ask yourself what kind of comments are the owners who don’t go to meetings making when they call management?

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