Recruiting a house manager is difficult yet very important whether you are starting your first sober living or whether you are expanding to your 2nd or 3rd house.
There are several things to look for when trying to find a house manager. Below are the most important qualities to look for when finding a house manager.
1) Brand
Depending on what type of sober living (male, female, co-ed, MAT) you have, you want to make sure that the house manager is representative of your brand. If you have been operating sober livings for some time, many pull former residents into being a house manager. This can work well as they are already familiar with how things operate and have lived experience on the other side of things. If you dont have any former residents because you are starting a new sober living from scratch, you can usually find a house manager through your recovery network or by going to AA meetings and getting involved in the community.
2) Organized
Logistically, running a sober living is hard. There are a lot of moving parts so you want to make sure the person can stay on top of things. They have to remember to drug test all residents, keep track of everyones’ schedules, keep up with house matters. This is exactly why we created One Step – to make the house manager’s lives easier and give them a way to run everything on their phones.
3) Serious
You want to make sure that the person you recruit is serious about committing to being a house manager. They shouldnt be doing it only to assume a power position. They should genuinely want to help those trying to stay sober, they should be patient and they should be willing to take on all the responsibilities that come with being a house manager.
4) Sober
Most sober livings require at least 1 year of sobriety. It is important that you feel the house manager is ready to accept this position and that they have enough sobriety and discipline to help those newly sober, without being triggered themselves.
5) Past management experience
It is helpful if the house manager has a background in managing others or at the very least has been in a former consumer facing role. Being a house manager involves being a leader to the residents and being strict with them for their eventual benefit.
Do you have any other qualities that you look for when hiring a house manager? Email us at info@onestepsoftware.com to add to the list.