So, You Want to Be a Regional Property Manager?

Most industry professionals start as a leasing consultant and progressively climb the leadership ranks to the
property manager role and currently grow with that opportunity for several years. However, a number of these
leaders have an aspiration to manage and lead a team of property managers; The Regional Property Manager. This
crucial organizational role requires fluidity, flexibility, transparency and vision. A role that many think as a piece of
cake until you walk in the day to day operations. In this review, I hope that value is found in my shared
experiences and thoughts on what it takes to be a GREAT Regional Property Manager (RPM).

As a Regional Property Manager, you will be required to handle multiple items at any given time and must be able
to execute the business plan with rarely completely the task on hand yourself. I have put a check list of 10 points
of action, that I have used to become successful and what might be useful to an aspiring Regional Property
Manager.

1. Goal Setting; A RPM must set goals both for their teams and themselves. The primary key to driving
success at the RPM level is to get the “buy-in” first on the goals and is equally important to set
accountability measures to weigh in the track of success. This can be as often as you feel necessary, but I
would recommend no less than bi-weekly on critical goals.
2. Market Data; A RPM must be a market or submarket expert on all the assigned geographic real estate.
This includes financial growth perceptions, market competition objections, employment growth and
partnership opportunities, local/national legislative items, and the incoming/outgoing business
transaction (or trades). This is critical when speaking with investors, partners, clients, or your own
company.
3. Internal/External Partnerships; A RPM must be able to cultivate relationships with internal departments
such as HR, IT, Marketing, Accounting, Procurement, Regional Maintenance or Construction, Asset
Management, and Training. The details between these relationships often are critical to your onsite
teams receiving the support they each need to be successful and therefore drive the vision of the business
plan. External relationships with the vendors are equally important, in critical times of needs or when
market conditions shift, often these relationships can provide great intel and be a support through during
changes.
4. Professional Development; Take every possible opportunity to encourage talent development of yourself
and your team. As leaders of an evolving industry we are only as good as the knowledge we embed into
our leadership style. Take the time be a constant reminder of this push in your vision, by achieving and
attending all that you can in your career.
5. Engagement; To engage your team members of all levels is vital to your success. Community site visits
are NOT computer or desk based. They are field, model, clubhouse, fitness center, or any space that can
be used for engagement. The ability to drive your team visits with practical and uninterrupted
conversations by task or pending emails, is a key to building a great overall team moral.
6. Accountability; Team members want to know that goals mean something to you. Take the time to build
the challenge for your team and ensure that measure are set to check in on the results and celebrate the
achievements and review the opportunities.
7. Be Authentic; Your teams, clients, leaders and customers want to see YOU for you!
8. Create Leaders; In your community managers, you are their influence to become the leaders of tomorrow
and the builder of the company’s future talent. Embrace the challenges together and take those
reflections to build on what has been “Done” and repeat or not.
9. Service Foot Forward; Develop an environment where not only you strategize with customer and client
service, but your teams put this before all other needs. In today’s evolving market place, the
differentiator that is the easiest and most memorable will be that service invested touch.
 10. HAVE FUN; Your work days are going to be busy, overwhelming at times, hectic, or maybe even
emotional, but even with those challenges you have HUGE responsibility of leading a team of 50 to 60
people that depend on you. This team also expects you to LAUGH at yourself and LAUGH with them!

I hope that after reading the above you have found this helpful and most of all gives you some skillsets that you
may need to be a great regional leader!

Jeremy Milton

09.05.2020