Some associations struggle with a poor management relationship, resulting in a frustrated board and/or a terminated manager. However, these struggles can sometimes result from the board’s actions and may improve with changes to board practices.
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Truly, some managers are not cut out for the job.
The need for excellent HOA managers to serve the growing number of HOAs exceeds the available supply. Some managers can be poorly qualified, overloaded with too many associations, disorganized, poor at customer relations, or even unethical. Associations should expect qualified, ethical, and quality services from their professional manager.
However, some managers are not allowed to succeed in their roles, as boards set them up for failure. Before your association gives up on its manager, ask if any of the following factors are present.
You don’t, so I will
Directors will often perform managerial tasks, explaining that “somebody has to do it.” This insulates poor managers from accountability for their performance and discourages good managers by interfering with their efforts to serve the HOA well.
‘What we have here is a failure to communicate’
Many boards never establish expectations regarding communication flow, the designated points of contact, or what type of response time is reasonable. Set mutually agreed expectations and make sure both management and board honor that agreement. Remember, not everything needs to be handled immediately. Your manager probably receives over a hundred emails a day from homeowners, so allow them to triage the critical from the lesser.
The handcuffed manager
If a board does not trust the manager, the association may need a different manager. However, if the manager is trusted, then they should be given a reasonable amount of spending authority, so long as they regularly report on such spending. Requiring that the board approve in advance every sprinkler head or window replacement slows the manager’s ability to provide good homeowner service and also involves the board in minutiae.
Who’s the boss?
Managers work for the corporation, which acts through its board, but some HOA presidents do not understand their role as president of non-profit is less powerful than the for-profit president. Presidents who personally order the manager around short-circuit the association’s governance and force the manager to choose between proper governance and good client relations.
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Managers should be seen and not heard
Many excellent managers become discouraged when boards fail to value their expertise and treat them as clerks rather than trusted professionals. Association boards should insist that their managers be experienced and knowledgeable and should rely upon that experience and knowledge.
Civility deficiency
If managers are treated rudely, why is it fair to expect a great attitude in return? It is not – the Golden Rule applies to managers also.
Trading managers in for a new model
When new boards begin service, particularly after contentious elections, it often replaces the manager, wanting their “own.” This is often simply a knee-jerk and unfair assumption regarding the manager, who must be loyal to the association, not who runs it at any point in time.
If a manager has received every opportunity to succeed and still fails, consider asking their employer to assign the HOA another manager before assuming the company should be terminated. There may be additional options for the board to consider.
Kelly G. Richardson, Esq. is a Fellow of the College of Community Association Lawyers and Partner of Richardson Ober LLP, a California law firm known for community association advice. Submit questions to [email protected].
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