Sign in to Fortress OSWhy One PropTech Founder Thinks It's Time to Rethink Property Management
Most property management teams run on too many tools and too many repeat tasks. Fortress founder Kerri Davis says the fix is simple: automate what repeats, centralize your data, and stop pretending a pile of single-purpose apps is a real system. Cut the busywork. Let managers do the actual work.
Key takeaways
Property management is overdue for a rethink because repeatable tasks and broken workflows slow teams down every single day.
Automation works best where inefficiencies already live, like a triggered text to a resident right after a maintenance job closes.
Centralizing data and workflows helps managers make sharper calls and improve ROI across a full portfolio.
Onboarding dozens of single-problem tools creates poor integration and redundant work. That is not a system.
Fortress sees the future of management as flexible and nimble, where managers do specialized work instead of generalist busywork.
GlobeSt.com interviewed our Founder & CEO about her upcoming presentation
“We need to acknowledge and start using today’s technology,” Kerri Davis, CEO of Fortress, tells GlobeSt exclusively ahead of our Multifamily Conference in Los Angeles next month. “Where inefficiencies, repeatable tasks, and workflows exist, automation can thrive…There is no time like the present to future-proof your business.”
Davis says owners and operators are “still figuring out their tech ecosystems,” with many companies onboarding dozens of solutions that purport to solve a single problem. That can lead to poor integration between solutions and redundancy among tasks. She’ll lead a highly anticipated session on Monday, October 24 at the event where she’ll share ways to streamline property and portfolio data to make insightful decisions and — perhaps most importantly — to improve ROI. The proptech founder says she’ll also draw on various use cases and discuss how types of automation ranging from Prompted/Triggered to Business Process/Workflow to AI can help everyone from on-site managers to regional property managers be more efficient, accurate and data-driven.
“As a fast example, an auto-generated text message is a form of prompted automation. Where owners could implement this type of automation is with maintenance feedback,” Davis says. “Owners and operators can get immediate insight by having a text sent to a resident after the maintenance technician marks a job as closed. The resident can review the work and flag if more attention is needed, providing a nice client touch point and way to prompt feedback.”
Davis launched Fortress with automation and centralization at the forefront. She says that automating redundant and repeatable work, and creating centralized, focused workflows, you can pay less people more money to do a better job – whether that means less on-site support, more centralized teams, or dispatched pods of leasing agents.
“We think the future of property management is flexible, nimble and customizable,” she says. “Regardless of the path you choose, you will need a software that allows you to be creative. Property management is a tough job. Today’s managers are tasked with everything from community relations to collections to vendor management. Our vision is for management professionals to do more specialized work versus being a generalist.”
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Fortress Property Management Software was built by veteran property managers to deliver a remarkably easy to use interface, real-time insights and best-in-class customer support. Learn more about Fortress from the articles below:
- Fortress: Built by Property Managers, for Property Managers
- How Property Managers Save an Hour or More Each Day With Fortress
- Fortress: Real-time Insights, Not Stale Reports
- GlobeSt.com Names Kerri Davis a Women of Influence
- How Can Fortress Help Manage Your Affordable Housing Units?
Or schedule a demo with our team below and see Fortress in action:
Built by operators, for operators. Posts under this byline are written and reviewed by the team.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to what people ask about this topic. Still curious? Talk to our team.
Contact UsWhy does Fortress think property management needs to be rethought?
Too many teams run on repeatable tasks and broken workflows. Founder Kerri Davis says where inefficiencies exist, automation can step in. Centralizing property and portfolio data lets teams make better decisions and improve ROI, instead of patching the gaps by hand every day.
What kinds of automation can property managers use?
Property managers can use several types of automation. Fortress founder Kerri Davis points to prompted or triggered automation, business process and workflow automation, and AI. One practical example is an auto-generated text sent to a resident after a maintenance technician closes a job, so the resident can review the work and flag if more attention is needed.
How does automation help with maintenance feedback?
When a technician marks a job as closed, automation sends the resident a text right away. The resident reviews the work and flags anything that needs a second look. Owners and operators get immediate insight, residents get a real touch point, and nobody has to chase feedback manually.
Why is using too many property management tools a problem?
Each tool usually claims to fix one thing. Fortress founder Kerri Davis says onboarding dozens of these solutions creates poor integration between them and redundancy across tasks. Instead of one connected system, teams end up with disconnected islands that generate extra work instead of eliminating it.
How can centralizing property data improve ROI?
When operations, data, and workflows live in one place, teams stop bouncing between tools to find answers. Centralizing property and portfolio data makes insightful decisions easier and faster. Fortress was built with automation and centralization at the front, so managers can act on current data instead of digging through redundant tasks.
What does Fortress see as the future of property management?
Fortress sees the future as flexible, nimble, and customizable. Founder Kerri Davis says automating repeatable work and building centralized workflows lets companies pay fewer people more to do better work. The goal is for managers to do specialized work instead of being generalists who handle everything from collections to vendor management.
Related resources
Smart Maintenance Workflows
Track work orders, status updates, and resident feedback from one connected system.
The Fortress Core Platform
Centralize operations and automate repeat tasks across your whole portfolio.
Connect Your Tools
Link Fortress with the systems your team already uses. No more islands.
