I have a question that isn’t really about rules or statutes, but it’s one that keeps coming up at meetings at my association. What are some ways that the association can quit wasting money on things that now seem obsolete? An example is that we have some board members who want to continue to pay a monthly fee for pagers carried by the community association managers, but each of those people has cell phones so it seems like a waste of money. We also provide services to the membership that also seem like they are now a waste of time, like printing out a monthly newsletter and mailing it. Thanks for your thoughts.

Answer: You’re right, associations often fail to update, terminate or change services long after those services have become obsolete, wasting association funds that would be better utilized on something different or even new. As for the services provided to the membership, many associations conduct a survey from time to time covering all aspects of the community services and operations in order to determine the membership satisfaction, continued need for services, ideas for changing services and more. Failing to reevaluate operations and continuing services that are no longer needed, desired or practical can cause unnecessary expense and even headaches. Trying to maintain outdated technology may be more costly in the long run. A survey is not likely necessary for the managers, but perhaps presenting the consensus of the managers about maintaining pagers would be beneficial.

Thanks for asking!

Fred Gray