How can you tell whether the on-site property manager at a condominium or  homeowners association community is doing a good job? And what is “a good job”? Whether a manager is well-liked and whether he or she manages well may not be  the same thing. How do you distinguish one from the other?  

 Such questions arise whether an association’s board of directors hires the on-site manager or contracts with a property  management firm that employs the on-site manager. The major difference is that  management firms assume responsibility for periodic performance reviews of  on-site managers, although some firms involve their clients in the review  process.  

 If your board hires the manager directly, resources exist to help ensure that  your performance-review process is fair and accurately measures his or her  performance.  

 Performance Review Consultants

 For a fee, your association can tap into the resources of a consulting firm that  will provide forms you can use or adapt, and manage the paperwork and  record-keeping. One such vendor is ADP TotalSource, a subsidiary of  payroll-processing firm ADP (Automatic Data Processing, Inc.) that provides  human-resources services and benefits programs.  

 “We’ve been with them since the mid-2000s. Everything we use either came from them  or was developed through them. We tweaked their program specifically for every  position we hire for,” says Tom Smith, senior managing director of Atlantic | Pacific Management, Inc., in Boca Raton and Bay Harbor Islands. With 550  employees, his firm manages more than 14,000 units in 75 condo associations,  plus another 8,000 rental units in 15 multifamily buildings.  

 To find other vendors, Google the search terms “performance appraisal consultants” and “performance review consultants”—but expect that many of the firms listed are targeting clients much larger than  your association. Your board’s attorney may be able to offer a referral, and networking at Community  Associations Institute (CAI) and Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM)  events also may help you find suitable consulting firms.  

 Helpful Publications

 IREM offers three performance-review publications free to members. Others pay a  nominal fee.  

 • An 11-page Job Performance Evaluation ($12.95) “enables the reviewer and individual to assess and document the degree to which  the individual has accomplished specified objectives from the previous review.  The evaluation includes descriptions of performance ratings and key areas in  which the individual is assessed.”  

 • Select List of Recommended Performance Measures ($5.95) is a form you can  customize to set an employee’s “performance goals and expectations.”  

 • Annual Performance Scorecard ($3.95), also customizable, is “an organized set of performance measures, grouped according to various aspects  of performance.”  

 Winging It

 If you’re going to write your own form, first stir your creative juices by collecting  some samples of forms created by others. Google the search term “performance review forms” to access forms from such diverse sources as Employee Performance Solutions,  Inc. magazine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Microsoft Office.  

 Then your entire board should conduct a workshop to discuss what  performance-review criteria belong on your association’s form.  

 Darlys Walker, chief executive officer of Condominium Concepts Management, Inc.,  used the workshop technique to develop the form her company uses today. Based  in Atlanta, CCM has 300 employees and manages 18,000 units in 203 condo and  homeowners associations in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee.  

 “We wanted to know how could we improve our productivity and show our value to  the associations,” she says. “When we’re falling short, they don’t always tell us until it’s too late.  

 “We asked the board of an association in Jacksonville, Florida to help us. Their  community is a 300-unit garden-style apartment complex that was converted to  condos. The board held a roundtable discussion and reported, ‘These are the things that are important to us.’ That board developed a quarterly management-review form which we now ask all of  our boards to complete, and we also ask that the boards do an annual survey of  all the owners.”  

 Maintenance Tops CCM List

 The board that developed the CCM form was most concerned with “the physical condition of the asset,” Walker says. “Is it being maintained? Is the staff being managed to get maximum efficiency out  of the community? Is the property clean? Is the pool functional, and did it  pass code inspection? Is the landscaping neat and manicured, and free of weeds?  Is the sprinkler system leaking?”  

 The board went into considerable detail with respect to physical condition  issues. “They wanted to break it down minutely,” Walker says. “Even in HOAs, if the common elements are in disrepair—that will affect the home’s resale value.”  

 Weekly, CCM’s managers are supposed to walk their entire property and report any problems to  the board. The performance-review form covers whether the manager provided such  reports, and whether he or she has addressed any deficiencies such as loose  gutters on buildings, leaky sprinkler heads, light bulbs out in the common  elements, and broken curbs.  

 Other Items

 Monetary matters comprised the second most important set of issues, detailing  whether the manager fulfilled his or her fiduciary responsibility to keep  expenses in line and collect fees. Walker says specific questions include: “Have we reduced expenses? Are your categories exceeding, under, or at budget? Is  your delinquency less than one percent of total income? Is there an aggressive  collections policy, and is it being followed? Are you always looking to  fine-tune operations? Are you bidding out services to ensure that you’re getting the best prices?”  

 Walker’s firm prepares an action-item list with each board, prioritizing the various  tasks and assigning completion dates to them within 30, 60, 90, 180, and 360  days. “We want to review those tasks and make sure they are completed within the time  frame the board has given us,” Walker says.  

 The CCM list also covers responsiveness and follow-through. All emails and phone  calls are supposed to be returned by the end of the business day if received by  4 p.m., or the next day if received later. “Board members have 24/7 access to management and staff for emergencies or  whatever,” Walker says. “They need to answer their phone and emails. If a board member is calling, even  on the weekend, they need to respond.”  

 Response Time is Critical

 Customer-service response is the most critical item on the performance-review  checklist at Tobin Properties, Inc., in Hollywood, says Natasha Falconi, the  firm’s president. Tobin has 25 employees and manages both condos and homeowners  associations in South Florida.  

 “Many people make the mistake of not responding when they don’t have an answer,” Falconi says. “These are your customers. Response time is critical, and so is turnaround time  on projects.”  

 Unlike CCM, Tobin puts less emphasis on the budget results than on the budgeting  process. “We measure the thoroughness and detail of how a manager puts the budget  together, with an explanation for every line item. Then if the budget goes over  and doesn’t match the target, the manager might not have control over it,” Falconi says.  

 The form Tobin is using originated with a consultant some years ago. Now the  consultant is long gone and Tobin periodically tweaks the form in-house. “Every couple of years we enhance it a bit to match what’s going on,” Falconi says. “Right now a lot of capital-improvement jobs are underway, so the current form  reflects the need for follow-up in that area.”  

 Tobin also asks its managers annually to review themselves, detailing “where their successes have been, their top accomplishments for the year, where  they think they could have done better, and what support they need,” Falconi says.  

 Although the formal review is important, Falconi stresses the importance of top  management communicating throughout the year with each on-site manager, to  understand what he or she is working on at all times. “Our managers have plenty of autonomy,” she says. “They work independently but with a support system behind them. They know when to  ask for assistance.”  

 Residents Don’t Participate

 Unlike CCM, Tobin and Atlantic & Pacific don’t allow residents to participate directly in reviewing their manager. “They’re our employees,” Smith emphasizes. “We’re always looking for feedback, and we’ll take it into account, but not through the formal performance-review process.”  

 If a manager receives a poor review, the board may or may not know. In either  case, Smith says, “the board should handle it as business as usual. They shouldn’t treat the manager any differently. It’s not really their job. It’s us as third-party management to take care of the problem. If it’s extremely bad, most of the time we already know about it and have done  something about it.”  

 Smith says the “something” typically involves a plan for improvement, and positive feedback when the  manager follows it. “Managers want to be recognized for what they’ve done,” he says. “It gives them a sense of pride.”  

 For managers who perform above the norm, boards may recommend giving a bonus. “Sometimes we’ll recommend bonuses to the client—either an annual bonus, or a bonus for a special project such as a major roof  replacement or hallway refurbishing, something out of the normal scope where  the manager put in extra hours and effort to help oversee it,” Smith says.  

 “Since they’re our employees, it’s up to the management company. Ultimately a bonus is paid by the client. It  comes through our payroll system but is charged back to the client.”    

 George Leposky is a freelance writer and is a frequent contributor to The South  Florida Cooperator.