How to Handle Slacking Board Members
How do you handle a condo board member that refuses to pull his weight?
You must find a way to handle the situation if you’re ever confronted with an unreliable, lazy or overstretched HOA board member or it might lead to resentment which has a way of affecting the effectiveness of the entire condo board and the condominium community as a whole. Also see: 6 Philadelphia HOA Association Must-Know Tricks For Engaging Residents On Social Media
Here are three steps you can follow to settle the issue amicably.
- Review the individual responsibilities of every HOA board member: This is a great way to handle the situation without seeming confrontational. This way, you clarify your expectations of the condo board members without necessarily focusing on the ineptitude of one person. There’s a possibility that they were unclear about their duties, so this will help them shape up since they’re now aware of the effect of their ineptitude on the group.
- Have a private discussion about their obligations: Is there enough time for them to be active on the condo board? Are they overwhelmed by the commitment? Is there any extenuating circumstance that they’ve failed to inform you about? Do they need time-out? Do you need to shift any of their HOA obligations to another board member? Give them the opportunity to explain or even resign voluntarily before trying to get them off the board.
- Conduct an investigation to find out just how deep the issue is: If you notice that the ineptitude involves more than one board member, you might need to do a survey to find out why they’re slacking. Is it that the HOA meetings are too long or the time is just not convenient? Are your expectations unreasonable? Do they feel disengaged because they don’t find the work meaningful enough? You need to discuss these things openly and find a solution as a group.
You might also want to consider employing the services of a property manager with the requisite skills to help you make the right decisions in such matters as well as other management issues.