Continuing Versus Continuous Education

How would you rate the teachers you had in school and professors in college?

 

Like all professions, there are people who perform well and those who do not, with the majority sitting somewhere between those extremes and with most doing well or good enough.

 

After formal schooling, most workers find there are continuing education requirements for their chosen career. Doctors, Dentists, Accountants, Lawyers, Real Estate Agents and many other professions require participants take courses to learn fundamental skills and periodic classes to brush up or learn new and improved methods.

 

Long ago, formal requirements for continuing education were unusual. Today, Federal, State and even local governments, along with professional organizations (such as the Legal "Bar") set standards and demand practitioners take classes and pass exams. States have hundreds of licenses. You'll need a training to operate a cemetery, sell cars, or operate campground sales.

 

In a prior career as a mergers and acquisitions intermediary selling mid-sized companies, having a real estate brokerage license was required. Taking the classes was not a burden, but provided zero instruction on how to market, structure and sell corporations.  

 

Unfortunately, the by-product of excessive licensing implies that people who have a certificate are qualified to do the work for which they have a license. For example, it implied that someone who has taken only 60 clock hours, is qualified to help a corporation sell out. That is dangerous for business sellers and buyers. So such a requirement deceives consumers.

 

Lodging operators of inns, resorts and vacation rentals have no such requirements for continuing education. But meetings, seminars, and conferences have sprung up where participants can hear from experts, learn techniques, and even argue about best practices. Like many other industries, lodging education has become dominated by vendors to the industry, who have something to sell, rather than the people who are actually out running properties.

 

So how is a property owner to know which managers are qualified and which are not? The answer is to look for managers who are committed to continuous self-education, not just continuing education. This month's newsletter provides a guide for doing just that.

 

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There are vast differences in the competence of lodging managers. Education is helpful, but does not reveal the manager's commitment. Technology affects income dramatically, but do they have the correct tech? Experience is helpful, but not if the manager does not apply lessons hard learned.  

 

In recent years, AirBnB has suggested owners could just hire a nearby neighbor to manage their homes. Or find another self-managed owner and entice them to take on your house. Unfortunately, using amateurs is risky because they know not the whole picture.

 

Ours is a seemingly simple industry, but saddled with hundreds of tasks, and requiring knowledge that has changed dramatically almost every month for decades, and should be expected to continue to continue to morph forever. Think of these things when interviewing prospective lodging managers.

 

Needs: Fully outline your expectations and needs. Do you want a manager to hold your hand on a daily basis or one who performs their duties well and reacts swiftly to changing demands like rates, competitors and, even, the weather.

 

Knowledge: Admit what you already know and what you do not know. Ask managers about their procedures for each and every little thing. Then, let the manager perform.  

 

Questions:  Ask manager candidates deep questions. Require that they have proven policies and procedures for most anything you can imagine. If its not written down, they do not.

 

Continuous: Ask how they learned their craft, how long they have been doing it, and how they continually educate themselves and staff members. Without that your house is at risk.

 

Commitment: Are they are available 24-76-365 for guest and property needs? While after-hours requests are rare, you want leaders who always step up and take charge. Most managers do not.

 

Attitude: You may find this idea unusual, but in a consumer facing business, managers who are up-beat, unflappable, and happy to serve elevate your property above the rest. (It is not easy.)

 

Managers who are newer will be unable to answer every question, and may be unable to answer most questions. Experienced, leader-type managers will have seen about every possible scenario when it comes to managing homes. Such as:

 

Guests who arrive early before the home is re-cleaned or leave late, cutting cleaning time. Storms that flood roads. Counties that fight rentals. Advertising websites that act irresponsibly. Guests who try extortion a free stay. Credit cards that bounce.

 

Professionals who already know how to handle those situations are primed to take care of them without fuss. These are the managers who will produce the best possible outcome for your property.

 

Cost: The first question that most property owners ask managers is, "what is your fee?". While that is important, there are dozens of other questions that will affect the property's profit even more. Rates, advertising, reservation staffing, accounting and, even, legal staff. Balance them all to get success.