We're happy to announce the news that so many of you have been waiting for! The next Annual Multifamily Housing Brainstorming Sessions™ and Executive Brainstorming Sessions™ will be held...

September 14-16, 2011
(with pre-event Meet & Greet on Tuesday, September 13) at the
Renaissance Glendale Hotel & Spa, Phoenix, Arizona

Registration is now open at http://brainstorming.multifamilypro.com/2010-sessions/register-now/. We're offering a special Super Early Attendee rate of ONLY $395 for paid registrations before December 30, 2010, so hurry and reserve your seat NOW!

For more information, email info@multifamilypro.com and stay tuned to Multifamilypro.com!

May all your challenges find solutions!
Tami & Team Multifamilypro

One of the best things you can do to improve your team’s training plan is to add Skill Gap Analysis. This step helps the trainer to identify gaps in performance and areas for added training and development.

Benchmarking

The first step in conducting a thorough Skill Gap Analysis is to create a picture of what ideal performance looks like. This step—called Competency Profiling—takes a look at the attitudes, knowledge, behaviors, and specific skills needed for an individual to excel in a particular role. These competencies can be rated as critical or core, meaning that a high level of proficiency is needed in order to be successful in the role; or preferred, meaning that while not mandatory, a particular competency would help the employee to better excel.

Assessment

Once your benchmarking is done and core and preferred competencies are identified for the role; it’s time to measure the employee’s proficiency against the competencies you’ve identified. There are a number of ways that this can be accomplished, and while any one of the following strategies can be effective, it’s far preferable to use a combination of several so that you get a more well-rounded picture of how the employee is performing and what he or she might be missing that can be rectified with added training and development. Assessment techniques include:

• Performance Review – a standard performance review typically revolves around discussion between the employee and the supervisor of both the supervisor’s and employee’s assessment of the employee’s proficiency. The review includes development of a strategy to help the employee further improve his or her performance in the role.

• Interviews – interviewing employees and supervisors with open-ended questions (questions that cannot be answered with a simple “yes” or “no”) allows for gathering of qualitative data. Interviews can also identify misconceptions with regard to the role; resistant attitudes (including change-resistance and personality conflict); and other barriers to excellent performance that might not surface in a performance review.

• Surveys – surveying managers, employees, and coworkers (including other managers) can help gather even more qualitative information that can be used for statistical performance analysis. Today, such surveys can be designed and conducted very quickly, easily, and efficiently, online.

• Customer Feedback – if it’s possible to interview or survey customers or other stakeholders, they can be an outstanding source of feedback on the performance of either a group of employees or an individual.

• Performance Tests – many skills can be assessed using standardized tests to gather quantitative data (multiple choice, fill in the blank etc.) of employees’ understanding of particular competencies, necessary to their ability to perform them.

• Audits – this process simply creates a checklist of specific operational standards, and the employee’s ability to perform to those standards is checked against the list.

Analysis

Once the assessment has been completed using one (or preferably several) of the techniques listed above, the trainer can then begin the process of closing the gaps with strategies including training (if a lack of knowledge is identified), role reassignment (personnel transfer or organizational changes); allocating new resources; added rewards or other incentives; or improved goal-setting and measurement. As in any case where proficiency can’t be improved by other means, termination may have to be considered.

Adding Skill Gap Analysis to your training plan will help you to identify, improve, and prioritize your training and development projects by creating a sharper picture of your team’s abilities as compared to your vision for ultimate success; but creating a fully comprehensive plan requires far more than we could fit into one blog post! If you’re interested in putting this outstanding tool to work in your organization, be sure to make Your Team's Got Talent: Better Training Through Skill Gap Analysis presented on Thursday, September 16th at the Multifamily Brainstorming Sessions by Kara Rice and Jana Muma of Grace Hill part of your Brainstorming 2010 training plan! We’ll see you there!

New Manager Orientation and Mentoring Program

This idea came to us from Karen Wilson

The Idea - As part of our new manager training we have implemented a Manager Mentor Program.  After each new manager comes in for a day of training on company policy and procedures, we select a Resident Manager from the Property Manager’s portfolio to provide another eight hours of training at their community or at the new managers community.  Both managers are provided with an Agenda of topics to cover.

How It Works - The Manager Mentor contacts the new manager and sets
up a date and time within the first week of employment.  The goal is to spend at least eight hours.  Many managers choose to break this up into two four hour trainings or several two hour trainings as time and attention spans allow.  Upon completion both the mentors and the new managers sign the agenda and return it to the corporate office.  We compensate the Manager Mentors with $50 for going above and beyond the call of duty.

The benefits - This program establishes communications with one of our current managers who is doing the same job as we are asking the new manager to do successfully. They are able to share helpful hints and new managers are more comfortable asking questions of other managers.  The program provides an ongoing relationship with a manager the new manager can contact if they forget how to do something or are unsure about the process.  The Manager Mentors have reported that mentoring was a great review and refreshed and enervated their own performances.

Date

New Manager Name
Apartment Community
Address

RE:  A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A RESIDENT MANAGER TRAINING

Dear New Manager:

__________________________(name(s) of Manager Mentors) of the __________________________ Apartments have agreed to provide your Day in the Life of a Resident Manager Training.  Attached is an agenda of the topics for you will cover with them.

Please arrange a date and time that will work best for both of you.  We suggest that you complete this within the next week as it will help you immensely as you take on your new job responsibilities.

Once you have completed this portion of your training please sign off on the form they have to indicate completion. We are glad you are part of our management team!

Sincerely,

Karen L. Wilson
Director, Multi Family Management

ON SITE TRAINING

A Day In the Life of a Resident Manager

With ___________________________    (Manager Mentor)
________________________________    (Community)
(     )                           (Phone number)

Discussion Topics

¨ Setting up the office
¨ Maintaining Resident Files
¨ Renting Apartments
¨ Preparation of Turnovers
¨ Signs/Advertising/Curb Appeal
¨ Traffic Log
¨ Showing the apartment
¨ How to Complete a Lease/Rental Agreement
¨ Addendums
¨ Security Deposits
¨ Move In Reports
¨ Maintenance
¨ What to Watch For
¨ Minor Repairs – Change a lock, replacing/ordering light bulbs, etc.
¨ Vendors
¨ Market Surveys – How to Complete a Market Survey
¨ New Manager Assignment: Visit five apartments within 5 miles of your new property as a renter.  Complete a market survey

New Manager:
Apartment Community Name:
Address:
Phone Number:

Eight Hours of Manager Mentoring was completed on this (these)  date(s) ___________________________________________________________
By ___________________,  Manager of __________________________
Apartments.
___________________________        __________________
New Manager                    Date
___________________________        __________________
Manager Mentor                    Date

Training Tips

When I am holding a training class we discuss overcoming objections, I ask the participants to give me a certain number of objections that come up at their site.  I write them on a flip chart and assign a number to each objection.  Using a target that I’ve drawn the numbers one, participants form teams, and one member of each team shoots at the target with a Nerf dart gun.  When someone from the team hits a number, they have 45 seconds to come up with a response to the corresponding objection.  If they get it right, the team receives one point.

Another technique that I use in start-of-session introductions is to ask each participant to tell one thing that they do better than anyone else in the room.  This lets us get to know something about someone that we may never have known and  it also helps break the ice!

This next idea comes from :  Amy Aguiar

Strapped for time, I began looking for other ways to get my teams the training they needed.  I contacted the local HUD office to inquire as to what programs were offered for Fair Housing Training.  I found many different organizations that will do the training for me at my location and, amazingly, at no cost to me!  I then contacted local community colleges and universities to see what classes were offered in the area of "workplace" or "career" development.  This has worked well.  I have found that I can use these classes to help develop employees’ skills in areas where they are lacking, such as written or oral communication, financial reports, etc.  It makes for a more "well rounded" employee.  Not to mention the employee is happier in their position as they can be more helpful in the office.  My most recent expense was only $99 to $159 per
class.

Fair Housing Bingo, from Debra Markham, Director of Training at BRE Properties.

Instructions:

At the beginning of the workshop, give each participant a “Fair Housing Bingo Card(sheet)”.

Explain that during the workshop, everyone should pay close attention to all the information that is being discussed, as they will easily be able to answer all the questions on their “Bingo Card”.

At the beginning of the workshop, have the group choose which type of bingo they want to play first (Ex. Diagonal, straight, 4 corners, Double diagonal, etc.).  Of course, finish the workshop with a complete blackout.

Make sure to have some sort of prizes – lifesavers, candy bars, McDonald's coupons ($1 each), Starbucks coupons ($3 each), etc. – to give out when someone screams BINGO!

Purpose:

This will help to ensure your participants are getting a complete understanding of the Fair Housing Laws, while at the same time making it fun, a little competitive and enjoyable.

Supplies:

·    The attached bingo card.  (you can change the questions every once in a while to mix things up a bit)
·    Prizes of your choice.

LEASING IDEAS!
Resident Of The Month

When you have vacant apartments that your trying to move simply buy the neighbor next to the vacant apartment something that they keep in front of their front door that says "Resident Of The Month".  And when you’re on your tour, you simply add that their neighbors are the Residents of the Month.   Use a beautiful outdoor plant as the gift with a sign to stick in the plant that reads "Resident of the month".  The apartment will lease every time!  The idea costs only around $75, and we have leased every long-standing vacant this way!

Contributed by:  Joyce Rinck

SERVICE IDEAS!

Working Towards One Goal

Front line services increases retention!  Create a 3x5 postcard (you may include a picture of a service person).  The title of the program is:  Working towards one goal - Quality and extraordinary service. Part I should include property name, date apt.# and resident's name(optional) Part II will be a rating of service: Excellent, Good, Poor and several lines for comments. Part III, Response time satisfactory, suggestion for future improvement. They can drop it at the Leasing office or mail to your corporate office.  All Maintenance personnel are part of a bonus incentive in an effort to create retention a team effort.  Extra points will be added for employee(s) who receives good cards, increasing their bonus compensation, rewarding them for their contribution, and motivating them to continue providing excellent service.  Cards should be given to each residen upon move-in, and with ever workorder receipt.

Our original goal was to measure how we were servicing our residents but we needed to motivate the staff to see the program as a positive tool for improvement and training.  As a result of this program employees have been recognized company wide and promoted. Residents that were not sure if they would stay because the survey card sends out a clear message.  We want to make it right, because we care.

Cost: $30

Contributed by Angie Herrera, Gannon International

HUMAN RESOURCES IDEAS!

This is one idea that we would love to see everyone implement!  It comes from Deb Bronson, and it’s called the Commitment to Excellence Agreement:

Company Letterhead

Dear (Insert team member’s name)

As a valued member of our team, we wanted to share with you what you can expect from us, (your company) and to outline our commitment of creating a culture and environment that fosters excellence:

·    We have established an internal training program that delivers timely, on-target information available 24/7 via our intranet.
·    We will keep you informed of company wins and company concerns in a brief included with every paycheck.
·    We will measure and inspect what we expect and share honest feedback in a timely fashion.
·    We will promote from within whenever possible and work hard in our partnership with you to develop and expand your skills and capabilities.
·    We support a learning environment, where mistakes can be learned from and we can all breathe easier by focusing on resolution, rather than blame.
·    We will conduct an “If I ran the company” survey annually and include the areas requiring improvement, (based on our entire team’s feedback) into strategic planning and implementation.
·    We support our nation, community and team through supporting _____________ and giving back in spirit, time, and funds.
·    We provide time and stress management tools and training.
·    We encourage the participation of your significant others at company events.
·    We want to encourage you, inspire you and support you and have been very “on-purpose” in the way that we thread rewards, surprises and recognition into our daily work.  In the last month, we have done the following:  Foot massages, Car wash and sponsored our local Little Leagues baseball uniforms (go Lil’ Lions!).

__________________                  ____/____/____
Company Ambassador                Date
Commitment to Excellence Agreement

What can we expect from you?

You have already received your welcome kit, career description and a sample of a growth agreement, so you have a pretty good idea of what your new position requires.

But, what about your personal commitments?  How can we count on you?  Please create your commitment to your team by outlining your thoughts below.  Tomorrow, your team leader and a couple of company ambassadors will sit down with you and go over your commitment to excellence.  We are looking forward to our new partnership and we are very glad that you have joined us!

__________________            ___/___/___
Your Signature                         Date

__________________            ___/___/___
Team Leader                    Date

__________________         ___________________        ___/___/___
Company Ambassador        Company Ambassador        Date

Essential Steps of the Leasing Process

1.  Effectively handle all requests for information about your community, including telephone,email, Internet and regular mail inquiries, with the goal of developing a relationship in order to persuade the future resident to visit the community personally and ultimately lease.

2.  Meet and greet future residents (at the front door if possible). Offer your hand, start building a relationship if this is the first contact, offer your help, and offer a comfortable chair and refreshment.

3.  Learn to develop rapport and build a relationship. The basics are fairly simple and include smiling, using the future resident’s name, saying please and thank you when asking for information, showing interest in the future resident’s needs and wants, and letting the future resident know what his or her options are.  Focus all your attention on the person or persons in front of you!

4. Qualify future residents without interrogating. Determine their needs and wants before you start asking for the information that you need to complete the guest card.

5. Complete the welcome/ guest card for each future resident without making them feel like they are being interrogated; while collecting the information you need to stay in touch and satisfy the leasing criteria for your community, and track the marketing source.

6. Present/show/demonstrate the model (if the community has one) and an available apartment. Demonstrate to the future resident the amenities that they are interested in such as the fitness center, pool area, tennis courts, business center and so on. Discuss the community, Management Company, service department, special services, location and so on. Maintain a focus on those features and benefits they are most interested in.

7.  Develop complete product knowledge of every floor-plan within your community! Show all closets and added storage spaces, present square footage of both living areas and storage space, furniture placement possibilities and options, and special extras like how many hangers can be hung in each closet, views, and added functions of all included appliances.  If your community offers custom home upgrade options or other extras such as special telephone  systems or additional lines,  Internet access, renters insurance, etc., explain the programs and possibilities. Be alert for objections and be prepared to overcome them while you continue to build the relationship.

8. Learn and apply the finer points of closing by invitation and persuading the future resident to become a resident in your community.

9. Invite the future resident to complete the rental application or offer to fill it out for them. Introduce the future resident to other team members if possible, or at least offer the business card of the manager or community concierge (if your community has one) and complete any additional paperwork necessary. Once the future resident has filled out the rental application and has signed it, collect the application fee and security deposit.

10. Verify the information on the application and check the applicant’s credit, then present it to the Community Manager for approval or denial of occupancy.

11.  Follow up with the future resident by sending a thank you or welcome card or letter. Once the application has been verified and approved, provide the future resident with the numbers to call for water, cable, Internet access, newspaper, electric, gas and telephone services; their new address; and the amount of rent that will be due upon move-in. Many communities today offer to make utility and service connection calls for the resident as an added value service. Keep in mind that the relationship leasing process includes making certain that the new resident understands every detail of the move in process and has no surprises from the signing of the lease on.

12. Complete all move-in paperwork. Make certain that the apartment door locks have been re-keyed and the appropriate keys to the apartment and mailbox are ready for move-in day. File all paperwork in appropriate files. If the future resident did not lease, follow up by writing a thank you note, sending post cards, mailing or e-mailing further community information...and always make at least two follow-up telephone calls. Continue the follow up process until the future resident has leased in your community or in a competing community. If the future resident chooses a competitor, determine why they selected that community rather than yours, and especially how the other community better satisfied their needs and wants. Keep a record of this information.

13. Be intimately familiar with other local communities - this includes both competitors and those owned or managed by your own company. If you can’t help a future resident, always refer them to another community that can. By keeping a set of brochures on these communities close at hand, you can then offer the future resident the information they need, and even call the community to set up an appointment. This will go a long way in establishing a rapport with these other communities that will, in time, lead them to do the same for you.

14. Recognize that knowledge is your key to success in each of the steps and areas addressed above. This includes knowledge of the relationship leasing process as well as product knowledge. The more you know, the more you’ll grow. Remember also that knowledge isn’t a static entity. It’s the product of learning, which needs to be a life-long and career-long process. The more you continue to learn, the more you’ll continue to grow as a professional.

Continue this series of  Relationship Leasing articles by receiving our Active Learning Emails

Companies spend millions each year asking agencies and marketers to brand their companies in order to reach more prospects. But, how often do these same companies look carefully at the brand that is already built for them by their loyal, current customers? Like it or not, your "fan base" already has built your brand and holds your company's reputation in the palms of their hands through an aggregate of blog posts, review sites, videos, and social media platforms stating what they love and hate about your brand. In the event that this is prominently positive, how do you get everyone to collectively support your brand as a community of evangelists for your company? The answer is to start loving your devotees, and to give them what they want, a place to network, talk, share advice and continue to preach about your brand. In end, this is what large corporations pay the big bucks
for- reverse marketing by and for your already loyal customers, and it's something you can do yourself.

Take for example a small company in a predicament. Company founders had built a tremendous brand and had a huge following, however, the brand was fragmented and un-controlled online. For years the owners had been known for their passion and love of their business, but they had struggled to produce a web site that would support their loyal fans as well as perpetuate a brand that would speak to new prospective customers.

Their problems sat with an incomplete vision of their online audience & potential reach. Their website spoke to current brand enthusiasts, however could not provide enough of forum for their fans to express their devotion.
As such, YouTube videos, blogs, un-official Facebook fanpages, etc., were appearing across the web and were, in many cases, pulling away from the core values and mission of their business.  Additionally, unless a prospect knew to search for their specific company name or slogan they would not find any official webpages in search results.

How do you build and "feed" a community of loyal customers to continue to build your brand from the inside out as well as open the market and build brand awareness to new, valuable prospects?

Sometimes you need to go big or go home! So in an effort to establish your online brand, sometimes you have to decided to redesign your web site, rewrite all the content for SEO (search engine optimization) and start aggressively utilizing social media to congregate followers! It can be a big job with a big payoff.

Tip #1: Love Your Domain Name & Show the Search Engines You Care: Select a Domain Name For Findability - It Matters!

What is your current domain name?   Does it reflect who you are and what you
do?  Does it reflect how your customers are trying to find you?  Does it include any of your key words for SEO?

Tip # 2: Build New Web Site Look and Feel Consistent with Mission

Does your old site lacked focus with too much going on? The example company included over 60 "options" immediately of what the user could do- so essentially the clear action for a user to take was "do everything … now."
Also, their home page would be used as a clearinghouse for products on sale, giving them the image of being the Wal-Mart of their industry. People who came to the home page who needed help with a specific subject would have to search over several pages to find the answer. A very confusing messaging overall and not consistent with their message.

Their new site has cleared out the clutter and cuts to the chase. Four primary conversion opportunities are presented on EVERY page of the web site. Additionally, their background is consistent with their other product lines on the home page and every interior page. The goals is to present a cohesive user experience that appeals to both the long time devotee, as well as the first time visitor looking for guidance.

Tip #3: Setup Social Media for huge community of followers waiting for your lead.

Have you established a social media presence? Large communities of devoted followers are building their own Facebook pages and are looking for someone like your company who already has a presence. Establish "THE" credible, official place on social media sites your followers can trust.

Taking the dive and reinventing yourself or your business is scary, but even more scary is the inability to adapt and change over time. The Internet is a very fast paced environment and you must stay in touch with mistakes you may have made in your branding and be willing to make it right. Ultimately, you'll see big payoffs and great findabilty for being bold and taking a stand for who you are as a company.

About the Author:
Heather Lutze has spent the last 10 years as CEO of The Findability Group, formerly Lutze Consulting, - a Search Engine Marketing firm that works with companies to attain maximum Internet exposure. A nationally recognized speaker, she is the author of, "The FindAbility Formula: The Simple and Non-Technical Approach To Search Engine Marketing" (Wiley and Sons).
Heather is a lead speaker for Pay Per Click Summit, and previously spent two years speaking for Yahoo! Search Marketing. For more information, visit www.FindabilityGroup.com.