By Maggie Beamguard
Insider Editor
A new community manager has been hired by the Seven Lakes Landowner’s Association.
Michael Dees, a true North Carolinian, started on April 15.
Dees was born and raised in Fayetteville and received a degree in political science from East Carolina University. He proudly claims his North Carolina roots which he traces back through both sides of his family to highland Scots who immigrated to this area over 200 years ago.
“My roots were very much in the Cumberland County area,” he said. His mother still lives in the historic Haymount community of Fayetteville.
After a short stint on Capitol Hill, Dees decided to go a different direction and explored the real estate industry, and eventually Community Association Management.
“I have now been in the industry going on 24 years, but I’ve been specifically in Community Association management for just over 20 years.” He is employed by Community Association Services, Inc. (CAS).
Dees says his personal and professional growth over the last four years has prepared him to take on this new position. He recently received the highest certification that one can achieve in the community association industry, the Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM).
“I’m very honored. It was 12 years in the making. It’s a lot of additional continuing education and a lot of additional graduate level work,” he said. “Coming into this new position with just having completed this, it’s just a very good time for me.”
He is drawn to this line of work because there is something new to learn every day. “It keeps me challenged,” he said.
After living in Raleigh for many years, coming back to the Sandhills feels aclot like coming home. Dees’ father passed away in 2022 following unexpected complications with COVID-19. “It caused me to rethink my priorities and realize how important my family is.”
Dees felt the position with SLLA was a good fit from the start.
“Just going through the community at Seven Lakes, one can really get a sense of how special it is,” he said. “And that’s what really really drew me — how I felt when I was driving and walking through it and how nice the people that were walking on the street.”
One of the things Dees is looking forward to is working with the passionate and involved board he got to know during the interview process.
“What I found was that every person, every board member, that I talked to brought something to the table,” he said. “They are all committed to and striving to make Seven Lakes Landowners a success.”
He appreciated some of the work they have been doing to adapt to changing technology, specifically the new technology that goes with the recently installed security gate system.
As for strengths, Dees hopes his approachability will contribute positively to the community as a whole as well as his team focused management style. “While I might be the manager and helping lead the team, I’m a part of the team.”
A self-described neat freak, Dees anticipated getting his office organized before quickly diving into other projects.
“The first thing is for administrative purposes we’re trying to digitize a lot of the paperwork. We’re saving it and securing it in the cloud so it’s always there and protected,” he said. “We are looking at efficiency and ways to make things better, including cross training staff members and working continually to communicate with our homeowners a correct and honest and good message to homeowners.”
He also looks forward to getting to know all the residents. “Part of how I succeed is by knowing the homeowners and knowing what their concerns and needs are.”
With many needs across the community and emergencies that inevitably arise, Dees will rely on his prioritization skills. “I’m very good about being able to prioritize things and react. Multitasking is another thing that I’ve been able to perfect in this work.”
In his freetime, Dees priortizes spending time with family and friends and his three Boston terriers. He loves to hike and walk, especially on beautiful days.
“Doing things outside is a great and proactive way of dealing with stress,” he said. “And this job can be stressful. So to be able to reset on a weekend outside is really good for one’s mental health.”
It can be stressful, but it’s a job Dees wholeheartedly embraces.
“The next six months for me is going to be a huge learning curve as far as learning the ins and outs of the community.” Dees said. “I’m working hard to grasp everything as quickly as possible and to better serve the community.”
Contact Maggie Beamguard at maggie@thepilot.com.
