July 2022
Condominium management isn’t an easy job. It remains deeply rooted in the interpersonal, and has changed because of technology.
Work Hours
Condominium management is no longer a job limited to regular working hours. Smartphones and internet make anyone accessible any time and any place. Management can be accessible, and have access to work, at all hours of the day. This has changed expectations of when management is to be available and when work can be done. It is not uncommon for the work day to extend into evening and weekend hours.
Communication
E-mail and the internet have changed the way and frequency with which people communicate. Rather than a limited number of calls daily, with opportunities for immediate resolution, condominium managers can deal with hundreds of communications. Any resident can fire off a concern while at home relaxing, at work or on vacation. All expect a quick response. Time spent responding to e-mail takes an inordinate amount of time, leaving less time to get work done.
Direct contact has been reduced making it harder and more time consuming to resolve issues.
Smartphones
E-mail and texting on a phone carried with you at all times can be a distraction during the work day. Receiving these communications at all hours of the day, with many seeking an immediate response, can be intrusive. Employees responding to messages and calls unrelated to work means less time doing what they are paid to do.
Technological Benefits
Internet and online communication allow things to get done more quickly despite a greater number of people contacting you. It is less stressful than directly confronting angry or upset individuals. When bad news needs to be delivered, e-mail is easier.
Electronic notification to residents is more efficient and effective than printing and distributing notices.
Managers can do more work at home or at a central office instead of on-site where unnecessary distractions may be greater. With proper discipline and technology, management can work more efficiently and produce better results.
Technology has changed condominium management. If this is for better or worse depends on personal work habits and willingness to adopt effective technological tools that facilitate condominium management.
Despite the way technology has changed, condominium management is and will remain a people business. Internet, e-mail, text, apps and other innovations are simply tools that need to be managed if they are to be effective.
