Recently, many transaction-oriented real estate companies have been raising capital by selling shares in entities, and thus have added regulatory and legal responsibilities. Because of these new responsibilities, the management of many real estate companies is moving from a transaction orientation to a more traditional corporate style. Companies that follow proven corporate strategies will have a distinct advantage over their competitors. This applies equally to real estate companies and real estate investors. One essential corporate management principle involves making sure that you start each new year and each undertaking on the right track. An efficient technique for ensuring the correct approach is to use a checklist which includes all eleven critical aspects of business. Following is such a checklist.

1. Mission Statement: A mission statement describes what the company wants to accomplish.

• Has the mission statement been put in writing?
• Has the mission statement been communicated to all interested persons (inside and outside the company), and has it been mutually agreed to?
• Is it a meaningful statement?

2. Business Philosophy: A business philosophy describes how and with what type of people the company wants to conduct its business.

• Has the business philosophy been defined?
• Is the business philosophy meaningful to the company?
• Have all the concerned parties (in and out) of the firm been apprised of this philosophy, and do they support it?
• Is the philosophy monitored on an ongoing basis?

3. Goals: Goals are the targets of all meaningful components of the company.

• Have all the goals been identified?
• Have these goals been communicated to the concerned parties?
• Are the goals meaningful to the company?
• Is there a procedure for monitoring each of the goals?

4. Personnel: All personnel should be in a position to maximize the company’s mission statement, business philosophy, and goals.

• Are job descriptions clear?
• Are the right personnel matched with the right job?
• Is there an environment that allows personnel to grow?
• Is there two-way communication between personnel and their supervisors?
• Is the company aware of all the laws that affect personnel, and does the company comply with them?

5. Product(s): Products(s) are all the goods and services that a company offers to generate revenue.

• Is there a clear description for each of the company’s product(s)?
• Is there an ongoing effort to improve the current product(s)?
• Is there a product development program for new products?
• Have clients for the company’s product(s) been identified?
• Is there a marketing plan to support the sale of the company’s product(s)?
• Is there a monitoring program for sales and the cost of sales?

6. Expense Control: Expense control represents management’s command over all costs expensed the same year payment is due.

• Have all line item expenses been identified?
• Are all expenses and their dollar amounts necessary?
• Are there procedures for getting the best prices?
• Is there a monitoring system for ordering and receiving the goods and services that have been budgeted?

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