Scanlans partner Ian Magenis looks at how the firm’s property management arm has responded to the pandemic, and how its impact is shaping future working patterns.
Before Covid-19, I was not a great supporter of home-working, but now I can see that the hybrid working model is here to stay, and that’s a good thing.
As a firm, we have always had the capability to facilitate remote working, because our property managers did base themselves at home periodically.
However, when lockdown happened in March 2020, we had to immediately scale up our provision for remote working across the board and in double-quick time, at considerable cost to the company.
Within 24 hours, everyone was up and running from home with a fully-functioning PC which gave them access to our phone systems and servers. An app meant their mobile phone became their office handset, with calls to the office re-routed to them.
Regardless of where our property managers were, clients could get hold of them on their usual numbers.
Ideally, there would have been a bedding-in period for this new technology, but we needed to respond instantly to ensure there was minimal disruption to our clients – the management companies at hundreds of sites across the north west, Yorkshire and the Midlands.
I’m extremely proud that we have maintained a high level of service to our clients throughout the pandemic, even though the way we operate has inevitably changed.
Most importantly, all our property managers have remained fully-operational. This has happened without any reliance on government funding or lending. Not a single property manager has been furloughed.
Everyone has become adept at the use of Microsoft Teams and Zoom, going from never having used this technology to being experts within 24 hours.
For the first month or so after the initial lockdown, attendance at our offices was limited to three people, just to collect and open the post, look after printing needs and so on.
Then, in May last year, we introduced a booking system for property managers to spend one day a week in the office to carry out tasks that could only be done from there.
Interaction with clients has historically involved face-to-face meetings with management company directors and property owners, but these shifted to Zoom and Teams.
Also, unless it’s been absolutely necessary, we have shied away from indoor meetings, partly because we have a significant number of younger staff who have not yet been fully vaccinated.
To an extent, the move to video conferencing has depersonalised our client meetings, which has been a downside. However, as they mostly take place in the evenings and involve a lot of driving for our property managers, the switch has been beneficial for them and has meant we’ve actually been able to offer more frequent meetings.
Generally, there has been good feedback from clients. Some have loved using Zoom and Teams, and they will carry on holding video meetings once normality returns, but others have responded less favourably. Once Covid-19 restrictions are lifted, we will resume face-to-face meetings for those who prefer them.
In terms of our client service, we immediately had to address various on-site issues, such as ensuring there were signs in lifts explaining that usage was limited to one person, ensuring that hand sanitiser was available in public areas of the apartment blocks in our portfolio, and ensuring that our cleaning contractors focused on keeping door handles, rails and other widely-used fixtures and fittings clean and sanitised.
Unfortunately, during the first lockdown, DIY stores were shut and there was a national shortage of plaster and plasterboard. This meant delays to minor repairs because contractors could not get hold of the materials they needed. As a result, we spent a good deal of time communicating with and advising clients. Thankfully, repairs were able to resume once stores reopened.
The nature of our business does mean that most of our interaction with clients is negative – they call to say something has broken or if there is another issue.
They can often become quite worked up. If property managers are working on their own, from their living room or bedroom, there is less opportunity to offload or share concerns with colleagues.
In this respect, the pressures of the job have become significantly higher during the pandemic, because the support and protection from colleagues in the office has not been there. This has traditionally been one of our strongest areas, but to a degree that has been lost.
However, given the highly unusual and stressful situation from a work perspective and a personal perspective, the staff have all coped brilliantly
So what does the future hold?
Our experiences during this period have springboarded us as an employer to introduce new ways of working, and they are here to stay. Flexible, remote working is now a tried and successfully tested formula, and so the hybrid model will continue. This will involve spending some time in the office and some time working remotely.
It will significantly improve the work-life balance of our team. Everyone has realised that the hours they spend in their cars commuting to and from work are really important to them.
Working from home has meant people starting at 8.30am instead of having to set off for the office at 7am or 7.30am. They’ve begun their working day fresher and more relaxed.
Similarly, at the end of the working day, they simply log off rather than arriving home tired and frustrated because they’ve been stuck in traffic.
We believe the hybrid model will maintain loyalty, ensuring continuity and staff retention. The focus is on keeping our staff and keeping them happy, which makes for happy clients.
If I could offer one piece of advice to managers up and down the country, it would be to urge them to trust and respect their staff more. Some think that if they can see their staff for eight hours a day, then they must be being productive. But trust them to act responsibly in terms of working remotely, and they will respond positively.
We ourselves are now looking at a management style which is task-driven rather than working day-driven. More time spent at one’s desk being clock-watched does not necessarily mean more efficient working.
Managers will run the risk of losing staff if they insist they return to the office full-time.
Scanlans Property Management manages apartment blocks, housing developments and entire estates and maintains public spaces across the north and the Midlands. Its portfolio comprises nearly 18,000 units across over 300 sites, ranging in size from 10 apartments to 750 houses.
