Archive for the ‘Property Management’Category

New Property or Facility Takeover: Where Do I Start?

Start out thinking like a one person S.W.A.T. Team and and change your attitude to “We or I manage the facility, the facility does not manage us or me.” It is so very profound and calming. In doing transitions or takeovers of properties you need to focus on several key points.

1. Master or take command of the property. Be ready for an emergency on the evening of day one, around 5pm!
2. Be very determined and relentless.
3. Run the property like a Navy ship and visualize it!
4. Do not accept 2nd best, only the best.
5. Let everyone know what you expect.
6. Follow up and through.
7. Create meaningful logs or lists. (think back to no computers to achieve this)
8. Gather and inventory every single thing and count it all. (think back to no computers to achieve this)
9. Do everything with baby steps but, do, do, do and do not stop.
10. Stop being reactive and let everyone know that Rome was not built in a day or good things take time.
11. I am the biggest geek around and would want everything in a database, online and backed up. However, I have to take command first and sink my teeth into the systems first, meet the tenants and staff and plan and organize before I do anything with the information.
12. Have the engineers draw you tons of pictures so you can visualize all of it and have legends and keys to all key valves and other critial issues as part of the understanding.
13. Go meet the tenants and staff. If need be, walk with the staff or take turns walking and knocking on doors.
14. Contact all contract service providers to be there day two. Again, walk and talk with them as well. Keep knocking on doors if there are any tenants left to meet.
15. Open all drawers and read leases and files, if that is appropriate. All properties are different, but the concept is to find the bombs and defuse them ASAP. Do not wait for them to explode.

That should get anyone off to a running start for a property takeover or transition! For an indepth checklist, check all of the cool forms at IREM or BOMI or IFMA. All of these organizations offer books, forms, procedures and checklists when you are faced with a new property assignment. If you need to obtain an example of a form I have used and adapted over the years, click here to visit my box.net account!

What words of wisdom do you have for folks facing a new property takeover or transition? Tell us about it so we can all learn together!

07

06 2011


by Linda Day Harrison CPM CCIM
posted in Checklist, Management, Organization, Property, Property Management, Strategy
11 Comments

ML Is Proud to Feature A PFMI Author: Michel Theriault

From time to time, ManagerLabs will review a product, service, book, video, software, website or podcast, that warrants focus and attention. Please see below what we have to say about this great new resource for facility and property managers.

Michel Theriault, in the book, Managing Facilities and Real Estate, nails the fundamentals of facility and property management and at the same time updates all of us on attitudes and processes for the facility manager’s fast paced and pressure-filled existence. With the focus on improving service, Michel does an outstanding job of demonstrating the analogy of the facility and property department and the key business fundamentals that need to be considered in this often overlooked area. In this easy to read book, Michel brings the level of all traditional facility and property management fundamentals to the forefront. Its chapters and content are well organized and the “Consider This” tables, are excellent and concise summaries that go to the heart of each topic. Even with graphics being black and white, the visuals are current and well done. This is a definite “must have” reference book, for rookies and professionals. It is a good resource of current thoughts and approaches for facility and property management in the new millennium. To purchase your copy today, click here or to learn more about the book, click here to download a .pdf brochure. Brochure-Managing Facilities and Real Estate

~Linda Day Harrison, CPM, CCIM
ManagerLabs Founder
Linda@ManagerLabs.com
@ManagerLabs

15

01 2011


by Linda Day Harrison CPM CCIM
posted in Books, Facility Management, LEED, Property Management, Real Estate Management, RPA
1 Comment

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