Day-to-Day Operation & Facility Management Track

Tips for Hiring, Training and Evaluating Self-Storage Employees

Monday, March 14, 9-9:50 a.m.
Location: Champagne 4
Speaker: Joe Niemczyk, president, Executive Self Storage Associates Inc.

There are few businesses as manager-centric as self-storage. In our industry, owners place million-dollar-plus assets in the hands of a few key employees; and yet they often put very little consideration into who they hire to fill those roles. This session will help facility owners focus on the most important people in their business—the behind-the-counter personnel—and provide the tools they need to hire, train and evaluate employees who can help maximize the facility’s revenue potential.

Conflict in the Workplace: Dealing With Difficult Tenants and Co-Workers

Monday, March 14, 10-10:50 a.m.
Location: Champagne 4
Speaker: Tron Jordheim, director, PhoneSmart

Sometimes you have to work with people or customers who make it difficult for you to like them. You might find yourself faced with an employee or tenant who is angry, upset or otherwise challenging. What do you do? In this session, our speaker will walk facility managers through a series of personal check points on how to keep their cool and effectively handle a conflict. You’ll get tools for diffusing difficult scenarios and insight to knowing when to ask for help.

Revising Your Self-Storage Rental Agreement: Important Changes for 2011

Monday, March 14, 11-11:50 a.m.
Location: Champagne 4
Speaker: Jeffrey Greenberger, partner, Katz, Greenberger & Norton LLP

When was the last time you looked long and hard at your self-storage rental agreement? Did you originally borrow it from another facility? Are there sentences or provisions you don’t understand? If you haven't reviewed your agreement in the past five years, you may face real problems in the event of a lawsuit. Jeffrey Greenberger will review the most common problems he sees in facility rental agreements and how to correct them. He’ll discuss the most important changes and additions that need to be made for protection of the facility operator, and items to keep in mind in relation to your state self-storage statute.

Lien Sales: Understanding a Self-Storage Facility’s Legal Liabilities

Monday, March 14, 1-1:50 p.m.
Location: Champagne 4
Speaker: Scott Zucker, partner, Weissmann Zucker Euster Morochnik PC

Learn more about a powerful tool that can help you collect rent and recover storage space from delinquent tenants. The right of non-judicial foreclosure and the sale of tenant's property is a unique attribute of the self-storage business. Yet, the right of repossession also comes with the tremendous responsibility of following the rules for that foreclosure. The failure to follow any of those rules and requirements exposes the self storage facility to tremendous liability, which is why there is specific insurance in the self-storage industry for "wrongful sales." This seminar will explore the do’s and don’ts of handling lien sales and ways to protect a facility operator from making mistakes.

Is the Boogieman in the Closet? Storage Auction Myths vs. Realities

Monday, March 14, 2-2:50 p.m.
Location: Champagne 4
Speakers: Lance Watkins, CEO, StorageTreasures; Dan Dotson, co-founder and advisor, Storage Treasures, and auctioneer of A&E ‘Storage Wars’

Are you tired of hiding your published auction notices in inexpensive and obscure newspapers that bring in a small amount of bidders? Are you interested in increasing your auction revenue but fearful of the drawbacks? With four national TV shows now showcasing self-storage auctions, the industry has an incredible opportunity to capitalize on the publicity―if operators avoid the pitfall of common auction myths. This seminar will teach the truth about storage lien sales and the realities that will help you maximize their revenue potential.

Tornadoes, Fires and Storms … Oh My! What to Do Before and After a Disaster

Monday, March 14, 3-3:50 p.m.
Location: Champagne 4
Speaker: Jonathon Vogel, senior account executive, Bader Co.

Unexpected catastrophes do happen and are impossible to prevent. To help your self-storage business recover more quickly from the devastation caused by fire, floods, storms, etc., it’s essential to have an action plan in place. Proper planning will assist you in mitigating financial losses and retaining good will with tenants. In this session, you’ll get checklists to help you plan for worst-case scenarios and understand what to do after a disaster occurs. You’ll see real-time industry statistics, as well as examples of disaster response and tips for smoother insurance claims.

Curb Appeal Is King: Self-Storage Facility Maintenance and Renovation

Tuesday, March 15, 8-8:50 a.m.
Location: Versailles 1
Speaker: Andrew Fawcett, president, Accent Building Restoration Inc.

Facility curb appeal is essential to drawing customers in a competitive self-storage market. If yours is an older facility, it may be time to invest in maintenance and modernization to keep the site looking fresh and attractive to rental prospects (and buyers, if your goal is to sell). In this session, our presenter will walk you through a series of renovations and improvements for outdated self-storage facilities that will increase curb appeal and address key maintenance issues. You'll learn how to evaluate your facility using a unique ranking system and how to prioritize projects by impact. You'll also get insight about larger renovation projects, such as adding or changing unit sizes, and how to measure their effect on the bottom line. This seminar is ideal for facility operators looking to improve facility image and make more revenue from their existing sites.

Critical Insurance Coverages for Self-Storage

Tuesday, March 15, 9-9:50 a.m.
Location: Versailles 1
Speaker: Randy Tipton, president, Universal Insurance Facilities Ltd.

This dynamic seminar highlights risk-management techniques that could save you money and help you reduce your chance of business loss. Our speaker will address critical insurance issues specific to self-storage facilities, including details about the specialized coverages necessary to protect your operation. The question-and-answer portion of this presentation allows you to ask questions and hear insights about the insurance challenges faced by other facility operators.

Getting Rid of the Self-Storage ‘Discount Disease’

Tuesday, March 15, 10-10:50 a.m.
Location: Versailles 1
Speaker: RK Kliebenstein, president, Coast-To-Coast Storage

All self-storage operators have felt the effects of discounting. It’s like a plague, eating away at our profit. But because of competitive pressure, operators engage in it regularly; and sometimes, it’s necessary. This session will provide a greater understanding of when to use discounting and how to do so properly. You’ll learn how to create a sales culture at your facility that minimizes the need for discounts and how to equip yourself and other staff with the right vocabulary to use with customers. You’ll also learn the right incentives to “burn off” those discounts when the time is right and how to get back to profitability.

Choosing a Self-Storage Tenant-Insurance Program

Tuesday, March 15, 11-11:50 a.m.
Location: Versailles 1
Speaker: Harry Sleighel, president, Storage Property Protection; Matt Schaller, vice president of sales and client services, Storage Property Protection

Self-storage tenant insurance has evolved from a simple countertop brochure to a multitude of product offerings. In this seminar, you’ll learn about available options, including pay-with-rent, and get information to help you choose the right program for your facility. You’ll also hear ways to maximize the profit potential of your program, and discuss issues such as fingerprinting, state insurance licensing, background checks and personal guarantees. If you don’t know the meaning of phrases such as "segregated cell with tax-deferred options" and "off-shore and state-approved captives," be sure to attend this seminar and get the critical insurance info you need.