Get 2019 Back On Track
July 1st is here and it can be overwhelming determining all the things you should be doing to start the year right as a Strata Manager, while also preparing for the new challenges the year may bring.
We all know too well the copious amounts of paperwork and correspondence you receive daily, on top of ensuring you comply with daily procedures and checklists. By the time June 30 comes around, you may find yourself in chaos trying to organise everything for your accountant.
Below are the 4 key things you should do as a Strata Manager to proactively prepare yourself for the upcoming year so you’re left with the feeling of relief at having the next financial year in good order:
1. Ensure everything is up to date
Make sure all of your paperwork, relevant records that support your business transactions, maintenance reports, audits, expenses and receipts are all up to date from the previous year.
Manage your to-do list by implementing a cloud-based platform with a task or event feature. Set yourself or the management team tasks with due dates.
Opt for a platform that is designed specifically for the strata industry to manage communication, documentation and connect every aspect of your schemes together. Which integrates with your current software and process and is a secure place to store all the outcomes of all your work, including correspondence, receipts and important documentation.
Needless to say, at the end year of the financial year, this tool will be an asset to manage the workloads, keep track of what has been completed and what is outstanding and eliminate that sense of feeling overwhelmed at tax time.
2. Review your building schemes insurances
It’s important to check that your schemes has the right insurances in place. Things may have changed over the year which may mean the Owners Corporation is in a different position to where you were last year. It’s best to review the past year’s records to make a full assessment.
With all the recent cladding insurance issues this is a great time to review all the insurance provider’s product disclosure with your committee’s so that everyone is across the individual scheme’s requirements.
If you’re unsure, seek advice from an insurance broker to find the right fit for your strata schemes.
3. Get on the front foot for Strata Searches
We are in a digital-first business environment, and professionals are faced with multiple ways to store and transfer information to suppliers and stakeholders including Strata Searchers.
This financial year ensure the platform you opt to use is secure and designed for holding your scheme’s assets, not only for customer experience but for transparency. It should have the ability for you to provide your accountant or any stakeholder access to the right information documentation at the right time without the requirements for multiple handling of a single request.
StrataVault provides this option securely. Strata Managers have the authority to tailor viewing permissions and access to a vault with just a click. Permissible access to documentation means as a manager you can grant transparent visibility of relevant information to auditors and other relevant service providers for a set period. A link via email is received by the auditor/stakeholder to enter the vault and access the information. Time spent on the exchange of physical documents and travel time between manager and stakeholder is eliminated.
4. Back up all of your schemes files on a secure online platform
By storing a strata schemes records on a platform that houses information in an organised and easy-to-access manner, a schemes information is kept safe and protected, eliminating the risk of losing a building’s assets if there’s a fire, flood or robbery, or just the everyday potential to misplace that critical email or document at the worst possible moment.
StrataVault enables managers to have easy access to a building’s information 24/7. Implementing this platform means peace of mind that each piece of documentation or information or correspondence received throughout the year is secure in one place. Keeping transparent, secure and easily accessible historical trail of information that is vital to reducing future pain-points, such as tax time.
It’s never too late in the financial year to start securing your information in the StrataVault – StrataVault’s platform design interfaces with existing software, eliminating the pain of integrating into new formats and reducing the pressure to set up new processes.