Peggy Waskom-The Time is Now

I stumbled across this article a few days ago regarding multifamily education and how much effort property management companies have been devoting to it for some time now.  This article was posted in Multifamily Executive back in 2005.  Below is a brief quote from the article:

“Two years ago, George Lane, chairman of Lane Co. in Atlanta, taught a property management class at the University of Georgia. About 60 students showed up. This year, more than 200 students attended Lane's guest lecture. Taking a cue from this heightened interest, multifamily industry leaders and associations now are working with colleges and universities across the country to help establish and fund four-year degree programs in residential property management.” 

Please read the rest of the article to see the history that has taken place to push and promote college education for the multifamily industry.  So what does this mean for the present and the future of the multifamily industry?  The Peggy Waskom Super Bowl is an event like no other.  This is your opportunity to reach out and support something that will benefit our industry now and for the future.  This is an event that will show to our children how important this industry is to us and how much we feel it means to them.  Have you reached out to the committee to see where you could contribute or participate?  Please follow through and do not delay.  Check out our links below for further information.  There are many already who have reached out and will be participating.  This event will provide a great networking opportunity for owner/managers and vendors.  Thanks to everyone who has already moved forward and are ready for February 9^th 2010.   

The Peggy Waskom Facebook Group

Email us anytime at bowl4peggy@yahoo.com

Written by Jonathan Saar-- The Training Factor

Where the Blogs Have No Name

Content Content Content.  What does it take to keep your blog fresh and up to date?  The worst thing in the world is to plagiarize.  The search spiders do not like this and if you are working on your SEO then this is not the way to go.  How hard is it to blog for your multifamily community?  That is the million dollar question.  I guess it all depends on your perspective.  Does your community have a story within itself?  When you are walking through your community, what is running through your mind besides the fundamentals of making the day successful from a curb appeal, Fair Housing, leasing perspective?  What about the people?

Every resident has a story.  Do you know what it is?  It will be quite challenging for you to have a social community blog when you have no connection with the people that make your community alive....  with the people who give your community a name.

So now you are approaching 2010 and you want to add a community blog and a Facebook page.  You are wondering what the best approach would be, who is going to do it and what kind of content will reach your audience.  Your first question should be: How do my residents view me and the staff or our community?  Are you viewed only as the rent collectors and the curb appeal enforcers.  If you want your outreach efforts to have a name, then you need to reach out to the residents with the names.  Who is your Betty the baker, Joe the DJ, Eileen the retail manager, and Bob the county inspector?

If you want your blog and other outreach programs to have a name, reach out to the people who already have one.  The rest will take on a life of its own.

Written by Jonathan Saar --The Training Factor

What Will Your Business be Like in 2010?

What will your business be like in 2010? Will you downsize, stabilize, or 
grow? 

Here are a few tough love insights of successful and unsuccessful 
companies.  
 
What happened? We thought things were supposed to be much better now... at least that is what we were promised right?  If we print and spend billions of dollars things will certainly get better right? Hmmm... Doesn't seem to be having the kind of impact we had hoped for does it? 

So how can we survive the current economy while planning for the future? My industry involvement and association with numerous companies has shown me many great achievements by some and overwhelming struggles by others.

We see companies who are growing, expanding and making a profit! Yes! Even in this economy. And, unfortunately I see companies who are losing money and having massive layoffs due to lost fee management and foreclosed properties. So, I have asked myself why? What is the difference? Why are some companies excelling in this economy and others are failing? In this article, I thought I would spend a bit of time sharing my observations. Hopefully it might give some insight or ideas that will help your company survive and 
thrive in 2010.

1.       Leadership: This is what I see as the most crucial element. Goals! Do you know where you are going? What are you trying to achieve?  And most importantly, do your team members understand and buy into your company’s goals? 

2.       Whatever it takes: This seems like a simple concept but I don’t think everyone gets it! In the companies who are struggling a bit, it seems as though they are actors in the Movie “Ground Hog Day”. Do you remember that movie? They wake up and do the same thing over and over again producing the same results. I see that a lot in business. If something isn't working you have to change what you are doing to achieve a different outcome. And it might take more than one change; it could take 10 +. The key is to continue tweaking your processes such as, marketing, operations, people, training, etc., until you achieve your goals and get the results you need.

3.       Decision Making: Companies who are excelling are not afraid to make an out-of-the-box decision. They don't always choose the safe road. For example:  vendors and product selection.  High achievers may not always choose the largest and most well known vendors. You all know these types of vendors; the larger and oftentimes older ones who have been around forever and can’t embrace new ideas because they are too afraid to think outside the box. Well, we are living in a new and different day. Most of us, if any, have never experienced the economic challenges we are now faced with in our lifetime. To get through these times we must be willing to face new challenges with new strategies. When it comes to growth and survival, bigger is not necessarily 
better. Bigger oftentimes translates to more bureaucracy where it takes an act of congress to make a decision and as we've seen that's not always in our best interest.

High achievers are willing to embrace new concepts, vendors, technologies and marketing strategies in order to set themselves apart from the herd and walk the path less traveled. Consumers respond positively to companies with good attitudes who respond with prompt and superior customer support. 

I have witnessed thousands of man hours being spent in committee after committee to make a simple decision that should have only taken a 15 minute conversation and an hour or so of due diligence. I have to ask myself… are these people participating in “busy work” just to justify their existence? This may sound harsh but I believe it is something that an effective Leader should investigate.

4.       Hire Hard – Fire Easy… Ok, now you really think I am being harsh don’t you? What I am saying is:  search hard for the right person for the job at hand. A warm body, shiny car or fancy wardrobe just won’t do anymore. 
You have to have someone with drive, motivation, ambition and determination with business sense, sales abilities and customer service skills to make a business successful. Not to mention, they have to care! Our company performs secret shops for the multifamily industry and all too often as we review and score the leasing “professional” we just shake our heads in amazement and mumble to ourselves: “They really didn’t care if they closed the deal or not!”  Sometimes being successful requires making tough decisions. If you find that you made a hiring mistake. Take care of it quickly so a dead weight doesn't take your ship down.

5.       Training and Investing in Employees – We don’t believe you can train too much. Not training not only creates a liability for you but it is a huge demoralizer for your entire company. Companies whose employees know 
their company is willing to invest in them and provide “quality training” perform much better. Most employees want to do well at their job and cringe at the thought of being “slapped on the wrist” by their supervisor for not 
following some protocol they weren't even aware of. Therefore, successful companies train, train and train some more. 

So there you have it. 5 of my successful company concepts. I could go on for pages and pages but just to summarize:  success in 2010 will take strategic leadership, quick and insightful out-of-the-box decision making skills and well trained employees who actually care about the success of the company.

Written by Mechelle Flowers-  The Training Factor

Don't Drink and Facebook

Two conversations I had yesterday compelled me to write this post today.  One I had on Facebook itself with an acquaintance of mine who very eloquently pointed out the complete shallowness of some guys who pretend to be sweet and sensitive by posting status updates that reflect some movie or emotion that are supposed to be endearing to the female crowd but obviously are completely shallow and are no different than the pickup line at a bar, “Can I buy you a beer?”. 

The second conversation was involving shameless posts where the user supposedly feels empowered by posting something that he or she would never be able to say to someone’s face.  In other words, one’s inhibitions are let down as a result of not having a physical face in front of them.  However you want to word it, to me it’s Drinking and Facebook.  Lisa Trosien posted a good article from the Los Angeles Times on twitter last night that I wanted to share that elaborates a little further.  Here are key points to remember before you decide to post something.

Potential and existing employers are monitoring social media posts and using them for or against their employees.  Some employers are asking for login addresses for Social Media sites you may be using.  We can only expect this trend to continue when it is very easy just to Google your name and see what comes up in the search engines. 

We are professionals 24/7.  Keep me in mind celebrity goof ups that were highly publicized.  One minute you look at them with respect and dignity and the next it’s all gone as a result of a misplaced word, photo or action.  It is no different with us.  Many people would agree that at the top of our list of the most important things in life would be our career and our reputation.  Why wouldn’t you want to be extra careful with what you post since these important items are at stake?

Don’t burn any bridges.  Stop thinking of the now and think of the future.  Stop and think about what you post.  It takes a lifetime in some ways to build up a good professional reputation and can take mere seconds to see all of that disappear.  One of the purposes of Social Media is to build relationships, not tear them down.  You never know who or when you will be interacting with any given individual in the future.   

The multifamily industry and many others are working feverishly to understand and properly implement Social Media tools such as Facebook.  Just remember how embarrassing it was in school when you were caught passing notes during class time and the teacher caught you and read it out in front of the whole class.  It’s no different with what you post on Social Media sites, except the consequences can be much greater.  Don’t Drink and Facebook.  I hope you get the analogy.  Letting your inhibitions and guard down can lead to a serious blow to your reputation and career. 

I really think this is a subject that merits serious concern.  What have you been doing professionally to monitor and check yourself?  Do you feel it’s important to know what social sites your employees are on?  Do you have any actual examples where you have seen inappropriate posts and how have you dealt with it? 

Written by Jonathan Saar- The Training Factor

Keep Beating Your Drum!

What are the first images that come to your mind with this opening title?  Hold that thought.  The drum is one of the most ancient of instruments and still has the ability to make us tap our feet, tap our desk, make us run faster, work out harder, and pretend to dance better.  The drum is a fundamental instrument at pep rallies.  Can you imagine a pep rally with all flutes?  I think you get the image.  The drum has the ability to inspire, motivate and pursue whatever goal you aspire to achieve.

At Brainstorming last week, the keynote address was presented by top executives in the multifamily industry.  The CEO of Camden Property Trust,  Richard Campo, used the expression “keep beating your drum”.  His message was to inspire all of us to pursue the ideas we feel will work, investigate options that will benefit our company and keep presenting them to our superiors.  He encouraged vendors to provide hard data and infomercials in order to communicate effectively with decision makers. 

So what does this all mean?  Does it mean our rhythm and beat should be the same as our multifamily company’s beat?  Or do we beat our drum with a different tune?  Are we ready to stand out as different and present a different tempo because our belief is that we have something better to offer?  Are we ready to march to the beat of our own drum?  How does your company inspire you to find the new tune?

Written by Jonathan Saar - The Training Factor

Do you Know How to Shake Someone’s Hand?

When we were young our folks taught us at a wee age what was customary when greeting someone. How many more times did they have to remind us on what was proper?  This became an automatic rule of cultural engagement.  Within a short period of time you realized what was socially acceptable and what was not.

You were taught to shake someone’s hand, say an appropriate greeting depending on their age, and taught proper body language that showed respect and that you truly were interested and engaged by the person you just met.

These basic social concepts of human interaction were engrained in us and have continued to serve us well through school and into the work force.  Now Social Media enters the picture.  Did the definition of “Social” change with this new revolution we are going through?  If you think so then you are reading the wrong post. 

There has been so much debate on how to use Social Media, what it is for, and where to start.  How about just saying “Hello”?  I have a few people on Twitter who I follow that always start their day by saying something like “Good morning Tweeps”.  They never end there.  Throughout the day we tell each other what is going on in our day.  As time has gone by, I have started doing business with some but the vast majority I have not.  Does this mean that “Social Media” does not work?  I guess the better question is  what do I want it to work for? 

Every day is another opportunity to network, engage, and learn from others.  I thank my parents for teaching me how to shake someone’s hand.  That simple life lesson has helped me to successfully navigate the new revolution we are in now.  Don’t over think it folks.  Start by saying Hello.

Written by Jonathan Saar- The Training Factor

Brainstorming Session #mfbsconf –Why I am Filled with Jubilation

Next week in Houston Texas, Tami Siewruk (@multifamilypro) will be hosting Brainstorming Sessions: Stellar Solutions.  Within the multifamily industry there has been so much positive chatter about this event, hence the reason why I decided to write this today.

This year has been an amazing learning curve for me as I made a huge career transfer from 12 years as a general manager of floral import company to the multifamily industry to this.  The general business concerns are much the same, marketing, customer service, ROI, NOI etc.  However the direct application was far different.  As my boss Mechelle Flowers put it, I will have to learn the lingo.  How true that was!  Learning expressions such as curb appeal, ILS, CPM, Fair Housing, Leasing Professional and many others was an intriguing educational challenge. (Side note I was an assistant property manager for a shopping mall at age 16 J )

If I was to even try and list all of the professionals who have helped me this year, this blog would never end.  What I can broadcast to you is this simple statement: You know who you are, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart!  Thank you for recognizing where I needed help and answering my questions and being there for me. 

So as I prepare for this event next week the key word I thought of this morning was Jubilation!  I am very much looking forward to personally meeting everyone and getting that face to face connection.  I am looking forward to listening to the various sessions that will provide insight and ideas on many of the key topics that the multifamily industry wrestles with.  Most of all I am looking forward to my continued growth as a professional in the multifamily industry as a result of next week’s event.

One of my learning curves in blogging is writing in a way that inspires people to comment.  I know I have a ways to go!  What I would like to hear from my readers is what they are looking forward to at next week’s conference.  I can’t wait to meet everyone!  See you soon.

Written by Jonathan Saar - The Training Factor

Fair Housing: Landmark Judgment Passed for Multifamily Company

A landmark decision was handed out by the Justice Department yesterday.  This is something that everyone in the multifamily industry needs to pay attention to.  Here is the link to the article and also the full article from the Justice Department.

http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/capital/2009/11/03/justice-department-hits-la-apartment-owner-with-record-fine/

http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2009/November/09-crt-1187.html

A couple of key excerpts are as follows: “Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced that a Los Angeles apartment-building owner had agreed to pay $2.7 million to settle allegations that he discriminated against blacks, Hispanics, and families with children. It’s the largest penalty ever obtained by the department in a housing-discrimination case involving apartments.

“The magnitude of this settlement should send a message to all landlords that we will vigorously pursue violations of the Fair Housing Act,” said Thomas Perez, assistant attorney general for the department’s civil rights division.”

In addition, an independent contractor will test Sterling’s compliance with fair-housing laws at his Los Angeles properties for three years and provide training to his apartment managers and leasing agents on fair-housing rules.”

This judgment should strike a chord with all of us the importance of making sure our companies are fully educated in the Fair Housing Act.  I found it quite sad after reading this article yesterday and then reflecting on a recent conference I attended.  Here is why.  One of my usual questions to everyone who came by our booth was, “What does your company do for training?”  It was unfortunate to hear from some, “Training! We don’t need training.” 

I wonder how this landlord feels about multifamily training now.  The Fair Housing Act is in place for a reason.  In order to work without fear of a violation, it’s important to be educated properly and have clear documentation on how each staff member is in compliance. 

This judgment could be the first of many to come.  Let’s be proactive and not reactive.  Being reactive could cost us dear.

Written by Jonathan Saar - The Training Factor

What goes around, Comes around

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post on how corporate can really do a number on those who are just trying to be creative and innovative.  This is kind of a follow up and a brief reminder that corporate decisions should really come as no surprise.  In other words, remember to never get too comfortable.  What may appear as peachy keen and hunky dory in one moment, can change in an instant after they review their quarterly P&L.  Then all of a sudden, its the "Oh No", and "We spent that much", and "Now things got to change" speeches.  Their typical solution is not using the resources they have in their people, but letting those resources pack their bags and head out the door.

This is a reminder that our multifamily career path should never be fixated on a single course.  If you are fortunate enough to have had only one job your entire life, then I tip my hat to you.  For most of us that does not happen.  The only thing you need to be focused on is to not treat individuals the way you were treated by your corporate heads.  Those who squashed your creativity look exactly like our CEO in the video below.  In your comments below you can call him what you want.  Thanks for stopping by and remember what comes around is not vengeance but your opportunity to rise, shine, and fulfill your goals no matter what.

Written by Jonathan Saar--The Training Factor

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure Series: Sexual Harassment Math Quiz

Let’s take a quick crack at some math.  We are going to take a look at a figurative multifamily situation involving a community with 20 employees.  The property management company does not believe that training is necessary in order to help prevent sexual harassment claims.

As a result of that line of thinking someone makes what they think is an innocent statement towards another employee and then BOOM!!!!!!! A claim is filed with the property manager.  Are your pencils sharpened?  Good!  Let’s see how much this is going to cost our figurative multifamily company.

The first step they have to take is to hire a professional to investigate the situation.  Usually this is an entire business week that is charged back to the property management company. The typical cost is 40 hours X $100.00 per hour.  That’s $4000.00. After that the investigative company mandates that the entire staff take a day of offsite sexual harassment prevention training.  Pencil’s ready?  Let’s say the average pay per hour is $15.00 per hour.  So we need to calculate $15.00 X 8 hours X 20 employees.  Total cost to the company for that training day.  $2400.00

Now you need to factor in travel expenses, meals, textbook and materials, and of course the person you are paying to train your 20 team members.  That will add approximately another $1500.00.  The grand total for this sexual harassment claim----$7900.00.  Let’s not even go down the road if the alleged victim decides to take their claim to court and wins.

Now let’s theorize how much it would cost this company if they had instituted a preventive training program that had a sexual harassment prevention course that could be tracked and analyzed where the team members needed help on this subject.  For an LMS with a Sexual Harassment prevention course, it would cost a company as little as $35.00 per year per employee to take the course twice.  That’s approximately $700.00 a year to train the whole company. 

I’ll let you do the math.

Written by Jonathan Saar. Average statistics provided by The Training Factor

Corporate Cut the Tabs! -My Take on the Interview with Captain Sullenberger

If any of you missed out on The Daily Show with John Stewart the other day, the interview with Captain Chesley Sullenberger is below.  First of all, our hats go off to this amazing person who showed such poise and saved so many lives.  There were two particular points from his interview that struck home with me.  Much thanks to my wife Renee, who totally rocks, for pointing them out to me.

For my multifamily colleagues and really for all of us in business, here they are. 

1.       Corporations need to invest in training and

2.       Put the Tabs Back!!!!!!!

The interview is only about 7 minutes long, so please watch and then see my comments below.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Chesley Sullenberger
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Ron Paul Interview

How many of you thought how completely lame and ridiculous it was for an airline to mess with an emergency handbook!!  As the Captain stated, “I think it would make the system better if we put the tabs back.”  Corporate somehow came to a conclusion that to cut costs, it would be a good idea to take the tabs out!!

This is just an amazing example of where some corporate officials have their heads.  Unfortunately this line of thinking continues across the corporate world and seems to have leaked into the multifamily industry.  It continues to sadden me to hear of major layoffs as a result of the perception that this is the only way to cut costs.   These employees are the ones who have been trying to get their voices heard and who have consistently tried to present to their corporate heads cost saving solutions in order to help their company succeed.  But they feel like my illustration up at the top-gagged and tied up.  And the corporate solution- “Let’s cut back on the tabs.”

This post may be of little consolation to those who are stunned and hurt over what has happened to you.  You are thinking to yourself—“After all the years I have devoted myself to my job and I just got treated like a Tab!!!”  I was a victim of that once as well and I am sorry for what you are going through.

Thank goodness for the Captain’s training.  It saved lives that day.  In the multifamily industry, you cannot go without a training program.  When it counts the most, the training you provide for your staff may save you from a Fair Housing or Sexual Harassment disaster.  Do you keep wondering why your marketing dollars are not bringing the return you hoped for?  The training you provide for your leasing, maintenance and management team will change that.

This message may never reach the people who really need to hear it, but you are reading this now and remember to take this with you as you progress in your multifamily professional career.

P.S. please take a moment and comment.  Thank you.

Written by Jonathan Saar who was inspired by his wonderful wife for this post.

The Training Factor

Is Social Media Like Baking a Cake?

I remember making my first Devil’s Food Chocolate Cake . I was around 12 years old and my wonderful mother was trying to teach me to bake. This was no cake in a box method, it was all from scratch. She outlined the necessary steps in order to be successful. Read the recipe carefully. Make sure I have all my ingredients. Get out all my measuring instruments. Then begin the step by step process as outlined in the recipe. Thankfully I had my mother there while I painstakingly went through the steps. There was very little room for error, so I needed to be precise. She gave me some tips as I went along and Voila! I had my first cake.


I was thinking about that this morning and applied it to the continuing debate on how to employ Social Media. I imagined myself making that cake and not using the right ingredients, not measuring properly, and not reading through and applying the steps outlined in the recipe. What would I have? I would have a huge mess, failure, and something that would not represent my Mom very well.

Social Media is no different. You cannot just jump on the band wagon and throw a whole bunch of ingredients together and hope to have some sort of tangible results! The recipe is research. The ingredients are the right Social Media options that will suit your business plan and purpose. The measuring instruments speak for themselves. It is important to employ the right amount of any given ingredient. The steps also speak for themselves.

Is there only one recipe for Devil’s Food Cake? Absolutely not! They may all have similar characteristics, but each baker has their own unique recipe that fits them. Social Media is the same. You need to find your recipe. You need to measure and you need to take careful steps. Hopefully you will have a cool Mom to help you along the way.



Written by Jonathan Saar -The Training Factor


For more information on Multifamily Leasing and Fair Housing Training, please visit our site.

Is Email a Form of Communication?

Email etiquette is something that is extremely important in the professional world.  We have been trained on proper spelling, not using acronyms, using proper grammar and of course making sure we do not blab on and on over a subject that can be wrapped up in a few short sentences.

Email has become one of the fastest ways to send a message to a colleague, employer, and clients.  Text messaging is now becoming just as popular to send out quick bursts of information.  So back to my question: Is Email a Form of Communication?

Let’s analyze that question with some other examples.  If you are standing in front of a person who is asking you a question and you do not respond to them, are you communicating? The answer is NO.  If you are on the phone with someone who is sharing information with you and you say nothing in reply, is that communication?  The answer is NO.

The only way to truly define basic communication is when 2 or more parties in any given setting are actually exchanging words in some fashion.  So, is email a form of communication?  It can be only if you have the manners to actually reply back.  Otherwise you are no different than the person cited in the examples above.  How would you describe the person not responding in our two examples?  I will let you answer that in the comment section below.

For some odd reason “some” in this professional world have begun to view email as a “If I feel like responding” or “This email from this person is just not that important to me”.  Now before you get all ruffled, I am not talking about spammers or those companies who buy lead lists and shoot out a blast email with their latest product or service they are selling.  I am referring to all individuals who send you a message that has your name in it with some information and questions perhaps and then closes with their signature.  Can someone answer me as to why those emails would not be responded to?

Here is an image we can all relate to, 20 years ago, your parents are standing beside you and someone is talking to you.  You do not say anything in reply and what did your folks do to you next?

We have a lot to do each day, but setting an example in communication is paramount.  Some email responses may need some time and others may simply need a “No thank you” or “I have that covered”.  Whatever the case may be email is communication and when professionals do not respond, I wonder what you would call them?

Written by Jonathan Saar—The Training Factor

Hello!!!!! Anyone in There????

The above title can be a common expression when dealing with our fellow team members.  Our ability to communicate and to be communicated to is a major determining factor in our leadership skills.  The complete slowdown and or failure in the business process are usually attributed to a complete breakdown of communication between various departments.  Then the frustration, anxiety, uncertainty and many other negative emotions are the soup du jour.  How would you feel if these emotions are what described your communication business process?  Maybe it’s time for a second look at your communication policies.

Here is an example of a typical corporate situation.  Your superior assigns you a project wanting to see a specific outcome in order to enhance a particular business process.  You research, brainstorm, rough draft and then bring the project to a final proposal.  You present the information to your superior but that is the last you ever hear of it.  No next steps, no implementation date---nothing!  What happened?  You may never know.  Reason why this took place—no communication.

This is one little teeny tiny example that barely scratches the surface of where breakdowns in communication can hurt the daily process.  So what can practically be done?  Maybe the title of this blog should be the theme of your next communication training meeting. 

Some other symptoms of bad communication would be finger pointing, lack of follow through, no clear direction for next project and the list goes on.  Those are the symptoms, how about attacking the disease.  Lack of policy is the disease.  The communication policy needs to include everyone.  It does little good for a policy to affect only certain departments but never applied by the leaders of the company.  One word for that—FAILURE.

You want to start saving money and make your company a happy and productive place to work—this is my tip of the day: Open your two ears and do a lot more listening and do half the talking.  That's what my Mom would always say to me.  What does your communication policy sound like?  I hope it's not like the one demonstrated in our video below.  Enjoy the laugh.

Written by Jonathan Saar:  The Training Factor

More Bang for Your Buck

This was an absolutely hilarious training video in my opinion, but then again I am often told my sense of humor is quite dry.  From a business point of view, this video has such a great analogy.  Keeping this all in good humor of course, but can you honestly imagine this poor guy making it to the Olympics with this existing program he is using?  It may be cheap, it may look like what the real Olympic training programs are, but the bottom line is that it is NOT!

There seem to be quite few companies offering multifamily training programs out there.  They promise the world, they say they can offer it for half the price of other systems which is probably absolutely the truth.  I guess the moral and professional dilemma is the decision to choose what training is best for your multifamily team.  What kind of bang do you want for your buck?  Maybe it depends on how bad you want the gold medal for your team.

Written by Jonathan Saar The Training Factor

New Media Atlanta Summary-Choose Your Direction

Last Friday September 25^th, I had the opportunity to attend “New Media Atlanta” at the Georgia Tech Research Institute.  Chris Brogan was the keynote speaker and was surrounded by other speakers who had their own take, message, and experience to share with this audience.

The scene was quite intriguing.  The room where the conference was held was extra high tech.  Quite comfortable for everyone and a place to plug in your laptop, make some notes and enjoy the presentations.  The environment was totally the perfect breeding ground for the social media enthusiasts who were ready with their twitter accounts to share this information with the world.  On that day alone, 3719 tweets were recorded based on statistics from http://wthashtag.com/Nmatl

Trying to wrap up the key points from that day in a few paragraphs will be a challenge, but here I go.  Basically there is not a one size fits all standard of Social Media.  Every company has a different product, service, and customer that need to be engaged properly.  It does you little good to have 30,000 followers on Twitter and 950 fans of your Facebook page, when you have absolutely no dollars to show for it.  Social Media is just another aspect of any other marketing plan. You do not just jump in with both feet; you need to carefully study and measure to make sure your methods are providing the best effect. 

This really starts by “listening”.  Do you know what your customers or residents want?  Do you know what they are saying about you?  Do you have a message that will engage them, so that they want to come back and hear more?  These are just a few questions that are necessary when formulating a plan to add Social Media to your existing structure.  FYI-Horizon Realty made the list of examples of what not to do when using Social Media.  I don’t think we need to go down that road again.

One statement that stuck with me from Chris Brogan’s presentation was this; ask people “How much do I suck?”  In other words, be ready to take the good with the bad.  Social Media has made the world completely transparent.

The multifamily industry is starting to break into this frontier.  Some are trying it out on their own, and some are using experienced and skilled consultants.  Social Media can you show your dedication to Fair Housing Laws.  It demonstrates your commitment to customer service and resident retention.  The main point is to accurately measure your path.  Use strategic reporting to carefully chart your progress.  If after a business quarter passes by and you do not see the results, do not toss the plan into the garbage.  Tweak it and keep moving forward.  Social Media is not a fad, it is here to stay.

Written by Jonathan Saar The Training Factor

Stay the Course

Those three words have inspired thousands of individuals for centuries now.  It’s interesting to reflect on the definition.  Wikipedia makes these statements. 

"Stay the course" is a phrase used in the context of a war or battle meaning to pursue a goal regardless of any obstacles or criticism.

Similar to "cut and run", a pejorative phrase used to describe cowardly withdrawal from battle, "stay the course" allegedly originated as a nautical metaphor on maintaining a constant, unaltering course while navigating.

How do these three words inspire you?  What are your business challenges?

Here’s a theoretical list.

1. Marketing plan-Is it the right one for me? How long should I stick to it?
2. Competition-What size fish am I in my pond?  What do I do about the bigger fish?
3. Budgets-Do I spend the money, or do I cut back?  Do I invest or do I ride this economy out?
4. Training-Do I really need it?  Can I live without it?  Will the cheap version be as effective as the higher quality version?
5. Occupancy percentages-What really works for resident retention?  Do I use social media or not?

For many multifamily companies its budget time and new fiscal year decisions are being made.  Your leadership training now comes into play with crucial decisions that will affect your company, your team, and yourself.

Now think of our three words.  “STAY THE COURSE”.  In the nautical context, can you envision the captain of the ship who is trying to encourage and convince his entire crew that they will survive the storm?  The course is front of him is uncertain.  It’s hard to see with all the waves pounding against his ship.  Water is flying everywhere.  His crew is being tossed around.  The 1^st mate and lieutenants continue to delegate orders so that the ship will not sink.  The captain cannot see clearly what is in front of him, but he has his instruments to tell him where he is going.  His compass has never let him down.  His maps and charts have been accurately created.  His calculations are correct.  He knows that the direction he is taking his crew is true.  He stands at his captain’s wheel and confidently yells out to the crew, “STAY THE COURSE”.

Within our multifamily companies we have our instruments that do not let us down.  We have specific ones to deal with Marketing, Competition, Budgets, Training, and Occupancies.  We have instruments that have stood the test of time and we are discovering new ones that deal with the more current conditions and times we live in.  The message is clear for us.  If we act as leaders within our company, have you ever thought of those three words?

Post written by Jonathan Saar from The Training Factor

You Must Choose, But Choose Wisely

Decision makers have such a huge responsibility.  Whether or not we are on the property management side or the vendor side, everyday there are decisions to be made. It could be new employees, products, services, events, you name it, there are numerous items on a given business day that need to be addressed.

One of my favorite movies, “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” had such an interesting scene towards the end that gave us all something to compare to.  The scenario: What do I base my decisions on?  The Grail Knight in the tomb used that expression, “You must choose, But Choose Wisely”.   We all remember what Walter Donovan did right away.  His superficial reasoning was that the most beautiful chalice had to be the correct vessel.  However he really did not know his history well nor did he do the proper research in order to come to a correct decision.  He just went with what looked best and what seemed to be the easiest choice and we know what happened to him, it kind of got yucky from that point on.  However Indiana Jones knew his history and had studied well which enabled him to ‘choose wisely’.  The action hero once again saves the day.

So what is the application for our industry?  We are confronted daily with 2 paths to take on any given decision.  One appears to be the intriguing and easy choice.  It looks pretty, it has a lot of show, and it glistens with promises and makes you think that if you choose this way it is going to make you a hero, that you will be so highly esteemed for the decision you made.  Where will this path lead?  The other path does not outwardly appear like much.  There is not glitz, no glamour, no outrageous promises, but you have done your research on this path.  You have investigated thoroughly.  You have educated yourself enough to know that even though the glitz is not there, you will not be misled by superficial reasoning.  You will know by your research that this path and decision is the best because you have examined it thoroughly and you want your team to benefit the most.  As the Grail Knight would say, “You have chosen wisely.”

Of course we are not talking about life or death decisions here, but the same principles apply.  Let’s continue to make our industry stand strong because of the professionalism that its foundation is based on.  Don’t get sucked in by a high pitched sales presentation or a resume with pretty borders and big words.  Don’t get caught in the snare of someone who says they will undercut a proposal no matter what, just to get a sale.  Be careful about the events and resident retention concepts you bring to your communities.  Our decisions should not be about short term glamour, but long term prosperity.

I am so interested in hearing from you on some of the challenging decisions you face and what steps you take to make sure you are making the best choice for you and your multifamily company.

Just for fun check out the old Diet Coke Choose Wisely commercial below.
Written by Jonathan Saar-Director of Marketing The Training Factor
For more information on The Training Factor visit our site http://www.thetrainingfactor.com

Perfomance Evaluation and Analysis Feature

We are pleased to announce a new feature that has recently been added to our Training University! We are constantly improving our product for your benefit. You have told us of your need to marry employee training with employee performance evaluations. Whether those evaluations are in the form of Supervisor/Manager evaluations or secret shopper experiences, you needed a way to disseminate those evaluations to your employees and to train them in the areas where they may need extra help. You spoke and we listened!!

Introducing the Performance Evaluation and Analysis feature. This feature will allow you to upload all of your employee evaluations to your employee’s transcript page. Your employee will be able to see their evaluation, see and/or hear their secret shop, and receive training based on their performance analysis!

Best of all, this feature is available now and at no extra cost to our valued clients!!

We will shortly be unveiling reports to complement this new feature as well!

If you are interested in learning more about this feature and get an overview of how to use it effectively, please call Mechelle or Renée at 770-514-7773 or email us to schedule a mutually convenient time!

Thanks again for your feedback that helps us make The Training Factor the most comprehensive Learning Management System in the multifamily industry.

http://www.thetrainingfactor.com 

Blue 32--Blue 32--Ready, Set Hutt Hutt

Football season is now in full swing. Time to take the passion of the game and use it to your advantage with your residents and with your team. Statistically speaking, football continues to grow in popularity with many different demographics. It is no longer just a guys game, but the amount of women who tune into NCAA on Saturday and the NFL on Sunday is steadily growing.

So with such an ingrained passion with so many people, what can you do to use this to retain residents and gain loyalty with your multifamily team? How about dress up Fridays? Let your staff show up with their favorite team jersey. The result? Instant conversation starter when the residents come in!

The stuffy office atmosphere is gone and opportunities for fun and engaging conversations now have a breeding ground.

Now what about direct resident retention? Pretty well I am sure you know your resident's birthday, anniversary, graduation day etc. What about their favorite football team? Interesting fact to chat about on the community blog and get the residents involved in a little friendly rivalry.

How about a fan dress up contest? Or maybe a Saturday tailgate party? Options are probably endless when those wheels start spinning upstairs.

Bottom line-- have some fun with your multifamily team and with the residents. Show them both how much you value and appreciate who they are and their own particular passion for such a great weekend pastime.

If this is something you have already tried before, please share. I would love to hear how it worked for your community.

Visit our website http://www.thetrainingfactor.com