Laurie Lyons doesn't have an office, but she isn't complaining.
“I am not a comfortable CEO sitting behind a desk in a high-rise,” says the recently promoted Lyons, who just moved up from president to CEO of BH Management Services. In the process, she good-naturedly handed over the president's office to her successor. “I am most comfortable when I have my walking shoes on and I am in the field, in the trenches. I love it.”
For Lyons, on-site has always been her office. Unlike many CEOs of large property management firms, Lyons' industry experience stems from the five years she spent as an on-site property manager. The energetic, charismatic CEO serves as a voice of experience for the company's 1,000-plus employees and is never too busy to help a manager with the daily challenges of running a property.
“My experience in the trenches goes a long way,” says Lyons. “I really understand what they [property managers] are going through because I have been there.”
Others agree. “What sets her apart, in my mind, is her on-site experience,” says David Onanian, CEO of Houston-based Professional Apartment Services, a bulk purchasing company used by BH. “I think she understands not only what an employee needs because she was one, but she fundamentally understands what a property needs to be marketed appropriately.”
Lyons' background has helped BH grow dramatically from its modest beginnings with a five-property portfolio to a company that now owns 16,630 apartments and manages nearly twice that—more than 30,000 units in 11 states, with a focus in the Texas and Florida markets. And as BH continues to expand (it just landed the No. 29 spot on MULTIFAMILY EXECUTIVE's Top 50 ranking of the largest multifamily management companies), the company relies on Lyons' guiding principles, developed through years of industry experience.
Back to the Basics
BH Management's roots date back to 1990, when Lyons managed a 287-unit property in Sheboygan, Wis., for Harry Bookey, a real estate lawyer who had decided to try his hand at real estate investing. As Bookey slowly acquired more properties, Lyons assisted with due diligence and asset management. In 1993, the duo officially launched BH Management, with Lyons as president and Bookey as owner. “He's a financial guru, and I am the property management person, so it's a great combination,” says Lyons.
Over the past 10-plus years, BH has relied on a simple, yet vital, management strategy: Provide residents with a clean, friendly living environment. Lyons likens her business to running a high-end hotel, such as the Ritz-Carlton. “Aren't their properties always clean? That is what I want,” she says. “Aren't their people always friendly and call you by name and care about you? That's what I want.”
BH recently developed an auditing system to ensure that the basics aren't overlooked at any site. Checklists include broad categories, like clean make-readies and landscaped exteriors, down to the smallest details—no cluttered desks in the leasing office and freshly painted lines for the parking spaces. And when Lyons walks a property, nothing gets past her. On a recent tour, she quickly sees that a signature BH Management magnet is missing from the refrigerator in a model unit and that a narrow, winding staircase in the lobby needs to be replaced with a safer alternative.
Organization also is a top priority at BH. “Their processes and procedures for the day-to-day management of the assets are very well-defined within their organization,” says Vance Voss, regional director of Des Moines, Iowa-based Principal Real Estate Investors, which hires BH as a fee manager for about 15 of its properties.
Open a filing cabinet at any leasing office, and you won't find any surprises, says Lyons. Files are labeled and ordered consistently at all property sites. “Literally you could sit at any desk in the company, open the drawer, and you and I would know what we have to do because [everything] is labeled,” she says. The BH approach isn't limited to desks and filing cabinets. The shelves in all maintenance closets are color-coded for ease in locating items like tools and cleaning supplies.
Roll Up Your Sleeves
“People know that I am not beyond doing anything. I will do whatever it takes, even if that means painting an apartment again.” —Laurie Lyons
Lyons' offer to help isn't an exaggeration. This hands-on approach won respect during her on-site days, when she would help the maintenance crew paint units when they were down to the wire on a make-ready. “My black Lab spent the first five years of her life looking like a Dalmatian because she would be in the apartment with me waiting to go for a walk, while I was in there painting,” she recalls. And this do-anything attitude continues to earn Lyons respect and challenge other BH leaders to act the same. In fact, BH's entire senior management team has a reputation for rolling up their sleeves and helping with daily management challenges, a task that other companies tend to delegate to their employees, says Voss of Principal Real Estate Investors. “Their people aren't afraid to dive in the details and really help you out with a project,” he says.
Tom Dolan, vice president of asset management for New York-based Sterling American Property, agrees. The company co-owns 26 properties with BH. “If they have to knock on a resident's door personally, if they have to call them back at midnight to make sure that they received the proper service, they will do it,” says Dolan. “They will do what it takes.”
BH executives are especially supportive in the evaluation and selection of property amenities, adds Voss. He points to The Phoenix Midtown Apartment Homes, a 449-unit Class A project that Principal Real Estate Investors acquired in July 2001 and is fee-managed by BH. After thorough market research, BH decided that a spa would add the most value to the complex and then helped select the right spa management company as well as market the amenity with gift certificates and unique signage.
Proceed With Caution
“If you walk in a [leasing] office, you see a lot of people behind computers, and to me that is really annoying, and it doesn't serve our customer at all. People know that I threaten to take computers away.” —Laurie Lyons
Lyons can certainly appreciate the evolution of property management technology. After all, when she began her career, she had to collect the rents the old-fashioned way—in a file box with ledger cards. Like many property managers, BH is currently making the time-consuming switch to Web-based management software. But while she's excited to reap the benefits of a Web-based solution, Lyons also recognizes that technology doesn't solve all problems.
“It doesn't really matter what gets put into the computer, because all that is going to come out is junk if we are not removing ourselves from those computers, taking care of the residents that live there, and attracting new, good residents,” she says. So the service-oriented CEO keeps a close eye on the site-level staff to make sure residents always come before computers.
BH has learned that simple technology can work wonders, pointing to its successful 24-hour free hotline and an e-mail address that residents can use for any problems or complaints. All calls and e-mails go directly to BH's Dallas headquarters, where a team member responds within 12 hours. “We really publicize it,” says Steve Roach, BH Management's new president. “If I don't see that little magnet saying ‘BH Hotline' on the refrigerator in a make-ready, then it's not ready.”
Ahead of the Curve
“We don't just have a fitness center that looks nice. We provide fitness instructors, Pilates instructors, and personal trainers. We really make it work.” —Laurie Lyons
BH Management isn't simply interested in keeping up with the competition. The company strives to always be a step ahead, whether that means implementing the latest amenity or keeping occupancy levels up. “You have to be innovative in knowing what's going on out there and what the industry trends are,” says Roach. “The challenge is to pick and choose which trends you want to focus on, and then change and adjust.”
Sometimes, it's the small details that have the biggest impact on a property's success. Instead of just haphazardly installing a tennis court, BH requires that the court is properly surfaced and offers a seating area with water fountains. “We try to develop innovative ideas to get those extra few percentage points of occupancy by catering to certain subgroups,” says Harry Bookey, BH's owner. “It only costs a few thousand dollars to get the court in that condition.”
BH Management also draws renters by implementing creative programs, like a “Live in Color” campaign, where residents can select a wall color to customize their unit. The executives are always open to new ideas, says Carey Nelms, a regional vice president at BH. “Harry lives on people coming up with new ideas, instead of just [following] industry standards.”
Lyons is right up there when it comes to inventive proposals. She is exploring the idea of providing a computer or flat-screen television in every unit. “Laurie will look in every nook and cranny and figure out a way [to make an idea work],” says Roach.
Training Day
“A property manager can't go to work without people supporting them and without being told this is how we treat our residents.” —Laurie Lyons
Consistent with its “back to the basics” management approach, employee training is a top issue at BH Management. The company invests about $1,200 per employee for training courses each year and established a human resources department last year to help boost its training offerings. Currently, BH holds monthly training classes focused on leasing and customer service topics. The teaching style ranges from Web-based training to one-on-one lessons and class sessions.
“We're continuing to grow every month in what we are doing with training,” says Roach. BH is now adding corporate outreach classes to teach on-site staff how to work with local businesses, as well as a peer tutoring program to take advantage of top performers' skills.
Of course, BH also taps into its secret weapon: a CEO who is always eager to serve as a resource on property management issues. Lyons conducts training classes at the regional vice president level and leads a special training session at the company's annual conference. “I let them know all the mistakes I have made [as a property manager], and let them know that it's not that long ago,” Lyons says.
Lyons values on-site mentoring and makes frequent property appearances. “They [property managers], just want to talk,” she says. “They want to know that somebody cares, especially when it's somebody at the top of an organization.” And Lyons certainly does care. She recalls how she comforted a manager who was in tears over a budget. “We didn't even talk about the budget,” Lyons says. “What we talked about was the fact that I could remember when I was crying over a budget. And the tears went away.”
Lyons' on-site days may not always be a memory. When she retires from her job as BH Management's CEO one day, she'd like to return to being an on-site property manager. “I look forward to the day of going back to having a portfolio of one property and taking care of those 300 residents to the best of my ability,” she says. Maybe she'll even decide it's time to move into her own office.
But don't count on it.
Corporate Shuffle
To accommodate the company's rapid growth, BH Management Services recently decided to add a position dedicated exclusively to managing the operations of its 30,000-plus properties. So in January, the company restructured its top spots: Steve Roach was promoted from vice president of operations to president, while Laurie Lyons moved to the newly created CEO position.
As CEO, Lyons handles big-picture plans such as keeping BH on top of industry trends, and she runs the company's growing construction division. She also will have more time to do what she likes best: Visit properties and mentor employees. “I was so busy with the day-to-day operations, it got to the point where going to a property felt like an intrusion of my time,” says Lyons. “Now I like the luxury of being able to put on my Day-Timer four properties every week.”
But the transition from president to CEO isn't an easy one for Lyons, who admits she has a hard time distancing herself from the company's daily operations. Her biggest challenge over the next few years? “Being able to sit back and watch my baby be successful,” she says.