With the nation’s financial troubles taking center stage, many HOAs and communities are trying to find ways to maximize community resources. Many already know that having a community website eliminates paper, printing, time, and distribution methods, but many communities are coming up with innovative ways to use their websites to not only save money but also to save valuable time.
For instance, using the combination of the eForm feature and the Task Manager feature for your Architectural Review Committee (ARC or ACC) you can let residents submit ACC requests directly online and they will automatically feed into the Task Manager as a new, open task. Your ACC committee members can then use all the powerful features of the Task Manager (status tracking, automatic email notifications, notes and comments tracking) to review and debate the request online prior to the regular meeting whenever it is convenient for each committee member. Then when meeting time shows up nobody has to wait around while everyone reviews each request and argues about it. Your meetings become gatherings to sign requests you have already reviewed online.
I know this from experience because I was the chair of the ACC committee in my 612 home community for several years and before we began using Task Manager our meetings could easily be 2+ hours long. Once we implemented a policy of posting and reviewing all requests online in the Task Manager the meetings were cut down to as short as 30 minutes a month. Now that’s a meeting I can handle!
What other ideas do you have for using a community website to save time and money for your volunteers and your community? Share them in the comments.
