Everyone loves a HOA meeting! Right? After all, it’s well known that most HOA meetings are standing room only, and they’re always being shut down because they exceed the occupancy limit for fire code. Okay… Maybe not.
The fact is, the average HOA meeting is not well attended. We claim we want participation and engagement, but in reality, the last thing we want is a room full of homeowners scrutinizing our processes, and second guessing board decisions.
HOA boards know it’s tough to make progress, with just one meeting a month. To get anything done, the board must be running at peak efficiency — discussing issues, reviewing proposals, solving problems, and reaching agreements. Some associations have solved this problem with the invention of the “work meeting”
What’s a Work Meeting? You Ask
The work meeting gives boards the opportunity to get stuff done between regular meetings. But a work meeting is a magical meeting that doesn’t require notification of owners because, well… They aren’t invited. They aren’t invited because in theory, it’s not a meeting at all. No minutes are taken, no motions are made, and no decisions are reached. Sounds pretty good! right?
The problem is, a work meeting is never just a work meeting — Ideas are discussed, debate ensues, and decisions are inevitably reached. Then the board meets at the regular HOA meeting, motions are made and quickly approved, with little or no debate. Meanwhile homeowners stand by, wondering how the board so quickly reach consensus on such complex issues.
A Work Meeting is Just a Closed HOA Meeting
It’s not that owners are always suspicious of the board but they do hate the idea of the closed HOA meeting. What really gets their dander up is secrecy and the appearance that the board is not interested in differing points of view.
The issue here is not really the work meeting at all — it’s the bypass of openness, transparency, debate and open dialog. Homeowners are generally concerned for their community and a little openness can go along way to educate and build trust.
Open Work Meetings
Open meetings require that your meetings are well structured, a clear agenda is presented, time limits imposed, and proper procedures are in place. The point is, open meetings are just one piece of an open transparent community association.
The best HOA’s take transparency and communication to the max. They open their meetings, seek homeowner input, and clearly explain policy decisions, especially when those decisions may not be popular. If your association is implementing closed meetings you might be causing more headaches than you’re solving.
What’s your take on work meetings, we want to hear. Please share in the comments below.
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Couldn’t agree more! Like any business, getting “stuff done” and getting answers to any questions between meetings is crucial. Business decision makers work on resolving issues 5 days a week:) The boards that we work with discuss and resolve issues between the monthly meeting, which is similar to your “working meeting.” However, we hold most of those meetings by email, phone calls, or meetings with smaller groups or committees. This way, the board is ready to vote on a lot of decisions in their monthly meetings.
Most of my clients are annoyed with Utah’s open meeting statute, but many of the problems I’m asked to help resolve in community associations result from closed meetings, and decisions without owner/member input. Open and transparent meetings are critical to a healthy association.
First of all, great article as well as concept on how some try to hold an illegal meeting, depending on which State you reside in. In Virginia, this will not work, nor should it. Our Bylaws state that ALL our meetings are to be open as with the exception of when the BOD goes into executive secession. We meet once a month. Like your article stated, we have less than 2% attend.
If a BOD cannot accomplish their affairs by meeting once a month, then they are either just too lazy or they are extremely unorganized. People who come up with what they think are clever ideas to bypass the bylaws, need to be removed, tarred and feathered. OK, maybe just removed. ;-). There is enough conflict with HOAs as it is, secrecy is one of the major no-nos. This strips a Homeowner of their legal right to participate, as it is their own monies that keep the ball rolling.
It does truly amaze me when people get upset when our own Government does something behind our backs or in “secret”, yet gives the green light when it comes to Associations doing the same thing. If you have to make a decision behind closed doors and without the approval of the membership when approval is required, 9 times out of 10 it will be self-serving or done because you know it would fail to pass membership scrutiny. If it is the latter, then you now become a dictator.
Well stated, Dana. I’ve recently found a few people on LinkedIn say that they’ve successfully satisfied both the need for transparency and still have a “work” (closed) meeting every once in a while. I’m interested in this. What do you think?
In California what you call a work meeting is a violation of the state civil code. All corporations (including HOAs) must hold general business meetings where the membership can attend. With the exception of executive meetings where sinsitive and confidential information, as defined in the civil code, are discussed. Any other meeting can not be more than the quorum of the Board.
Venetian Condominiums in Scottsdale 2011. Four corrupt board members had secret meetings. Wasted over $100K in legal fees. They then staged a theft of the club house after becoming self managed. All Financial records were stolen. They were never held accountable. There was no police report. Bad Board members can get away with murder if a quorum agree. Bergerbaum, Slavin, Schletter, and Malamut were the plaintiffs in some trumped up cases against their fellow homeowners.