Meet the Candidates: Amanda (Mandi) Lalonde
On November 6, 2023, Brooks Towers owners will elect three new members to the HOA board of directors. Mandi LaLonde is one of the four candidates running for the board this year.
Mandi's Bio:
I have been a resident of Brooks Tower since January 2022. Over the last year and a half, I have been an active owner in the community by participating in and going to Board of Directors meetings and other committee meetings. My vision for Brooks Tower is to support decisions and initiatives that continue to make this a great place to live; and help update and make necessary changes to support the health, safety, economics, and value of our homes. Ultimately, my objective is to represent our community through transparency, communication, and accountability.
My professional experience in Human Resources & Management will benefit our community as I come with extensive knowledge of problem solving, project management, data driven decisions, and team building. My experience includes actively contributing to large projects, service delivery, and communication; formally building strategic plans and design from conception to implementation and analysis. I have extensive experience cultivating strong cross-collaborative partnerships with internal and external business partners. I have a strong understanding of communications and marketing, systems and processes, vendor management, process design and team development. I am best known for flexibility and adaptability, organization, successful implementation of programs and process improvements, and leading by example.
Quick BT News Interview:
How long have you lived in Brooks Tower? On what floor, and for how long?
My husband and I have lived on the 21st floor of Brooks Tower since January 2021.
What is your long-term vision for Brooks Tower?
My long-term vision for Brooks Tower is to support our brand as the original classic downtown high-rise, by maintaining the historic and classical look and feel of the building and community, while taking care of the building through modern upgrades to maintain its integrity, keeping us safe, and promoting community health and engagement. Ultimately, I'd like us to own our identity as Brooks Tower and not replicate other buildings downtown.
What is an example of one way you've been involved in improving Brooks Tower?
I go to as many of the Board and committee meetings as possible to be engaged. I tried to volunteer to help with the Fitness Center upgrades, but was not given the opportunity to help with that effort. (not sure if that's something we should include in the blog?)
What are the biggest ways you would like to see Brooks Tower improved?
I would like to see transparency, accountability, and prioritizing be the 'big picture' improvements for our community. A few ideas or examples include posting our financial books with line-item details (w/o compromising confidential information); implementing a project management system to track our projects to properly set priorities and include impacts to budget, timelines, documents, and community votes all in one space for easy and open sharing in board meetings; and create process documentation so we can plan for future preventive maintenance, train new hires and properly track what we work on for future project management. I think these few things can help us have directed and intentional conversations and actions in board meetings, keeping us on track with the most important topics and action items that impact the majority of residents in the community.
What particular skills do you have that you can bring to the Brooks Tower board?
I think the best skills I can offer the community are communication laced with kindness and active listening. I also bring a lot of experience with process documentation, program and project management, and communication and branding.
If you are an owner at Brooks and you haven't already, vote here. You should have received an email with your elector ID and password.
