Condo Media - December 2022 - 24

PLANNING TODAY & TOMORROW
IN PRACTICE,
this generally means
meeting the day-to-day
needs of the association,
including responsibility
for on-site operations,
supervising property
maintenance, general
management, and board
governance. Resident
relations, accounting,
and fi nancial reporting
are also within the property
manager's purview,
along with capital project
planning and facilitation,
which is a supplemental
service. Often, the property
manager works in
conjunction with other
professionals such as
attorneys, engineers,
and architects. Ultimately,
the property manager's
primary functions serve
to support the board in
its mission to protect
the interests of the homeowners
and maintain and
enhance property values.
IMPORTANCE OF DIFFERENTIATING ROLES:
BOARD OR MANAGEMENT
While the board and management must work hand-in-hand in operating the
association, roles may sometimes become blurred, or duties may seem to overlap.
The governing documents of the association and the management agreement stipulate
formal roles, and understanding these roles is important. Said simply, management is
the facilitator/executor, and the board are the decision makers. It is critically important
to embrace the collaborative nature of the relationship between the board and management
and the signifi cance that this collaboration has in determining and implementing
policy, conducting administrative functions, and decision making. If there are changes
in the composition of the board, occasions when it feels like the board and management
are not working in harmony, or there is confusion about who is doing what, it should be
addressed proactively, and there should be discussion about what needs to happen to
get back on track. Open communication and consistent reporting also ensure that both
parties remain appropriately informed about association business, which demonstrates
that the board and management are working as a team.
SETTING AND
ENFORCING
POLICY/
FIDUCIARY
RESPONSIBILITIES
PROCEDURE
One of the board's primary
responsibilities is to set policy
for the association. In some
cases, this may be challenging
because boards are made up of
volunteers, and most of these
volunteers do not possess expertise
or knowledge on the full
range of operational matters that
are associated with running an
association. Because of this, the
board relies on management to
educate and equip its members
with the important information
and specifi c knowledge
they need to set policy.
Management will also offer
the board supplemental resources
in the form of other
professional consultants on
an as-needed basis. In short,
management advises, the
board sets policy, and, when
deemed appropriate by
the board, management
communicates
policy to the owners.
24 CONDOMEDIA December 2022
Boards rely on their management
company to support one of their
most important roles - maintaining
fi duciary responsibility for the association.
One of the most signifi cant
components of this is ensuring the
fi scal health of the association. The
management company will provide
the professional expertise, as needed,
to report on the fi nancial position
of the association and to work in
partnership with the board on making
and executing fi nancial decisions,
such as those related to capital improvements,
loans, and assessments.

Condo Media - December 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Condo Media - December 2022