Almost any property manager will tell you that their job is stressful. There are many factors and details to deal with every day, and it's hard to make everyone happy all the time—whether they're a client or an employee.
What if there was a way to increase productivity, reduce stress, and improve client service? There is! Follow these four property management consulting tips for creating a positive work environment where employees excel at their jobs (and your property management business experiences better productivity).
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A Positive Work Environment Boosts Property Management Business Success
Did you know that property managers can improve client service by focusing on employee happiness, not just the bottom line? The reason is that happy employees are more productive.
A positive work environment leads to less turnover, reduced absenteeism/tardiness rates, increased productivity (which results in greater profits), enhanced teamwork among employees, fewer accidents or mistakes, and the list goes on! Your team also experiences better collaboration and efficiency. If you can create a positive work environment where people enjoy what they do and feel appreciated everyone benefits. However, knowing how to make that happen can be challenging!
1. Show Appreciation (Often)
It's often difficult to remember to thank the people who come to work for your business and clients every day. When you and your team get busy with the tasks of the day, sometimes stopping to show appreciation for jobs well done gets overlooked.
Whether it's a good day or a bad day (or week), set aside moments to appreciate your team's hard work. A property management consultant knows that when employees feel appreciated for the challenging work of managing rentals and tenants, those words and actions of gratitude go a long way toward a healthy work environment!
2. Empower Your Team for Success
Every successful property management company owner knows it's important to be a leader—not just an "order giver." If employees don't feel respected or empowered, they may not take the initiative in their work.
Create an empowering environment by giving your team opportunities for autonomy and decision-making where appropriate. This builds trust in leaders who know how to guide without only telling people what to do all of the time! When you empower others with responsibility, you create positive change that ripples throughout your entire business (especially when it comes to customer service).
With this approach, you won't have a team of order-takers; instead, there will be high levels of engagement among peers working together toward achieving results.
3. Prioritize Onboarding and Ongoing Training
Setting your employees up with the right property management software and technology, equipment, and training also helps them build confidence in their roles and serve property owners and tenants well. This should be a priority from the start with every new staff member.
A well-planned onboarding process brings new employees on in a way that helps them feel valuable and effective from the start of their employment with your property management business. However, to end training after a new employee is onboarded can leave them feeling ill-equipped and ineffective in their roles long-term.
Ongoing property management training is essential to a thriving workplace environment. If you're not sure how to set up an ongoing training program for your team, a property management coach can help!
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4. Create a Comfortable Workplace
We're not suggesting replacing desks and desk chairs with futons or sofas. However, employees should feel comfortable in their work environment to optimize productivity. When there's an air of unhealthy competition, secrecy, and discomfort—either due to prickly coworker relationships or "literal" discomfort from poorly planned desk spaces—employees don't work well in those conditions.
Property management coaching recommends ensuring your office space is a safe space for employees to work well together. Encourage positive interactions and address things that take away from collaboration quickly and appropriately.
As for physical comfort, property management professionals should talk to team members about their workspaces (and listen). Poorly designed and uncomfortable chairs or desks can lead to a poor work product. Make sure desks, computer monitors, chairs, and common spaces keep workers comfortable (yet alert and productive) throughout the day. The environment should promote focus, collaboration, and excellent customer service.
Property Management Consulting Helps Build Positive Work Environments
If you’re looking for a way to increase your company's customer service and productivity, start with your office space and atmosphere. A combative or uncomfortable work environment has been shown to affect the employees and clients that they serve negatively.
When hiring new employees and building your team, make sure they have a positive workspace in which they can thrive! Happy employees do their jobs better, but it takes work to create a positive workplace that supports your team effectively. A property management consulting firm can help you analyze your workplace and implement processes, technology, and training to boost morale and encourage your team. When you're ready to make this happen, Real-Time Consulting Services is here to help! Reach out for a free consultation.
We will review your business plan and make sure you are on track.