Committees - Consider Ad Hoc Committees

Many Community Managers and Board of Directors have a lot of tasks. Meanwhile, there are a number of things that are pressing but tedious and require a significant amount of time to accomplish. When you have homeowners who want to be involved, a great way to get participation is by suggesting that homeowners join committees based on topics those homeowners are interested in.



There are the Association's regular Committees, and then there are Ad Hoc Committees. The regular Committees are the long-standing Committees where Committee Members continue to work on projects regularly. Ad Hoc Committees are one-time committees to specifically handle a special project.



Some examples of regular Committees and the suggested function of members are:



Social Committee

Members could plan the community events. This Committee is key in creating a friendlier living environment while creating fun community events. In turn, member participation in social events actually results in members obtaining more information on what is going on in the community.



Budget / Finance Committee

Some Associations find this Committee useful for just a few months each year during the budget preparation process. The Committee members generally review the reserve study, offer guidance and feedback to the Board on the reserve study, and either review the budget draft as prepared by the manager or Board or prepare the initial draft of the budget to provide to the Board. For some Associations, the Committee members work year round by reviewing the financial statements and provide feedback or comments to the Board with respect to the Association's finances.



Rules Enforcement

Some homeowners are very concerned with governance and enforcement. Committee Members can work with a designated Board Member to determine the level of enforcement. Altneratively, Committee Members may accompany the community manager during site inspections.



Security / Safety

For Associations with camera systems, anyone who has operated the system knows that it is very time consuming to pull footage to find an incident. Committee Members can offer assistance in reviewing and burning camera footage when necessary. Members of this committee could also form a Neighborhood Watch, get City officials involved, reach out to Senior Lead Officers from the community's local Police Station, etc.



Some examples of Ad Hoc Committees would be:



Policy Revisions

If a community needs to revise Board Resolutions such as Rules and Regulations, a Committee could be formed for the sole purpose of working on the revisions. Once done, the Committee would present the final document and the Committee recommendations to the Board, and the Committee would then be disbanned.



Design Committee

A community may be undergoing some design changes, such as new carpet and wall coverings for the hallways. Chartering a design committee could give homeowners the task of researching various styles, but it also gives more members an opportunity to participate in an important aesthetic issue that everyone has to live with. Once the project is completed, the Committee would no longer be in existence.



Sometimes, it is challenging to get homeowner involvement, but knowing your residents gives you an advantage at specifically calling on people to help if you know it's an area of interest for them.



If you have any questions on this process, please feel free to contact me at Nedafirouz@gmail.com.