Efforts in rising to the challenges of managing property in a pandemic have not only identified new ways of working but challenged us as to whether we were perhaps being innovative enough anyway says Alan Wake.
A year ago a conversation around the water cooler on remote working or colleagues “working from home” would no doubt have referenced efficiency, communication and IT issues as barriers to effective “WFM”. There would have been wonderment in some cases from those convinced it could not be practical for them personally. The notion that everyone would be doing so for approaching 12 months would have been met with derision and no doubt concern as to our ability to function and manage property properly.
The transition almost overnight to widespread remote working and the sector’s ability to continue to provide services throughout surprised even the most ardent cynic. Without overlooking the challenges faced by many during transition and while recognising sustainability issues with new arrangements, there is no doubt that lessons have been learned, opportunities identified and most importantly that some practices may be here to stay. Moving forward the “new norm” will become just that and not a cliché to describe temporary solutions in extraordinary times.
Amongst the positives will be those who like myself have taken an enforced leap into the 21st Century and been able to function online in a way they thought their pre-lockdown IT skills would simply not allow.
There will of course be many legendary stories of Zoom mishaps (my favourite being a particular well know ex CEO abandoning a speech mid-sentence upon realising the boat he was on had slipped it’s moorings and was careering down the canal unattended!) but generally the move away from face to face has taken place seamlessly in technical terms.
But can we still get the job done as Property Managers?
No doubt a query from customers of course, but also from colleagues priding themselves on the relationships with residents and being able to manage proactively through regular inspections and visits. In many ways it has given us all the opportunity to be closer to customers and engage more regularly (and vice versa).
Lockdown restrictions have demanded clearer and more regular direct communication from us all. We have also been able to test our ability to work across different departments in our businesses. Those with necessary functions to perform and visits to make have proved invaluable in picking up tasks that would otherwise may have fallen by the wayside.
Not an ideal though by any standard as dealing with customers’ homes and property will always of course be about relationships and understanding what is actually going on “on the ground”. Sticking plaster solutions in extraordinary times do not take away from the need to return to some kind of normality in terms of visiting developments and seeing customers face to face. More so than ever given the elephant in the room that is the cladding crisis and the associated challenges that brings to everyone involved. A crisis that would be raising huge concerns around customer and staff welfare regardless of whether dealt with in a pandemic or not.
The challenges facing customers is an article in itself but we cannot underestimate the impact of isolation, safety concerns, economic insecurity and the prospect of huge costs on our customers.
But what about the professionals? There will be few who argue that the challenges around Fire Safety remediation, wider Building Safety plans and Leasehold Reform are anything other than the biggest challenge facing the sector in generations. The wellbeing of all stakeholders is paramount and the work of IRPM/ARMA in surveying property managers on resilience is very welcome. The outcomes I suspect will confirm huge challenges thrown up by the extraordinary technical issues and the pandemic itself.
For many the novelty of “WFM” or “you’re on mute” has well and truly worn off. The reduction in commuting and home comforts in the office (for those fortunate to have suitable arrangements) are now offset by issues in terms of day to day support, diminished development opportunities and the realities of isolation in the workplace.
Organisations are of course working hard to address all of these issues but what can they do to replace the friendly word after witnessing a challenging phone call, the impromptu word of advice when overhearing ongoing issues or the simple enquiry into ones wellbeing? Making an appointment for virtual coffees will not be enough for many individuals or replace effective relationship and team building.
It is typical of such extraordinary times that we cannot completely understand whether the key element affecting staff welfare and effectiveness is either the pandemic or the specific and spectacular challenges facing the profession. Of course both have a significant effect and we will need to work at addressing them together. However, the impact on staff from issues around safety, EWS1, costs and reform are clearly exacerbated by the isolation that WFH has delivered for many. In that regard we are just “getting by”.
I suspect that we have learned a lot from the enforced changes in working practices and will take a lot of forward as a real “new normal”. But we didn’t have it all wrong. We must take forward previously unseen benefits of working together physically, of human contact, of benefitting from others experience and, most of all, being able to support colleagues and staff without the need for an outlook invite and a suitable Wi-fi connection.
Alan is CEO and a founder member of the NLG, a networking group set up to promote best practice and specialism in Leasehold Management.
He also runs his own consultancy business, Claws Consultants and is a Co-Founder of PROPel Learning and Development. He is spending lockdown in his converted garage at home in Sheffield.
