Addressing commercial building operations concerns with Workspeed

As the COVID-19 pandemic impacts different aspects of society at a rapidly changing rate, all businesses face the same crucial challenge: How to keep people up to date on the latest information.

The commercial real estate industry has almost certainly felt the effects of this challenge. Retailers who have closed their doors and office tenants running on skeleton crews are both in search of the most accurate information as to what you, the commercial building operator or property manager, are doing to keep their spaces and their employees safe.

Answering the constant stream of questions that may arise from both tenants and internal shareholders is not easy when no one is currently in a centralized location, but utilizing building operations solutions such as MRI’s Workspeed can help you communicate effectively with concerned staff and tenants. What follows are several types of questions that commercial building operators have been dealing with in this crisis and how best to respond to them.

External communications to and from tenants

On the whole, your tenants want to know how you’re going to help them protect their investments, from their assets to their lease agreements and their employees. This requires clear and thorough communication regarding the steps being taken to protect your commercial property.

What is being done to ensure that restrooms and other shared spaces are properly cleaned and disinfected?

Keeping tenants updated as to what measures are being taken to respond to the COVID-19 situation is as clear-cut as sending out a mass communication through Workspeed. In this message, you should make it clear that not only are you following CDC guidelines for sanitation and social distancing, but that you’ll also be monitoring those guidelines and responding accordingly when and if the CDC should update their protocols. You can even attach documents or handouts that can be distributed to your tenants or printed and posted in bathrooms or break rooms.

How will the building ensure that contractors and vendors are following appropriate social distancing measures?

Mass communications can be sent out to ensure that you and your service providers are on the same page, following the same set of guidelines. Tenants want to know that their own employees and assets are safe in your commercial property, which is why it’s critical to be monitoring who actually has access to the building. Workspeed’s Visitor Management tool allows you to keep track of who has access to the building, such as vendors, contractors, and other essential employees, and it lets you pre-register guests on a by-need basis. By keeping tenants informed on how you’re managing visitors, you can go one step further in assuring them that you have tight control over building security.

Internal communication with contractors and property staff

As commercial property managers can no longer communicate internally from a centralized location, keeping in touch is vital to ensuring that your organization remains consistent in its messaging and continues to run as efficiently as possible.

What steps are being taken to ensure that the property is still being managed effectively?

As mentioned earlier, you should be keeping your service providers in the loop as to what you expect from them as they continue operations in your commercial property. Commercial property management can also be effectively streamlined through Workspeed by submitting changes to building operations procedures, such as cleaning measures and preventative maintenance, through the recurring service request system. This system assigns tasks and tracks service the same way it tracks maintenance requests and then documents them to prove completion.

How will the property prepare for its eventual reopening?

While the circumstances are less than ideal to say the least, having a commercial property free of most occupants for the time being presents property managers with the opportunity to take on medium- or large-scale maintenance projects. You’ll have to balance worker safety and essential employee requirements, but if you have a handle on those, then big preventative maintenance projects, such as replacing air filters or upgrading capital equipment can be undertaken without intruding on your tenants business.

In these unprecedented times, it’s more important than ever for property managers and commercial building operators to be communicating with tenants and internal shareholders. By using Workspeed, you can keep your commercial property running and come out on the other side of this crisis in a better position to streamline efficiency. To learn more about how Workspeed can help you continue building operations in times of crisis, check out this webinar.

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