Customer Support
“I cannot recommend Grace Hill enough! The process has been flawless from the beginning, starting when the Grace Hill team was just learning more about Bayshore, to in-person walkthroughs of policies and procedures and final customization and editing."
Julie Vasic
Director of Human Resources
Overview
Bayshore Properties is a network of apartment communities based in Northwest Indiana, with living spaces in Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. In total, Bayshore oversees 19 communities, each professionally managed and well-maintained with responsive office staff and maintenance.
However, Bayshore Properties is more than just a property management company; they're a resident-centric organization dedicated to excellence. They don't just offer apartment homes; they provide living spaces where residents’ well-being is the priority.
But being “resident-focused” doesn’t happen by accident — or overnight. It takes intentional effort and focused training to ensure all Bayshore Team Members understand and execute the “Bayshore Way.”
Integral to this is Julie Vasic, Bayshore’s Director of Human Resources. Julie works closely with the HR and Training & Development teams to onboard Team Members, train on policies and procedures, implement benefits, manage Team Member relations, and help create the overall company culture.
With growth, though, often comes a need for change, and in managing their company policies and procedures, leaders at Bayshore began to realize that their company’s traditional approach to policy and procedure management would no longer suffice. Julie notes, “We knew we had some areas of opportunity specific to policies and procedures and reached out to Grace Hill.“
Company Profile
Industry: Multifamily
Unit Count: 7,000
Headquarters: Crown Point, Indiana
Years Business Started: 2002
Number of Team Members: 175
Challenge
Bayshore Properties faced significant challenges in managing their company policies and procedures because the processes they had in place were entirely manual. As Julie says, “Our policies and procedures were scattered, not in one place, and varied by property.”
And in the multifamily industry, where the regulatory and legal environment is often changing, their ability to maintain consistent and timely policy updates had become increasingly difficult, leading to inconsistencies and miscommunication across different properties.
In addition to policy management issues, Bayshore Properties also experienced challenges in onboarding and training new Team Members. While some properties excelled at integrating new hires and educating them on the "Bayshore Way," others struggled.
This disparity resulted in incomplete or ineffective training in some locations, leaving some new Team Members without a comprehensive understanding of company policies and procedures. The inconsistencies in onboarding and training highlighted the need for a more unified and effective approach to ensure all Team Members were adequately prepared and informed.
“We were using our own policy guide prior to working with Grace Hill,” said Julie. “But we reached the point where we had too many outdated policies, had no true metrics for tracking, and lacked an internal process for efficient updates to make all Team Members aware of changes. It was this that led us to seek a solution.”
Bayshore Properties has been using the Grace Hill Training solution since 2021. Given their positive experiences and Grace Hill’s strong reputation within the property management community, Julie and her team naturally turned to Grace Hill when seeking a robust policy solution.
Solution
Bayshore Properties' decision to trust Grace Hill to help revamp their policies was simple — and the only solution they considered. Julie shares, “Grace Hill has such a positive reputation in the industry that, for us, it was a simple decision.” Grace Hill stood out as the clear choice.
While Bayshore had initial hesitations about how the customization would work, all “fears” were quickly dispelled through Grace Hill’s hands-on support and collaborative approach. With in-person walkthroughs, personalized guidance, and tailored suggestions from Grace Hill's team of experts, Bayshore’s leaders felt confident the platform and policy content could easily be tailored to their specific needs and meet their operational objectives.
The preparatory work and structured launch process, including an informative team call with ample time for Q&A and even an interactive “scavenger hunt” on the site, further ensured that all Team Members were comfortable with the new system.
“On our go-live date, all Team Members joined a call led by a Grace Hill implementation expert. She walked everyone through the site, showing our team where to find policies and various search methods, and explained different tools,” added Julie.
To date, all Bayshore Properties Team Members utilize Grace Hill’s Policies and Training, which help align their portfolio and smooth the transition as Team Members move between properties.
FAVORITE FEATURE
“The ‘Search’ option! In Human Resources, we regularly refer to policies and procedures, and having the option to search certain words or phrases rather than going through a large paper manual saves time and is much more efficient."
- Julie Vasic, Director of Human Resources
Results
Since launching the Grace Hill's Policy solution in May 2024, Bayshore has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from their Team Members, who appreciate the centralization, consistency, and fairness it delivers.
Julie shares, “Whether it’s an admin editing or adding a policy, a Community Manager looking up a policy, or a Leasing Consultant referring to a procedure, everyone has said using Policies by Grace Hill has been so much easier for them; they like having a centralized location that all Team Members can access.”
And no longer needing to sift through old manuals or emails has improved efficiency. For HR, the search feature has enhanced their workflow, enabling quick access to information while also facilitating more effective coaching by providing clear and accessible guidelines.
As a result, Bayshore Properties is beginning to see consistency and alignment across their portfolio, marking progress toward operational goals. With the ability to now provide Team Members with a clear understanding of policies, procedures, and performance expectations, Bayshore Properties anticipates the following results:
• Lower turnover rates.
• Higher resident satisfaction.
• Improved productivity and performance.
While it's too early to see tangible cost reductions or revenue growth, they anticipate both in the coming months.
“While updating hundreds of policies and procedures can be daunting, Grace Hill made it manageable, kept us on track, and ensured a smooth roll-out,” says Julie. “It’s been money well spent, providing us with a living, customized document that will continue to evolve.”
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