I am really excited to have an opportunity to work with the Conference Board of Canada to present “Governance at Home: The Wild West of Condo Boards” webinar. Thank you, Conference Board of Canada (now Signal49 Research), for recognizing the importance of condominium corporations and adding it to your existing work in “Governance, Compliance and Risk.”  

The Conference Board defines governance as;

“Governance for us involves the actions, decisions and behaviours of the board, but also the interactions of the board with senior executives, stakeholders and shareholders. Our focus is on supporting boards of directors to navigate the increasingly complicated set of roles and responsibilities they have to help them focus on the areas where they will have the most impact and drive successful and long-term performance. “

I appreciated this definition. Governance is a serious responsibility. Too often, governance failures appear in the news without being identified as such. Poor governance can have real consequences, sometimes resulting in what has been described as Condo Hell (Macleans, 2014).

As I prepared the slide deck and supporting notes for the webinar, I sought out experts who could help shape the discussion. Along the way, I met auditors, owners, and directors who were generous with their time and experience. I learned a great deal from these conversations. What stood out most was how committed these individuals were to making condominiums better places to live.

Being a Director

The role of a director can be a lonely one. There is often no obvious place to turn for advice. While legal counsel is available, that advice is expensive and not always the right fit for the practical challenges boards face.

I knew that many boards had experienced similar issues to mine, but at the time, I could not find those directors when I needed them.

Would boards pay for the advice from other directors? Or could advice be exchanged and offered on a pro bono basis? For example, one board might share its experience with special assessments in exchange for another board’s experience with tendering processes. Are there conferences or forums led by directors, for directors? At the time, I was not aware of any in Ontario.

In my first draft of the webinar, I had enough material for three sessions. Michael Basset and Amanda Daoust of the Conference Board helped me narrow the focus, primarily to the role of directors. I saved the remaining material for future blog posts or possibly another webinar. My objective was simple: to share what I learned from nearly ten years of condo ownership, five years serving on a board, and the collective experience of others in the condominium community.

Governance

Governance needed to be at the centre of the conversation, not on the periphery. Weak governance often resulted in serious consequences—either for owners who relied on their boards, or for directors who relied too heavily on property managers to do everything.

Peter, a director from Toronto, captured this well when he said:

“… it is everyone’s corporation – everyone needs to take more than a passing interest in its affairs.”

My challenge to condo directors and owners was to raise the bar on governance in their communities. Failure was not an option. We could not afford to fail.

Slide Deck from the presentation

Governance at Home:

The Wild West of Condo Boards

Pat Crosscombe, Ph.D

Founder & CEO

BoardSpace

Why are we talking about condos & governance? 

What are the problems in the Wild West?  

Owners’ Complaints

• Financial – fees, increases, SA
• Lack of communication from Board
• Repairs/maintenance not done
• Boards/managers refuse access to condo documents.
• Can’t contact boards of directors
• Noise issues not fixed

Source:  Condo Information Centre 

Directors’ Complaints

• Takes a lot of time to be a director (5 – 10 hrs/week)
• It’s tough to manage expectations of owners & others
• Very hard to figure out role & responsibilities (director, board, others)
• “I hate owners coming after me in the hallway with a problem.”
• How do I figure this all out? Who can I turn to for advice?

What is Governance?

Definition:

A process of steering & controlling the condominium corporation

The gives power & authority with constraint (checks & balances)

Constrained how????