Time to check in with our PM Transform teams to see what they have learned in their journey so far. Our four teams include a director, property manager and BDM from each office working together to transform their business and their careers.
Team R&W Hurlstone Park
Adriana Dendrinos, Principal
I feel really privileged to have been given the opportunity through the Transform Program to have access to such a diverse range of speakers and information about our industry. One of my favourite things so far has been the psychological profiles from Agent Dynamics. These were real eye-openers both for me personally and for the team. I think understanding how staff best work, and what their particular strengths and weaknesses are, will be invaluable knowledge to propel our business forward.
Peter Knight gave a great session at ARPM on PM businesses in the UK. The concept of providing a menu of concierge-type services struck me as a great business model to aim for, moving the focus of our business from the transactional to the advisory and therefore becoming ‘trusted advisors’, less likely to be replaced by technology down the track.
Top tips from Adriana
- Listen to your staff – they have great, frontline, practical ideas to help you drive change through your business;
- Be the master of technology – control it and use it to make the mundane tasks almost automatic, but don’t let it control or distract you from your objectives.
Mary Karam, Property Manager
I think one of my favourite lessons so far has been how to minimise conflict by understanding how it unfolds, recognising different personalities and tailoring our communication, plus learning the different outcomes from an emotional versus a rational reaction.
Top tips from Mary
- Set goals for yourself, but think carefully; the aim should be to increase your time, results and profit, and reduce your stress!
- Try to get all tenants on monthly payments. This way you reduce your follow-up calls and the cost incurred to the business for every transaction.
Angela Caukill, Leasing and New Business
I really enjoyed Samantha’s session on identifying different personality types, and loved the Agent Dynamics debrief to see how we can work better together as a team.
Top tips from Angela
- Make sure you stand out from the crowd, and make sure everyone’s experience is a positive and rewarding one.
- Be your local and market expert: remember, knowledge is power.
Team Property Management HQ, Central Coast
Kelley Seaton, Director
John Knight’s session drilled down on the elements of business and internal workings on performance growth, drivers of value, removing waste and giving us his tips and insights. My take-home of his session was to profit benchmark, and how to add more value, and how to remove waste.
Top tips from Kelley
- You should consider getting rid of properties that are perhaps lower commissions, or those out-of-zone properties. It’s about quality, not quantity.
- Work out your waste and eliminate it; for example, travelling to out-of-zone properties costs time and money, and may not be worth it.
Kim Clewett, Property Manager
My favourite thing about Transform so far has been Heidi Walkinshaw from Real+ coaching me to manage my time more effectively. Second is seeing our profiles from Agent Dynamics. It is amazing when all the profiles are combined and you see how you look as a team!
Top tips from Kim
- Achieve better time management skills by allowing 10 to 15 minutes every afternoon to make a to-do list for the following day.
- To survive this crazy world that is property management, always be yourself. If you have a passion for what you do you will always succeed.
Haley Hawkins, BDM
I have taken away many things from this experience so far, but the ones coming to mind are about the social styles of people and learning what these are, and knowing that our approach cannot be ‘one size fits all’!
Top tips from Haley
- When pitching at a listing presentation be confident, genuine, authentic and create trust. Find out what the client needs or wants and use this to your advantage.
- Make sure you do all the little things right, know your stuff and be confident!
Team Zelle, Albury
Philip Bell, Principal
I now know we need to make property management our number one. More particular focus is needed in my office for the development of the PM department. To this end, we are building better systems, focusing more on KPIs and revamping our marketing.
A tip from Phil
- As a result of everything we’ve learned, we have decided to go to a cloud-based PM software system and have trialled the two we shortlisted. We will be ready to go to migration next month, all things going to plan!
Robert Bell, BDM
Where do I start? The sessions we have had have all been incredible. Just to talk with and work alongside like-minded people in the industry has been a great eye-opener on how to do things better. Lauren Kirk from Real+ has been my personal coach for business development and has been fantastic to work with. My favourite session to date has been the Lead Generation with Real+. This was a fantastic way to really open up my mind, from using my existing clients to how to build new business and where to find it. A great refresher for anyone!
Top tips from Rob
- Continue to educate the landlord about property management, even once you have secured the management.
- Be confident about your fees when presenting them at an appraisal; take ownership of them.
Kira Bauerle, Property Manager
All the sessions have been fantastic. My favourite things would be the use of a time log, time planning for better time management, be your own brand and how technology has really evolved in our industry!
A tip from Kira
- In our industry our words are our tools. We need to have the ability to give clients a clear understanding of our jargon to resolve issues and manage conflict successfully.
Team Harcourts Adelaide Hills
Trent Shorland, Director
The most important thing I have learned so far was in my private mentoring session with Fiona, when we discussed and worked out what my hourly rate was. We then dug deeper into questioning what jobs I should be doing based on my hourly rate. I now find myself analysing every job I do and challenging myself to change my thought processes!
Top tips from Trent
- The profiling of our staff, plus myself, that was completed by Julie and Neil of Agent Dynamics has many benefits, both individually and as a group!
- I also think we need to constantly look at the technology we are using; property management is an area that moves quickly and so it is important to make sure the technology can support it.
Kerry Holding, BDM
As a BDM it’s so hard to know what to do first sometimes, and I’ve really enjoyed learning how to prioritise lead generation (tools, tips and tricks) from Lauren at Real+. She has helped make everything very clear and simple.
Top tips from Kerry
- At ARPM Samantha McLean said we shouldn’t be afraid of change; you have to stay curious in an ever-changing world.
- If you are a BDM, structure a call plan and track which activities generate the most leads.
Rachel Torney, Property Manager
The PM Transform process has been by far the best thing to date for my career. One of the many beneficial things that have happened has been getting my agent profile done by Agent Dynamics; it has changed the way in which I approach every task, knowing my strengths and challenges. Getting the chance to have one-on-one coaching plus group coaching sessions has been very informative and helpful.
Top tips from Rachel
- I would thoroughly encourage any PM, or anyone in real estate, to get an agent profile done by Agent Dynamics.
- Just be authentic and caring.
Meet the current round of ‘Transformers’
Transform would not be possible without our fantastic coaches and industry suppliers who have provided some amazing coaching and tools for our PM Transform teams. Here is a snapshot of some thoughts from our coaches.
Fiona Blayney, Head Coach and Program Mentor
I knew that Transform was going to be an amazing journey; I had so much to give and was excited to get started. In truth, I had not prepared myself for what I would gain from this process. Each week I look forward to our sessions. I have learnt so much from each one of the participants; their energy, humility, gratitude and dedication continue to inspire me.
In saying that, it’s been pretty gruelling at times. We’ve cut deep and peeled back the layers of years, some personal, some business; we’ve worked hard to identify our truth and our desires for the future. We’ve been breaking lots of stuff, but in true Transform style everyone has been painstakingly putting things back together. It’s not about where you are right now; it’s about where you want to be, and these guys are working hard to make it happen. I am truly honoured to be working with such an inspiring group of people.
Heidi Walkinshaw
Whilst Rome wasn’t built in a day, it’s inspiring to see what can be achieved when you put your mind to it. Transform has reaffirmed the notion that you really can do anything; the challenge is working out what that anything is! It has given me such joy helping our participants unpack their world and prepare for the adventure ahead. We’ve been working through each process in the office, deconstructing it and utilising the content from each week’s session, as well as the Real+ methods, quickly constructing a new city.
Lauren Kirk
It’s one thing to know what to do, it’s another to put it into practice, and incredible to be doing it in rapid time. Working with the new-business managers has been a rollercoaster as they each work to establish their personal growth plan and start putting it into practice. So much opportunity has been discovered; whilst a good problem to have, it’s been hard work emotionally and physically to gain momentum. The light is coming, but there is no time to rest. For any of us!
Charles Tarbey, CEO Century 21 Australasia
At the first Transform event I spoke about creating short-term objectives in a quality environment – the environment being both physically and emotionally appealing. We spend most of our waking day getting ready for, getting to, being at and winding down from work. If we are not comfortable and not achieving daily wins, the pleasure of work disappears and the pain sets in.
I believe communication is the key for property management success. Most property management structures have an individual dealing with a number of landlords and tenants, meaning that when a landlord or tenant needs information, the phone tagging begins if that person is not available.
I urge all property managers to place emphasis on maintaining a speedy and professional line of communication between tenants, landlords and your property management team.
Sarah Bell, LinkLearn
It was no surprise to me that the Transform program had attracted such an engaging and positive group! Understanding the model of how conflict works and how people behave by default as parties in conflict is a crucial skill for property managers, who need to resolve issues and restore relationships so that the best interests of the client are represented within the broader considerations of the tenancy. Speaking with some of the group afterwards, it was rewarding to see how their minds had turned to using this new knowledge and how they are applying it to the situations they are dealing with right now, whether with clients or in the workplace.
Neil Williams, Agent Dynamics
Julie and I have had a great time working with the Transform participants. Their enthusiasm for our Performance Management Profiling has been fantastic and we really enjoyed interacting with the individual teams when we de-briefed them on their results. We really got a sense of their commitment to improvement and a ready acceptance of the benefits of team profiling. The standout for us was the strength of culture that was rock-solid in all the teams. Culture really is the glue that binds successful businesses together and is the common thread to success. Well done to them all, and we look forward to following their journeys.
John Knight, Business Depot
Whether you are striving for profit, striving for growth in value or striving for both, you need to be able to track the performance of your property management business distinct from any other division of your business. Once you have clarity on your business and how it is performing, you can focus on the one-percenters that will increase your profit and/or grow your rent roll. I look forward to seeing the Dynamic Dozen taking their businesses to the next level!
Fiona Mott, Rockend
It’s been a terrific experience to be part of PM Transform. We hear about business intelligence and the collation of data into meaningful reports and are often overwhelmed with the number of reports we need to sift through to gain this insight. Now we are able to view our property management office KPI statistics on a highly visual dashboard: realbenchmark. Furthermore, we can benchmark those metrics to truly measure our KPIs to other comparable businesses – a real gamechanger! The PM Dynamic Dozen have amazing energy and now, with great insight into their businesses, I’m looking forward to seeing some amazing results.
Hannah Gill, Independent Property Management
It was really great to work with the Dynamic Dozen – their hunger to learn and challenge themselves is exciting. I enjoyed the opportunity to share with them my experiences as a BDM – it’s all about doing the little things well and adding value to stand out from the crowd. I have total confidence in their ability to do this and I’m sure they’ll continue to achieve and excel. Watch this space – we’re going to see great things from them. As I put it to them, “be so good they can’t ignore you”.
