Property management looks different when you’ve sat in more than one chair.
I’ve spent close to four decades in property management, and in that time, I’ve seen the business from just about every side of the table.
I’ve been the Property Manager dealing with the pressure at the desk.
I’ve led departments and teams.
I’ve run businesses for other people and owned one myself.
And I’ve been responsible for the people, the operation and the commercial result.
That experience has taught me something important.
Same business. Different perspectives.
A Director might see a team that needs to take more ownership.
The Property Management leader might see a team that needs more direction — while spending most of their own day putting out fires.
And the Property Manager might simply be trying to make the right decision without getting it wrong.
They’re all looking at the same business.
They’re just seeing it from different chairs.
And that’s often where I start.
Not with a predetermined answer. Not with another system, restructure or training program because it sounds like the obvious solution.
First, I want to understand what’s actually happening.
Because good people can hide poor systems. A capable leader can spend so much time solving problems that they never get the opportunity to lead. And a Director can gradually become the answer to every question without ever intending to.
What looks like a people problem might actually be a structure problem.
What looks like a training problem might be a leadership problem.
What looks like a workload problem might be the way the work itself has been designed.
Sometimes the obvious answer is right.
Sometimes it isn’t.
So, how did I get here?
My career in property management started nearly four decades ago, and I’ve been fortunate enough to experience an enormous amount of change in that time.
I’ve managed properties, led teams and departments, built and run property management businesses, trained and mentored Property Managers and leaders, and worked alongside business owners trying to improve the performance of their operations.
I’ve built rent rolls, worked through difficult markets, recruited and restructured teams, introduced new roles and systems, dealt with the legislation and compliance changes that come with this industry, and had responsibility for both the people and the numbers.
Along the way I’ve been recognised as Property Manager of the Year twice and, more recently, as Industry Influencer of the Year.
I’m proud of those things.
But they’re not really the point.
The value of that experience isn’t the list of things I’ve done.
It’s the perspective it’s given me.
It means that when a Director tells me they’re frustrated, I can understand their side of the table.
When a leader tells me they’re overwhelmed, I’ve sat in that chair too.
And when a Property Manager tells me what something looks like from the desk, I haven’t forgotten what that feels like either.
That’s what I bring to PM Coach.
Not a formula for how every property management business should operate.
Another perspective on how yours could work better.
What I believe
Property management will always be a busy business.
But busy doesn’t have to mean chaotic.
I believe good leadership is a capability, not simply a job title. That people need enough authority to take responsibility. That professional judgement matters. And that good people shouldn’t have to spend their working lives compensating for problems in the business around them.
The goal isn’t to create an operation where nothing ever goes wrong.
It’s to build one capable of dealing with problems, growth and change without everything becoming reactive.
Calm is an operational outcome.
And sometimes getting there starts with seeing the business from another perspective.
