Wherever You Go, There You Are

building relationships

YOU GO

By Dean Jackson, CCAM-HR

No matter where you manage, we can all benefit by sharing experiences.

Regard less of our ever f luid professional development, one thing

For those of you old enough to recognize the movie reference, I think Buckaroo Banzai said it best: remains consistent: We “Wherever you go, there you are.” Isn’t that the nature of the community manager’s career path? The are all in this together. company you work for today may not be the company you work for tomorrow. Regardless of our ever fluid professional development, one thing remains consistent: We are all in this together.

I’d wager that few of us had community management on our list of what we wanted to do when we grew up (there wasn’t quite room next to Fire Fighter, Doctor, Police Officer and President of the United States). This path either found us or we “fell into it.” Still, there are few career choices better suited to mentor/mentee relationships.

How do we define a mentoring relationship? They can take many forms: the company owner or executive guiding a new manager; managers within a company sharing experiences; or friendships between managers in different companies or HOAs that have been developed through previous work experiences or industry events.

No matter how they start, these relationships can be critical to the sustainability of our industry – because, let’s face it, the first few years are rough! We need to foster a collaborative culture throughout our industry and help each other realize our full potential. This will help us create a more qualified, professional group of managers – a higher caliber – who are focused on elevating our profession. This team effort is crucial as our industry continues to grow.

Interoffice Mentors

When I started in this industry, I was fortunate to have a mentor in the company owner who hired me. I knew nothing of community management, Davis-Stirling or even the definition of an HOA. Kathy Young, CCAM – who admittedly thought Davis-Stirling was the name of a new homeowner when she started in 2009 – had a similar introduction to community association management. Continued on page 10

Garret Satfield, CCAM (right) with two of his mentors from The Management Trust, Bo Banks (left), Vice President of Community Management, and Mimi Menzies, CCAM, Senior Association Manager.

Wherever You Go, There You Are

Continued from page 9

“My first year in the industry was a tremendous learning experience,” says Young, a portfolio manager with ARK Management in San Diego. “For people who don’t work in this industry, from the outside looking in, it seems like it’s all about violation notices, fines and showing Kathy Young, CCAM (left) with her longtime mentor Vicki MacHale, CCAM. up at meetings – but those perceptions aren’t true; there is so much more involved!” While Young credits herself as being a very organized and caring person (two great traits for community managers to have!), she says she may not

You have to be there have stuck it out if it weren’t for her mentor. “With over 20 years of HOA management experience, she [Vicki MacHale, CCAM] never held back information, and I could lean on her for each other and not when anything came up that I wasn’t certain about,” says Young. “Without a doubt, if I didn’t have a great mentor and someone I could turn to during be afraid to share your the first few years, I probably would have left the industry.” Garret Satfield, CCAM had similar doubts when he left the comforts of experiences and what his retail job for community management in 2013. “Initially, my first year was very overwhelming,” he says. “It was important for me to recognize that you can’t learn everything in a short amount of time. This job is very cyclical; you know; it doesn't it takes at least a year to see everything the job entails.” Satfield, who is the Director of Management Services for Kocal help anyone if you Properties in Folsom, admits that at one point he thought he had made a huge mistake and considered trying to get his old job back. What saved him keep it to yourself. was the advice and collaboration he received from the 16 other managers in his office. “I knew that if I had a question on something, whether procedural or legal, they were my best resource,” he shares. “Their willingness to help allowed me to learn the industry inside and out.”

Young says her mentor gave her some career-saving advice that has helped her navigate many contentious interactions. “Because I’m really passionate and I care a lot, when people would scream at me or say nasty things, it would really get to me because I’m always genuinely trying to do my best,” she says. “Vicki [my mentor] told me to never take it personally because I never know what the person is going through. It taught me to have more compassion and understanding, and it’s helped me in many situations.”

The best piece of advice my mentor gave me? When you get a call, return it within 24 hours. I’ve learned that frequent and timely communication is essential.

Paying it Forward

Both Young and Satfield have come a long way in the industry with the help of their early mentors: Young, who started out as an assistant manager, now manages a portfolio of four communities, and Satfield has graduated from portfolio manager to now overseeing a staff of five managers who collectively manage 80 commercial accounts.

Young says she’s made it a point to let her colleagues in the office know they can come to her for anything. “You have to be there for each other and not be afraid to share your experiences and what you know; it doesn’t help anyone if you keep it to yourself,” Young says.

Satfield shares this commitment to helping others and says he is grateful to pay it forward after so many people helped him get to where he is today.

“I’ve really resolved to always be available to my team,” says Satfield. “I’ve had supervisors in the past who have claimed they were willing to help, but in reality they never really made themselves available to me. I’m committed to helping them in any way I can.”

W hen There’s No Manager Next Door

Not every manager is fortunate enough to work in a collaborative office environment where a fellow manager is only an office door away. Many managers are out on their own, either as an employee working directly for the HOA or as an onsite manager. It’s perhaps even more important for these managers – who are often managing other employees and standing in the direct line of fire when problems arise – to pursue and provide advice whenever possible.

As an onsite manager myself, I have often found that the colleagues I meet at industry functions, including the CACM Law Seminar & Expo and various course offerings, have become valuable sources of advice and information, as well as sounding boards and ultimately friends. While I may not have another manager in an office next door, I do have Attend CACM industry events as frequently as possible. Regional Forums get you face-to-face with managers and service providers in your area, and the Law Seminar & Expo events allow you time to

HOW CACM HELPS YOU CONNECT WITH COLLEAGUES

socialize and network with more than 1,000 colleagues.

Enroll in CACM educational courses. You can meet fellow students and learn from others’ experiences during classroom discussions.

Search for professional community managers near you in CACM’s Manager Member Directory. Log in at www.cacm.org to access the directory in the Manager Members section.

Join the online discussion. Access CACM’s Discussion Groups by logging in at www.cacm.org. Search topics, post a question or respond to colleagues’ posts.

Check CACM’s Resource Guide or online E-Marketplace (www.cacm. org/resources/e-marketplace.html) to find expert service providers who can support your needs.

Your peers are your greatest asset in the industry. Use them as a resource as much as possible.

Wherever You Go, There You Are

Continued from page 11

many in my email address book. It is gratifying to know that I can benefit from others’ experiences and can provide assistance when I am asked.

Patty Garcia, CCAM, President of MCM, LLC, says attending industry functions is very helpful in learning about topics she hasn’t personally encountered. “I especially like roundtables where managers talk about experiences they deal with and what they did to resolve a particularly sensitive or challenging issue,” she says.

According to Young, another way to seek guidance with management challenges is to seek out expert service providers working in our industry. “As a manager, you need to turn to industry experts – especially where it concerns construction, safety or legal matters,” she says. “You’re not only protecting yourself from liability, but also your company and your community.”

Satfield agrees that it’s crucial for managers to reach out to service providers and fellow managers to gain a more well-rounded perspective. “Your peers are your greatest asset in the industry. Use them as a resource as much as possible,” he says. “People are more than willing to help; all you need to do is ask.”

Whether you’re new to the industry or a seasoned veteran, working in a crowded office or alone on site, there are opportunities to both learn and teach. Once we accept that we are all in this together, even when we are working for different companies in entirely different locations, sharing our experiences and working as a team can bring all of us success.

“As a collective, we’ve seen it all,” says Satfield. “We just need to be willing to share what we’ve learned along the ride.”

Dean Jackson, CCAM is the General Manager at Pacific Park Plaza HOA in Emeryville.

We are in an industry based almost entirely on relationships. The professional relationships we develop and cultivate not only bring real value to those we touch, but give us an opportunity to showcase our professionalism and sincerity.

One of the cornerstones of any great relationship is communication – the sharing of ideas and experiences, offering solutions, etc. Listening is also an important component. With that in mind, you can’t help but see the changes the CACM Board and staff have made over the past few years. And, just as in any collaborative relationship, many of these changes were a direct result of listening to you, our members.

You may have noticed changes and additions to the CACM course curriculum, options to schedule local educational offerings, and modifications to the format of major events like the Law Seminar & Expo (e.g., more sessions, no exam); all of these changes were implemented based in large part on members’ suggestions. Do we hit the mark 100 percent of the time? Probably not, but we do listen, and as there becomes a common theme among our members, we look for ways to accommodate change. So please, keep your suggestions and opinions coming.

We are now entering the fall season, which means we are only a few months away from the election for CACM’s 2016 Board of Directors. As with each election, this year you will vote for the five nominees you believe will help CACM shape the future of the industry for the next several years. The Nominating Committee has already selected a qualified group of candidates based on nominations received in July and August. We encourage you to get to know the candidates now so that you can make an informed decision once the voting opens on November 30. You can read the candidate statements at www.cacm.org/about-us/bod-candidates.html.

Finally, September is the month the board conducts its annual threeday Strategic Visioning session. Now that our new President & CEO, Dave Zepponi, has been in place for nearly one year, this will be an excellent opportunity to review our governing policies to ensure they fully support our members, as well as Dave’s vision for CACM. I will give a full update in the next issue of Vision magazine.

On behalf of the CACM Board, Gordon Goetz, CCAM, Board Chair