Maintenance is the heartbeat of property management—frontline heroes engaging with residents day-to-day more than any leasing or ownership team. But as an industry, we’re only beginning to understand what makes maintenance tick and, more importantly, how to truly recognize and elevate them as the core pillars of each and every property and resident experience.
At Happy Summit, four maintenance leaders took to the stage to share unfiltered, hard-earned stories on staffing, training, and investing in teams. We were honored to have Bell Partners’ Dave Andrews, Al Angelo’s Nick Hecox, Gingko Residential’s Damian Wilson, and Thompson Thrift’s Kenneth Choat, whose journeys shaped a powerful blueprint for every level of the org chart.
Change Titles, Transform Performance
Kenny shared that for Thompson Thrift, repositioning titles like “Maintenance Supervisors” to “Service Managers” has created a measurable shift in performance. “It puts them more on the community manager level,” he explained, allowing them to work better as partners.
To implement this insight:
- Update job descriptions to include “Community” and “Service” for management roles
- Establish clear promotion paths from service roles to regional management positions
- Communicate the significance of title changes to all stakeholders
- Reinforce maintenance as a career path, not just a “fix it” position
Hire for Attitude, Train for Skill
All leaders agreed that customer service orientation trumps technical expertise. “If someone has a good attitude and good work ethic, you can teach them the skills,” said Kenny.
Nick emphasized asking, “‘What are you comfortable doing?’ Not necessarily about maintenance experience, but as something you loved to do growing up. Did you like to take things apart? Put them back together? Did you have a bit of a mechanical mindset?”
To apply this to your hiring strategy:
- Create standardized resident interaction scenarios for interviews
- Ask candidates how they would help a resident struggling with packages
- Use a two-person interview team to evaluate soft skills
- Develop a 30-day skills assessment for new hires
Implement Structured Training Programs
The conversation inevitably shifted to turnover–one of the biggest challenges facing the industry. When asked about training, Dave stated: “I’ve been doing this for over 35 years, and I still learn something new every day,” reinforcing the need to implement and iterate structured programs ongoing.
To take a page from the maintenance pros:
- Schedule bi-weekly 60-minute training sessions
- Create a physical training area using replaced appliances
- Pair new technicians with veterans for their first 90 days
- Develop a maintenance skills checklist with competency levels
Restructure Compensation Strategically
Damian shared that converting bonuses to permanent pay increases created “a much better reaction for us,” noting that bonuses often get heavily taxed.
Nick doubled down on this value proposition: “When you think about it, the value is there. We have a very high list of requirements for people. They’re supposed to know all of these different fields, and then on top of that, be professional, tech-savvy.”
To better motivate your maintenance teams:
- Convert performance bonuses to permanent pay increases
- Implement a certification program with corresponding pay levels
- Create a “maintenance-free day” program for top performers
- Develop a clear progression path with specific skill requirements
Recruit From Unconventional Sources
With maintenance representing a broad range of ages and experience – from GenZ to technicians four decades into their careers – all leaders unanimously agreed that keeping a constant pulse on new talent pools is a must.
Dave now visits high schools because “no one came to me as a counselor saying, ‘Hey, this is a career path worth considering.’”
To enhance recruitment and find fresh talent:
- Create professional recruitment cards for your team
- Contact local high school vocational teachers
- Offer job shadowing opportunities for students
- Develop an apprenticeship program with veteran technicians
Foster Trust Through Tangible Inclusion
“We have our teams sit down with our director of finance, who dedicates an entire day to go through different finances for different properties,” Dave shared, emphasizing how understanding finances empowers leaders to apply business practices to maintenance strategies and teams. It also builds trust through transparency.
To bring more trust and transparency to your teams:
- Schedule finance training for maintenance leaders
- Include maintenance in resident retention planning
- Create dashboards showing maintenance impact on property metrics
The Bottom Line: Maintenance is a value multiplier, not a cost center
If you think maintenance teams are just there to fix things… hold our wrench. They’re building trust, driving renewals, and creating the kind of community that makes residents want to stay. To learn more about how you can put this maintenance playbook into action, reach out to the HappyCo team.
