Designation(s): RCM, OLCM
Company: MCRS Property Management
Year entered the profession: 2008
Year RCM obtained: 2015
Other education: York University (English)
Mentor(s) in the industry: My mother! (Deborah Dale). Thanks to my mother, I entered the property management industry with part-time administrative projects for Del Property Management in my high school years. Not long after, I found myself completing my RCM requirements to become a manager. My mother has been in the industry for over 30 years, and her guidance and advice have been invaluable to my success as a manager. We now operate MCRS Property Management together, and it is awesome to see our multi-generational management team in action.
What path brought you to a career as a condominium manager? How has your membership in ACMO helped you in your career? My membership in ACMO has been incredibly helpful for connecting with other industry professionals. Whether through relationships developed at professional development opportunities and industry conferences or through the utilization of the trade directory to find trusted new professionals to service my client sites, I have found great benefit in the membership over the past decade.
What is one must-have skill for a condominium manager? Why? Patience. You will encounter a hundred situations in a day that will require patience, but whether you are listening to a resident’s complaint about their neighbour or educating a Director on Section 98 agreements – put your most patient foot forward. People often feel the most understood and are thereby the most receptive to learning when you take the time to explain things calmly.
Tell us about a personal success story on the job. A Board Director called me in a panic because he could hear a persistent ‘mechanical humming noise’ in a neighbouring unit. Concerned and confused, I headed down to the building to see what the source of the mystery noise was. I reached the unit owner as I drove and advised of the emergency entry to follow, to which they graciously obliged. When I entered the unit, the Director accompanied me and exclaimed, “do you hear it now?!” I heard it, alright! It was an electric toothbrush that had been mistakenly left ON, sitting perched on the bathroom counter. I was relieved that the day would end with a chuckle in place of a mechanical service call.
What’s your biggest challenge as a manager? My biggest challenge as a manager is that I don’t have more time in the day to just talk with my residents. I manage incredible communities full of interesting people, and often I wish my schedule afforded me more time to hear about their lives and who they are.
What’s your favourite part of the job? My favourite part of the job is the relationships I can develop with my residents, colleagues, and co-workers; watching (and cheering) from the sidelines as major events in their lives unfold is an honour.
Best business advice you ever received. Winston Churchill said: “perfection is the enemy of progress.” No property manager is perfect, and perfection is an unreasonable goal in any pursuit. Whatever your business, strive to be proactive and conscientious in all that you do, and leave the quest for perfection at the door.
Answer this statement – I am an RCM because… The designation signifies a higher level of understanding of (and commitment to) condominium management.
Where do you see yourself in five years? Right where I am right now: managing incredible communities in Northern Ontario. I feel truly blessed to have found a career that allows me to collaborate every day with knowledgeable professionals to help communities thrive in an area that I love.
What recent project that you completed can we highlight? I am a frequent contributor to various industry-based publications; sharing my knowledge and experience with others is something I am passionate about. And I am always encouraging others to consider a career in condominium management – it is a rapidly growing industry with much to offer young professionals!
