How to Demonstrate the Value of Lease Administration

2 min read
May 10, 2017
CoStar Real Estate Manager Blog

How to Demonstrate the Value of Lease Administration

Learn how the most successful lease administration teams demonstrate their value in order to keep pace with day-to-day operational activities, process compliance, expanding responsibilities, resource constraints and technology.

With new regulations putting a greater importance on lease administration, it is important to stay up to date in order to prove the value of lease analyst positions in organizations. With many lease analysts struggling with constrained resources or a lack of corporate recognition it is crucial to go beyond just administering and abstracting data. Lease analysts need to prove to the C-level executives their role in analyzing data, training employees, and streamlining process with lease administration software at their side.

With many executive level employees not understanding the true extent of the position, it is important to show them the value lease analysts bring to the table. When petitioning for more resources one of the most effective techniques is to show the executives desk top audit savings. This way they can see a tangible number for the value the lease administration team adds to the bottom line. Another strategy is to communicate how the team has maintained successful renewals or negotiated better agreements. This negotiating and decision making is a part of the necessary skill set for the position that often is not recognized by executives. By keeping up to date with the technologies that allow for this greater analysis, control, and insights, lease analysts will be able to add and prove their value.

Another important role of the lease analysts is in training other finance employees. With the new standards for lease accounting practically requiring large corporations to take on new software to manage, the task of helping the rest of the company make the switch is commonly being put on the lease administrators shoulders. Taking initiative in this role adds more value to the lease administration team, but needs to be done skillfully. One of the best techniques is to follow the 70-20-10 rule, which states that 70% of the training is on-the-job, 20% of it with subject matter experts/ mentors within the company, and 10% comes from class style training. For most people in the company the lease administration team has to fulfill the 20% roll as the experts, but it is important not to forget about 10% that comes from classes. While the software provider like Costar have online classes on the system, one suggestion is to attend trade shows and seminars to learn from experts and network with peers. This way the lease administrators can come back with the knowledge to be the office expert, adding more value to the position in the eyes of the executives.

One last method to increase the value of the position is to go beyond the stated roll to help find process inconsistencies. Questioning why certain protocols are in place can allow lease administrators to find ways to streamline processes. With the addition of lease database software that compiles all the information into one place, it allows lease administrators to see where the information might not be connected which could cause miscommunication between departments. One example is a company Costar worked with where the lease administrators realized that they were doing 30 minutes worth of work for each lease that they sent to the finance department and the finance department didn’t even use the information. By finding inconsistencies like this lease administrators can streamline process and better connect data, which bottom line saves the company money.

In conclusion, the lease administration team can bring a lot more value to the company beyond the basic roles of just administering and abstracting data. With the help of comprehensive lease database software, lease administrators can gain insights, take on new teaching rolls and find ways to streamline systems. All of these increase the value of lease analysts in the eyes of the executives and benefit the company as a whole.