When you’re investing in new technology, swapping stories with other customers can be incredibly helpful. Whether it’s a new personal device or a complex business system, hearing about others’ experiences with the tech can help you get more from your investment.
That’s why we gathered representatives from three leading property teams at our annual virtual conference, Building Engines Connect, to talk about how they’re putting Prism property management software into action. They shared how they’re approaching challenges, managing change and driving impact across their real estate portfolios.
Here, we spotlight how these leaders are using property management analytics to streamline building operations and improve the tenant experience.
Streamlining operations with measurement and reporting
When managing a building or a full real estate portfolio, metrics make it easier to hold everyone accountable and identify areas for improvement. Actually keeping on top of these metrics is the hard part. With Prism’s property management analytics, you can track progress against a range of key performance indicators (KPIs) — from work order completions to energy use.
“Once we went live with Prism, that’s when we started to adopt the reporting and put KPIs in place, and it’s really changed the game for us,” said Alix Kaylin, Associate Manager, Procurement & Property Operations, Rockefeller Group. “It’s peeled back the curtain a little bit more, and it’s helped us become a more efficient machine.”
Of course, tracking data is just the start. You also have to put it to use. Lauren Harold, Vice President, Property Platforms and Capital Services for Link Logistics, discussed how her company is using data like vendor completion times and work quality.
“All of that data helps to identify trends,” she remarked. “We can benchmark our vendor performance against each other and different service categories, and make proactive decisions about our budgeting and vendor selection.”
Thomas Robertson, Senior Operations Manager at Kidder Mathews, has found another use for Prism’s reporting — balancing team assignments based on the volume of work at each property. “Using the reporting structure and everything inside of Prism, we were able to make sure that people actually had a balanced workload.”
Watch the full expert panel, and all of Building Engines Connect, on-demand.
Improving service delivery for a better tenant experience
The benefits of property management software extend far beyond increased efficiency and more informed budgets. Companies that adopt Prism also see a positive impact on the tenant experience.
For Link Logistics, Prism allowed the company to streamline work order management and vendor engagement, leading to faster response times and improved service for its customers. It started with building an application programming interface (API) to connect two systems, transforming a fragmented, manual process.
“Before Prism, our property managers had to work across two different systems and processes to manage all of the work orders,” Harold said. “But with Prism’s partnership, we were able to build an API so when a customer submits a work order into the portal, we ‘automagically’ see that request in Prism. The property manager just needs to assign the vendor, then the API also updates the work order status back into our customer portal.”
The automated system has enhanced the customer experience in their buildings, while leading to less frustration for property managers and vendors.
Supporting team and vendor adoption
Getting the most value from your property management software investment requires a dedicated effort to make sure your teams and vendors know how to use the technology.
Encouraging user adoption was a key priority for Link Logistics when they began using Prism, according to Harold. Their comprehensive change management program included a variety of communications and trainings, including the following:
- Communications about Prism’s benefits for property managers and vendors before the system went live
- Hands-on training where people could try out various scenarios and get live tech support
- Weekly office hours to gather feedback, answer questions and provide a place for property management teams to share useful features
- Surveys to learn how the system was working for property management teams and vendors
Link Logistics now uses the insights they gather from office hours and surveys to drive their project plan, prioritize system enhancements and create resources such as lists of FAQs.
Rockefeller’s Kaylin also emphasized the importance of system training. Whenever a new team member joins or a new tenant moves into one of their buildings, she or an assistant property manager provides one-on-one training — in person if possible.
“We see that the personal touch definitely helps,” she said.
Start with a pilot program
If you have a large real estate portfolio, you don’t need to overhaul your whole technology setup at once to start realizing benefits. Many companies have success with a phased approach to adopting property management software.
That’s what Kidder Mathews did, said Robertson. “We narrowed it down and brought on one region at a time. Once we got that first region done and all the kinks worked out, we were a lot better at implementing the other regions.”
Link Logistics also started with a small pilot group. Harold emphasized the importance of talking to users and gathering their feedback as you expand into more markets. “They’re in [the system] every day, so make sure that their voices are heard.”
Achieve more with Prism property management software
Leading property teams are focusing on the right approach to streamline operations, empower staff and improve tenant satisfaction. With property management analytics, they’re uncovering new ways to increase efficiency and create a better experience for everyone in their buildings.
Tour the platform to discover why top real estate firms are adopting Prism.
