Technology Must be a Pro-active Tool to Maximize Building Management Effectiveness

Howard Lazarus
Principal
Tudor Realty Services Corp.

Everyone, personally and professionally, has embraced technology to some degree. E-mail, Palm Pilots, cell phones, intranets, extranets and the internet long ago lost their novelty to become a way of life. Saying that we embrace the use of technology is, however, a far cry from actually reaping the benefits that can be derived from understanding its full capabilities in order to maximize its productive power.

Take the example of using technology to enhance communication among shareholders, boards, resident staff and management agents. Certainly technology has improved the process. What used to take 15 phone calls to board members can now be achieved via one e-mail to all board members as an e-mail group. No call backs. No voice mail. No phone tag. No frustration.

But, much more importantly, there is a vast difference between simple improvement of communications and deploying technology to serve as a pro-active management tool. Long before the advent of the personal computer, it was understood by large corporations that one of technology's functions was to provide management information systems. It is the extent to which the speed, ease, accuracy, currency, depth and breadth of communication is optimized - and how the resulting efficiency is used - that achieves technology's ultimate purpose: raising the bar on what any management team can accomplish.

Seen this way, technology's purpose is not homework that you do before the next board meeting to present a computerized financial report. It is short-sighted to decide its supreme purpose is that of dry reporting rather than creative use as an efficiency and quality improvement tool.

The totality of the tools that technology makes available must be understood so that they can be applied to alert building managers to areas that need attention and can benefit from improvement.

Take the example of financial reporting. Reports that compare actual results to budget are best used as a management tool when they are both timely and accurate. At Tudor Realty Services, we use proprietary financial software to reconcile client bank statements automatically every month, comparing those statements with the information in our system before sending out our reports.

This results in both rapid and accurate production of the reports. Our entire management team can then quickly review the results, looking for significant variances from budget and other key management issues. In turn, this value-added, technology-driven service enhances our clients' ability to make sound financial decisions based on an assurance of completely current, accurate information. There is no chance that an error at the bank, an incorrect entry, a delayed deposit or withdrawal, or an undiscovered bounced check received from a shareholder will come back to haunt them.

We are also firmly committed to using technology to complement and supplement our team approach to client service and problem solving. As modern technology pushes us to think and work beyond four walls, Tudor has eliminated the need to do business between only those office walls. Thus, we have initiated an internet-based virtual private network so that every team member can access e-mail from anywhere, including any of our offices and home computers, anytime, subject to sophisticated log-in and security restrictions.

As another example of our commitment to stay ahead of the curve through constructive, positive use of technology, Tudor Realty Services recently launched TudorConnect.com, an online service exclusively developed and customized for buildings we manage.

TudorConnect.com presents comprehensive information, including instructions, authorizations and rules, on topics such as resales, refinance, window guards, sublets and alterations. Unit owners and other building residents can conveniently and easily access and download information from the user-friendly website through a user ID and password. Authorized board members may also access current financial information including details of income, expenses and collections.

Taking technology another step further, each building's portion of the TudorConnect.com website can also be customized to post newsletters, building directories and e-mail links to the building superintendent.

No commentary about technology is complete without addressing how technology affects the one-on-one, personal communication that is the at the very heart of all service businesses.

Building management is, was and always will be a people business. Technology, when used appropriately, is neither alienating, nor a substitute for personal attention. We have found, for example, that a building treasurer who has a question about financials and e-mails us at midnight because that is when it is convenient to do so, certainly does not expect a phone call at 2:00 AM but appreciates an immediate e-mail response the next morning. The personal phone call that may or may not follow will be based on timely receipt of information and, as a result, be productively on point.

When used as a sophisticated management tool, technology's ability to keep us in touch anywhere, anytime eliminates excuses for not getting a response out and frees up time for managers to meet with boards and building staff, walk a building and facilitate improvements.

The bottom line of all technology-driven building management services is to enhance personal responsiveness and productivity for all those who live in and manage a building.

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