What makes a good board member: 5 tips for your high-rise

Serving on the board of your high-rise community is both a privilege and a responsibility. Board members play a vital role in helping the financial stability, operational efficiency and overall well-being of their residential community. However, the path to becoming a good board member is not always clear. What makes a good board member? What can I do to help my community and its residents? The answer lies in a combination of knowledge, preparation, collaboration and a commitment to doing what's best for your community.

In this article, we'll discuss five essential tips to guide you in mastering your responsibilities as a high-rise board member with insights from Brian Butler, president of Illinois for FirstService Residential, and Stephanie Parker, president of South Florida condo HOA at FirstService Residential. Even if you're new to the role or going on multiple years serving as a board member, these principles can help you contribute to the success of your community and all of its residents.

Want to hear directly from industry experts? Watch this video featuring Brian Butler and Stephanie Parker as they discuss key insights on financial planning, collaboration, and the evolving role of board members.
   

Understanding how to be a good board member: 5 expert tips

1. Understand your role as a board member

   A good board member must have a clear understanding of their duties and responsibilities. Your role is more than just attending meetings—although showing up and participating is non-negotiable, as it involves reviewing budgets, staying informed about financial reports, complying with laws and regulations and planning for your community's immediate and long-term needs.
   
   High-rise boards, in particular, face unique challenges requiring more specialized knowledge. For example, its budgeting process isn't just about anticipating routine expenses, as it also includes understanding capital projects like elevator repairs, exterior renovations and energy retrofits. Butler emphasizes the importance of reserve studies:

   "In any given year, planning for both the expected and the unexpected is the biggest part of any board's job. It's especially true over the last several years when we've had higher inflation. We've seen some legislation around the country that's really mandating greater reserve funding, or especially just reserve studies and knowing what's coming."
   
   Brian Butler, president of Illinois for FirstService Residential

   "It really is critical that boards understand what's coming up, whether it be elevator repairs, exterior repairs, window repairs, all of those big-ticket items, and planning appropriately for them. We recommend that boards take a look at their reserve studies, take a look at the funding assumptions underneath those reserve studies, and review that those are absolutely calibrated every year to what we expect," he adds.
   
   These studies assess your building's long-term financial health and help plan for major future expenses. Reviewing and updating your reserve studies annually helps your community keep pace with evolving needs and costs, and this proactive approach also allows your community to remain both functional and financially sound.
    

2. Be engaged and collaborative

   Collaboration is at the heart of any successful board. An effective board member listens to their peers, engages in productive discussions and partners with experts when necessary. While making decisions independently is sometimes required, the ultimate goal of a board is to function as a unified team focused on the community's best interests.
   
   Parker raises an important point about how boards balance service delivery and resident experience with fiscal responsibility, all while using collaboration with each other and subject matter experts.

   "It's a balance, right? An ongoing balance between service delivery and resident experience. And then this fiscal responsibility that really sits on the shoulders of the high-rise boards. And we recognize it's no easy task. That's where BENCHMARK comes in. We have this fantastic resource that boards can pick up and get some great insights that will help them with all of those things."
   
   Stephanie Parker, president of South Florida condo HOA at FirstService Residential

   BENCHMARK: High-rise by FirstService Residential offers insights on insurance, maintenance, sustainability, amenities, reserves and capital planning. This resource is helpful for board members seeking to make their budgeting practices more effective. It includes data from FirstService Residential's portfolio of 3,800 high-rise buildings across major U.S. and Canadian cities, covering condominiums, cooperatives, and corporations, both established and newly developed. For more expert insights, you can download your BENCHMARK guide here.
    

3. Come Prepared

   Preparation is critical for any board member who wants to make a meaningful impact. It all starts with being ready for your board meetings, where you'll be reading through agendas, reviewing financial statements and doing the legwork to grasp the topics under discussion.
   
   Beyond routine meetings, preparation is also about forward-thinking. A large part of this involves budgeting for capital projects. From retrofitting aging electrical wiring to updating elevators, unexpected repairs can derail an unprepared community. As previously mentioned, keeping your reserve studies current helps boards anticipate expenditures. One topic that's been on board's minds lately is technology and retrofitting projects. And how can communities and boards incorporate technology into their retrofitting projects to enhance their operations and the experience for the residents?
   
   Butler notes how "whether a building is brand new or 100 years old, there is an opportunity for technology to improve the resident experience. Where we see this most often is with energy projects. So everyone knows the cost of energy continues to rise. Major metropolitan areas around the country are already starting to mandate greater efficiency, even in existing high-rise structures."
   
   He also mentions that "if there's a project coming up, whether it's replacement of, boilers or pumps or even your elevators, there are more efficient opportunities, now than have ever been in the marketplace before. It also helps to reduce the overall cost for residents. So although you might continue to have great elevator service, you have great lighting."
    

4. Be a good steward

   Stewardship is a defining quality of a good board member, and it can reflect a genuine desire to serve the needs of your community and prioritize its long-term success. Stewardship requires more than just your time and energy, as it may also include financial contributions, whether through advocating for funding or pursuing grants.
   
   Think of stewardship as owning responsibility to care for your community's resources. Brian Butler highlights benchmarking your budget strategies as a valuable tool for responsible decision-making. For instance, many boards compare their expenses for utilities, recycling services, or insurance premiums to neighboring communities of a similar size and structure.
   
   Stewardship also means addressing risks proactively. By investing in preventive measures like updated sprinkler systems or regular maintenance, boards can reduce the likelihood of costly repairs in the future. By effectively working with an expert property management company like FirstService Residential and using data such as our BENCHMARK: High-rise guide, you could further demonstrate your commitment to both financial responsibility and the well-being of your community and its residents.
    

5. Bring passion and purpose to the role

   Good board members share a common trait: they are passionate about the mission of their community. This enthusiasm for your role is particularly important during challenging times. For example, insurance and utility costs are rising, and high-rise boards face increasing pressure to deliver quality services while managing financial constraints. An effective board member approaches these challenges as opportunities to innovate. As Brian Butler suggests, incorporating technology during modernization projects is one way boards can reduce operating costs while improving residents' experience.

   "Using LEDs or more high efficient options can reduce budgetary pressures for our residents. Additionally, we're starting to see jurisdictions mandate, electric vehicle infrastructure projects, especially for existing structures, as these EV start to have greater adoption around the country. So take a look at in your marketplace, you may have, subsidies through your utilities. There may be state programs that can help with some of these costs, especially if you're living in an existing structure that may not have that infrastructure already built in."
   
   Brian Butler, president of Illinois for FirstService Residential

   Bringing purpose to your role also means staying connected to your residents and understanding their priorities, which can include your role in further elevating the community. You may encounter new or evolving industry trends and practices as a board member. Comparing your building to high-performing properties can help you better understand how yours measures up in the marketplace.

   "It's one of the most common questions we receive, right? Boards are managing their own communities. However, they're not alone in this journey. So they're wanting to know what are we paying for? Recycling or scavenger services? What are we paying for, cable or electricity or insurance? It's natural to want to compare, to your neighbors, especially when it comes to resale values."
   
   Brian Butler, president of Illinois for FirstService Residential

   "How do our assessments stack up against, perhaps a building across the street or down the block? So it's really important to understand that you have the right partner that can get that data for you. And that's where FirstService Residential often has a critical mass of high-rise communities that they're managing in any of the major markets," he adds.

A balancing act that benefits everyone

Every decision you make—from developing budgets to modernizing infrastructure—carries real consequences for your residents. But when approached thoughtfully, this responsibility offers an opportunity to leave a lasting, positive impact. After all, an effective board member isn't defined solely by their knowledge of bylaws or financial acumen—it's their ability to engage, plan and leading with purpose that truly makes them stand out.
Another key quality that can define the leadership of an effective board member is knowing when to outsource the pros. By downloading FirstService Residential's BENCHMARK report, stakeholders gain insights on trends, averages and best practices—offering a competitive edge to help their property remain a leader in the market.

We invite you to download the BENCHMARK: High-rise guide to help you navigate high-rise budgeting and stay ahead of industry trends.

Contact FirstService Residential, the high-rise management leader, to learn more about services offered for high-rise living.