Episode 4: Acting Sustainably – Stakeholder Buy in, Governance, and Policy
This is article is the second in a five-part series on sustainability in the condominium context. Read Article three here.
Stakeholder Buy-In
All the way back in the first article of our series, we identified 4 main stakeholders at a condominium corporation. These are the Unit Owners, the Renters/Occupants, the Condominium Manager/Management Firm, and the Environment.
These stakeholders are the parties/entities that have an interest in the actions of the condominium corporations. Said otherwise, these are the people “who care and are affected by the condominium.”
Stakeholder buy-in refers to the idea that the stakeholders need to be “onboard” with the actions of the condominium and its board of directors. They don’t have to be directly for or against any one item, but they must agree with the overall direction.
How to get Stakeholder Buy-In: Examples
To discuss how one can get stakeholder buy-in, let’s first look at some examples: the federal/provincial political process.
Sustainability in the units thus focuses on education, and on making the sustainable option the easiest option.
1. Hold an Election
During elections political parties publish their “platform.” They go to great lengths to design a platform with the ideas and concepts that they believe in. These are published far and wide, for all to see.
If a political party is elected, they begin to (hopefully) act in accordance with their platform. The idea is that by getting elected they know that they have the support of the electorate to act according to their platform.
2. Focus Groups and Community Meetings
At all levels of government, focus groups and community meetings are a way for policymakers (politicians) and civic administrators to learn about the wants and needs of the population. These meetings are designed to unpack and understand what the population needs, and how services can be designed to meet their needs.
How to Test for Stakeholder Buy-In: In a Condominium Corporation
In a condominium corporation there are no political parties and candidates rarely have any sort of platform. A corporation more often worries about having enough candidates, rather than choosing between equally qualified candidates with differing platforms.
Thus, it is important to adjust the stakeholder buy-in process to reflect life in a condominium corporation. Instead of having elections with platforms or multiple rounds of consultation meetings over years, it is easier for the current board of directors to poll their owners. As these are not elections and are not regulated by the Condominium Act or Canada Elections Act, they are less formal and easier to operate. Instead of a formal voting process in person or by proxy, a simple poll can be administered over email using SurveyMonkey or Doodle. Owners can answer if they want to, but by no means is it obligatory.
These polls are non-binding. This means the board has the option of following up on some but not all actions described by the poll or disregarding the results entirely. However, in our experience this rarely happens. The board typically approaches the results of these polls with a great deal of interest, as they reflect the “will” of the people. The board learns which actions or initiatives have the buy-in of their constituents (the owners).
The board will have many questions to consider, and the Condominium Manager can be an excellent resource to help the board.
How will the poll be distributed? Email? Paper?
What questions are asked?
How does the board ensure proper question design?
Is the survey anonymous?
Will survey results be published?
How long will the survey be open for participation?
How many votes are required for a particular item before the board considers them?
Governance
The board of directors “governs” the condominium corporation. But more broadly, governance is about decision making, accountability, control, and behaviour at the top of an entity (in our case the condominium corporation).
In our case, let’s focus in on governance in terms of how and which decisions are made, and specifically discuss the formal documents of the condominium corporation: the Declaration, By-Laws, Rules, and Policies.
As mentioned above, surveys and polls are informal and non-binding. This means that they do not factor into the formal governance of the corporation and are not reflected in the formal documents of the condominium. However, this can change with the will of the corporation and owners.
By understanding the will of the owners, the board of directors can take steps to act based on their needs and wants. If there is a desire for the corporation to implement sustainability initiatives, these can be initiated by the board. The board has the ability to change many small but high impact items by decree alone, without changing contracts, etc. These can be as simple as changing the temperatures on the HVAC system, changing the schedule on the grass watering, the addition of electric vehicle chargers (with exceptions) and a host of other changes.
The board can also initiate more formal changes as a result of polling the owners. We’ll discuss that presently.
Policy
Policy is a difficult word to pin down precisely, particularly if want to avoid engaging experts in political science. For our purposes let’s define policy as “the formal procedures by which decisions are made, and actions are taken” as in:
Our policy is to charge owners cleanup costs for littering in the common areas.
Our corporation’s policy is that the windows do not form part of the common elements, and owners are responsible for their own window replacement.
The board’s policy is that repair costs above 1% of the annual budget are to be paid out of the reserve fund.
Polices exist so that the board of directors, management firm, and individual managers make decisions and act in a way that is consistent and fair for all owners. Policies must be supported by the condominium corporation’s documents. The declaration, by-laws, rules, written policies, and even board meeting minutes serve to support actions the condominium corporation makes.
The condominium corporation’s documents therefore serve as a conduit where the “will of the owners” can be adopted into a written policy. From the point when a policy is adopted, the board has a clear “rulebook” to follow to ensure that the decisions are made consistently and fairly.
Types of sustainable policies:
How contracts are procured, and what attention is paid to various sustainability measures in each received bid.
How capital items are replaced, and how much attention is paid to items beyond price. Does the efficiency of the proposed HVAC system have a bearing on the system chosen?
We’ll continue our discussion and put sustainable polices into effect through RFPs, Contracts, and Contractors in our final article.
Michael Trendota, MBA, CPM, RCM
President
Michael is a condominium management professional with experience working closely with condominium corporations, board members, and residents. Using his experience building and operating small businesses, he focuses on creating high-performing teams delivering excellent results to owners, residents, and partners. He has experience operating multi-location properties with large and diverse teams. Michael holds a Masters of Business Administration from Queen’s University, is a Certified Property Manager, a Registered Condominium Manager, and is a CMRAO licensed Condominium Manager.
Michael serves the condominium management industry in several additional capacities. He teaches Physical Building Management and Financial Management at Mohawk College. These two courses form part of the mandatory curriculum for condominium managers in the Province of Ontario. Michael also sits on numerous boards and committees, such as the Association of Condominium Managers (ACMO) membership committee, is a frequent guest speaker and lecturer at the Canadian Condominium Institute (CCI), among a variety of other engagements.
* Though written by a qualified and experienced Condominium Manager, this article is not intended as legal advice. Our team is available to discuss formal advisory relationships.
