Lyn Burton: Deal with Staff Anxiety First

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Lyn Burton

Lyn Burton is Founder and President of Affordable Housing Connections in Minnesota. One of her primary offerings is compliance monitoring of assisted housing projects for HUD regulatory compliance. But how do you do that when, with coronavirus, you can’t go onto the property? And many of the “rules” have changed with waivers or with revised instructions during COVID-19. She talks about how she is managing her own staff’s anxiety so they can help others. Her staff is working at home with schools and day care centers closed and often have a partner with a job loss. Then how do you adapt in how you do your work?

She emphasizes the importance of staying in contact with your clients so they know what is going on in your world and a discussion of your plan through Q&As and Zoom meetings. She provides documentation techniques and other protocols in place to the projects for which she monitors compliance. She provides copies of everything they are doing to their clients and helps field calls so they don’t all end up with cities who are understaffed.

She talks about the role of essential workers and how their company needs to protect their funding lines so they can always make payroll.  She talks about property manager stress levels when they are managing rental buildings with the entire family at home at all times.

About nanmckay

Nan has been President of Nan McKay and Associates, Inc. since 1980. She started Nan McKay Connects LLC in 2019 and has started 4 other businesses over the last 50 years. She has received numerous awards including the Allan Anderson Award of Merit from Minnesota National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials, the Section 8 Administrators Award, in 2018 the National Association of Women Business Owners' (NAWBO) Signature Award for Southern California, and in 2019 she was selected by NAWBO as the California Woman Business Owner of the Year. She was co-founder of Minnesota Women in Housing and has served on the Board of Directors for the National Leased Housing Association for many years. She has two buildings named after her in Minnesota, a 10-story elderly high-rise, the Nan McKay Building, and a family subsidized development, McKay Manor. Nan now hosts four podcast shows featuring stories of women empowerment, oral history makers of affordable housing and community development, and stories of ordinary people coping with COVID-19 pandemic.
www.trailblazersimpact.com; nan@nanmckayconnects.com