On Thursday, May 21, nearly 100 CAA members met at Crooked Can Brewery for a General Meeting panel discussing Passion vs Paycheck presented by a panel of CAA Members. 

CAA Executive Director Laura Swanson welcomed the attendees and presented the awards from the Bowling for Charity event to Chadwell Supply with the highest team score and to Kyle Vagnier from Unified Residential Management with the highest individual score.  Swanson then recognized all of the Hall of Fame members and Past President’s in the room before turning the podium over to CAA President Chris Rohrbacher.

Rohrbacher introduced all the new CAA members in attendance prior to introducing CAA Vice President and panel moderator, Noelle Smith. 

Smith welcomed panelists, Ally Edwards, Coastal Ridge Real Estate, Andrea King, LINK property Management, Kendra Miller, BRG Realty Group and Tanisha Sievers, GoldOller to join her on the panel. 
Smith began by asking each panelist why individuals are seeking out multifamily as a career and asking, “what is their why?”

Edwards opened the conversation saying that she believes it’s because it’s an industry where you can make an impact from your first day as a leasing consultant and a career where one can have relationships and connections with residents and team members while establishing skills that are transferable.  She also mentioned the variety that comes with the career being something that attracts people. 

King agreed with the idea that variety really brings people in, on any given day one can wear multiple hats, financial analyst, interior designer, marketer, counselor, project manager and those skills open doors for other opportunities within the industry.  She also stated that the idea of wanting to help and serve people who are finding homes is a draw to the career. 

Miller echoed the idea that variety is a selling point that no two days are the same and they can be equally exciting and challenging but that allows individuals to grow.  Speaking to the growth opportunities Miller stated she believes there’s a growing number of people looking for a multifamily career because it allows one to move up faster than other industries. 

Next, Smith asked the panel what they see as the biggest barrier to attracting top talent with so much to offer someone for a long-term career. 

Sievers began by stating that it’s as simple as educating people on the industry – it’s not just leasing apartments. But, she noted, people aren’t prepared for the scope of work, it is very different than what people think they’re getting into.  It’s managing occupancy goals, resident satisfaction, vendor relations, emergencies, financial goals, real estate strategies.  Sometimes it is just something people fall into, especially at entry levels.  “Retaining is a whole different thing, right? Retaining our top talent is very centric to that person’s leader,” Sievers said. “Retaining talent is a matter of the team feeling supported, heard, understood and understanding the growth that we can create for them and really prioritizing development and flexibility are the companies that do the best job at retaining the top talent.”

Next the panel discussed the differences they see between tenured employees and new employees. Smith asked if they’re motivated and excited by different things and why they keep coming back. 

Edwards answered by stating, “It’s pay.  Some of it is pay, it just is.  We can talk about that why, but at the end of the day my dogs expect food on the table,” she said.  “Specifically in the maintenance sector, we are seeing people leave for a dollar and that’s tough.  We can create a fantastic culture, I think what we have to do better as an industry, that at Coastal Ridge we’re really trying to lean into is the career pathing.  Show them a clear path of how they get to the next level.”

She continued by saying that new employees come in wanting to know about the culture.  How will mistakes be handled, how do I get growth, how are you going to invest in me.  The new generation is interviewing employers as much as they’re being interviewed.  Tenured employees want a voice; they want to protect the culture they have enjoyed and want to make sure that it’s not going to go away. 

Miller agreed that for newer employees pay is a factor, but “I think that they’re ‘why’ is a lot more self-related, I think it’s driven by their career goals, long-term goals they have, promotion opportunities.  I think that is why they continue to show up on a day-to-day basis,” she said. “Our more tenured employees may have already met some of those career goals.  They are looking more bigger picture items, whether that’s meeting goals for their property. I agree they want a voice in those things; they are looking for more collaboration amongst themselves and their corporate office.  I definitely see a difference in why they show up every day based on how long they’ve been with the company.

Smith next asked how the panelists keep their employees inspired and motivated, how do they bring out the best version. 

A team-oriented mentality among the sites, through the regions up to the corporate office and constantly pushing out to teams that it is teamwork, Miller began.  Constantly reminding them that leadership has confidence and will be there to back them up. 

Edwards agreed stating that it can be an isolated business and reinforcing in any way possible that employees are not alone, designating time to sit and talk with them.  Letting them know that they’re empowered and trying not to micromanage, talking about the wins, but more importantly talking about the effort behind the wins. 

Partnerships are important to continued success and those with vendor partners are no exception. Sievers began by saying that “Our vendor partners wouldn’t be here without us, and we wouldn’t be here without them. This is a mutual relationship,” she said. “Vendors who understand what we’re going through, we’re dealing with an emergency over here, a spreadsheet that needs done by 3:00 over there, we’re dealing with a leasing agent that called out over here, we’re dealing with so many different things, if you could just come in and say ‘what can I do for you.’ Respect for what the on-site teams are dealing with and a culture of respect.”  

King continued by saying “I think the obvious thing is that we serve residents, we serve ownership.  Residents and owners want results right now.  Over communication is so important,” she said.  “The teams go through so many interruptions on a daily basis.  My advice to vendors is, it’s a partnership.  There are times we’re relying on you to make us look good. 

The panel took time for a few questions from the audience before Rohrbacher returned to draw the name of the gift card winners. Gift cards were generously donated by 614-Contractors, Intersolutions Staffing, ServiceMaster by Neverman and ServPro. 

Swanson returned to thank everyone for attending and encouraging them to attend the CAA Golf Outing and Expo.