Christmas 2019

Usually, our blogs are written well in advance, however, for the Christmas blog AKA, a review of 2019, and our New Year blog about what 2020 holds for MIH we have held off writing them for as long as possible.

We think although we don’t know, as the MIH blogs are so personal, that it would be usual to focus on the continued growth of MIH, the expansion of our portfolio, and the fantastic client base which is ever-growing. But….. this is MIH and as always, we do things a little differently.

Admittedly, there are ‘no bells and whistles’ with this blog and it is not going to be a case of flashing lights or sound effects so if there is an audience reading this we apologise in advance if this is not as informative as usual. In addition, this may be a bit boring, as this blog is all about the MIH staff and what we consider to be the real critical success of MIH.

The quality of property management service

We believe that in any business the true measure of the business is those who work in it. For property management, in particular, the quality of service is based on the individuals you are working with and we have previously written a blog on the importance of meeting your property manager. After all, the key to a good working relationship is having a shared vision. In the knowledge that we sound like a corny meme, good property management is about looking outwards together.

Introducing the MIH Team

Although MIH prides itself on its organization and responsiveness, we are only able to achieve these through the like-minded individuals who work there, and at the risk of this becoming a love letter to the team, we thought we would take the opportunity to introduce them to you.

In December 2018, our team was comprised of 4 full-time staff, a permanent part-timer with an account assistant due to start in the New Year. It was also solely staffed by women. December 2019 sees us as a team of 8 full-time staff but probably more notably a company staffed by both men and women equally.

The stalwarts of MIH, Sarah Fisher, Nicola Stevens, who has worked with Sarah at three different companies over the last seven years, and Levi, who started as an apprentice with MIH and is well on her way to becoming an accomplished property manager remain and now are considered the old-timers. Although in a company which is barely three and whose average age is around the 35 mark, I am not sure that anyone could be called an old-timer.

Daiva

In February this year, Daiva joined our accounts team and aside from her ability with numbers and innate understanding of service charges, her quick wit meant that she quickly cemented her reputation with both us and with our clients.

We still remained, however, a team of women.

Laurence or LD

This was all set to change with the arrival of Laurence or he who must be known as LD in May as our Head of Department. Aside from the ground rules that he had to learn – Levi, is sure to make it known what is and isn’t acceptable in our office- he fitted right in almost immediately.

We think that this may have been due to suggesting the introduction of the toastie maker in the office which has probably been the biggest unifier of all. Although it is more likely that Laurence brings a sense of calm in an otherwise frenetic office and is always there to listen to everybody, give advice, and generally make things run smoothly whether for clients or in the office.

Hello Joe…and baby Summer

Swiftly following LD, was Joe, who aside from making coffee on cue is possibly the most knowledgeable and experienced property manager we have ever met. He also manages to be louder and talk more than Sarah. This can only be a good thing for MIH, with all staff being able to take advantage of this knowledge and for our clients, as they have full confidence in his management. The downside is the requests for headache pills are more frequent.

Joe’s arrival coincided with a much more important arrival to the MIH team, baby Summer was born to Nicola and we temporarily waved goodbye to her until 2020. Usually, you have KIT days with members on maternity leave, however in Nicola’s case it seems to be KIT chats, she is always on the end of the phone and KIT evenings. It is really great for the whole team to know that she can’t wait to come back, in her own words she is “raring to come back”. We must admit that we think this may be a result of the nappy changing though.

Welcoming Max and Richard

In the summer of this year, we decided we needed further reinforcement to the team and Max and Richard joined in October of this year and MIH began to fully operate on two floors. Max is truly our Ginger Ninja. From the moment he walked in for the interview his excitement and enthusiasm were clear and he truly is an example of work hard, play hard. His energy is legendary and rather leaving some of our more distinguished team (take that as older) astounded at how he does it. His presence can definitely be felt and his hard work has already been rewarded by receiving a google review within his first three months.

Richard is slightly sager than Max but has no less made an impact on the team and the business. His no-nonsense approach to our accounts has really revolutionised the accounts team and he and Daiva both work away at the property manager’s nemesis numbers.

His dedication to getting things right compliments the property management team and through both his and Daiva’s efforts we are positive that we can provide our clients with the full property management package both accounts and management-wise.

Credit to Levi and Nicola

When reading this back we feel that credit hasn’t been given to the so-called stalwarts of MIH and in particular Levi and Nicola. Nicola aside from having beautiful children remains committed to property management and doing a good job and one of her highlights of the year was receiving the much-valued accolade of being the best property manager they have had in 11 years. Her commitment stretches to MIH and her KIT chats extend to all the staff. She is always there to offer advice and like Laurence has a very calming influence on us all.

Levi is a true original and we are all very proud of her achievements since starting MIH. She is an integral member of the team and her strengths as a property manager continue to improve and grow especially under the combined tutelage of Joe and LD. She will be taking her IRPM early next year and we have every confidence that she will ace it! We are also most grateful to her for her efforts to modernize the team, our street cred and lingo has increased massively due to her influence.

As suspected this blog has become a love letter to the team and for Sarah, as the founder of MIH, she knows that she couldn’t have built her business without them. Staff at MIH are handpicked (and there have been blogs about interviews previously) and we don’t always get it right. There has been other staff who have joined and have subsequently left. We wish them well for the future and thank them for giving us the opportunity to find the right team member. Through them and the existing staff MIH has transformed into a business driven by team effort.

Finally, we take this opportunity to wish you all Christmas Greetings, and to make a special mention of the newest arrival to the MIH who is due any time now. We can’t wait to meet Laurence and Henny’s little boy, name unknown at present even if he will be another Arsenal supporter.

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