Most condo projects run with a dangerous assumption that someone is managing the project, when in reality no one is. This post explains the project management gap, why it keeps happening, and why condo projects fail when no one owns the outcome from start to finish.
In a brief conversation with a condo board director, I asked what sounded like a simple question about their upcoming garage refurbishment:
“Who is managing the project?”
The answer came back immediately.
“The engineer.”
Minutes later we were talking about a related issue: Where are residents going to park while the only garage is out of service?
That is the moment my alarm went off.
The engineer was not planning resident parking? The board and manager were left to figure out the resident parking issue.
Clearly, no one stakeholder was responsible for the overall impact of the project. I.e., there was no project manager.
That is the real issue in many condo projects: Everyone assumes someone is managing the project. Often, no one is.
Condo projects involve a tangle of people, contracts, and expectations. In that complexity, a very expensive assumption shows up: Someone must be in charge of the whole thing.
Boards assume the condo manager, engineer or general contractor is managing it. Managers assume the engineer or general contractor is managing it. Consultants assume they are protecting technical interests, not leading the whole project.
The result is that projects start to run, but it is not actually being managed.
Here is what each stakeholder group is really focused on.
Owners want:
Their questions are practical and immediate: Can I park conveniently? Will I sleep through jackhammering? Is it safe for my kids?
Board members are volunteers pulled from every kind of background. Many:
They are the project sponsor whether they like it or not. If something goes wrong, the finger points to them.
Property managers are in the middle of everything. They are heavily involved in
They want satisfied board directors and owners, and their management contract renewed.
But here’s an important reality: Property management is not project management.
Their focus is very clear:
They are not responsible for resident experience, board politics, or long-term risk. They perform what they were hired to perform.
Consultants are engaged to protect the condo from technical and construction risk. They:
This is technical oversight or contract monitoring. It is not the same as owning the entire project outcome.
Lawyers step in to:
They appear at key moments, but they do not run the project.
Put simply, everyone has a role, but no one by default owns the whole picture.
Project management is not:
Project management is the practice of taking the condo corporation’s goals and making sure every part of the project serves those goals from start to finish.
That includes:
If no one is doing that, you do not have a managed project. You have a construction event.
Most vendors only show up in the middle of the story. Project management starts earlier and ends later.
Here is the lifecycle of a project:
Most individual board directors only focus on items 3 to 7. Most vendors only truly care about 6 and part of 7. Project management has to span all of it.
These terms get tossed around as if they are interchangeable. They are not.
Contract management starts after the contract is signed. It focuses on scope changes, payment terms, and disputes. Contract management is often handled by property managers or consultants. It's important but narrow. It protects the agreement, not the overall outcome.
Contract monitoring (or technical oversight) involves checking whether the work matches the technical scope and quality. It's typically done by consultants or site representatives. Contract monitoring is important, but it is focused on compliance, not the lived experience of owners or the full risk picture.
Project management - The project manager owns the outcome, not just the paperwork. The project manager represents the sponsors interests from start to finish. They coordinate with vendors, consultants, legal, and internal stakeholders. The project manager manages risk, disruption, and communication.
If the only things you have are contract management and technical oversight, you are missing project leadership.
That gap is where trouble lives.
When no one owns the whole picture, basic but critical questions go unanswered:
If the answer is unclear, here is what actually happens: the board or manager become the project manager by default without the tools, time, or mandate to do the job.
That is why boards and managers end up fielding angry emails at midnight, sweating over finances when projects run over budget, arguing with contractors about who agreed to what and taking heat for problems they assumed someone else was managing.
The risk does not vanish. It just lands on the people with the least capacity to handle it.
This pattern repeats in condo projects for predictable reasons:
So the assumption quietly appears: someone must be handling that.
Sometimes, no one is.
Before your next major or complex project, ask one blunt question in a board or planning meeting: “Who owns this project from the moment we decide to explore it until the moment we close it out and measure whether it worked?”
If the answer is fuzzy, you already have a risk problem.
For larger or more complex condo projects:
Whether you use a dedicated external project manager, a specialized firm, or a clearly defined internal role, somebody must be accountable for the outcome from beginning to end.
If no one is clearly managing the project, the project is unmanaged. Unmanaged projects cost boards money, reputation, and a lot of unnecessary pain.
January 22, 2026
In a brief conversation with a condo board director, I asked what sounded like a simple question about their upcoming garage refurbishment:
“Who is managing the project?”
The answer came back immediately.
“The engineer.”
Minutes later we were talking about a related issue: Where are residents going to park while the only garage is out of service?
That is the moment my alarm went off.
The engineer was not planning resident parking? The board and manager were left to figure out the resident parking issue.
Clearly, no one stakeholder was responsible for the overall impact of the project. I.e., there was no project manager.
That is the real issue in many condo projects: Everyone assumes someone is managing the project. Often, no one is.
Condo projects involve a tangle of people, contracts, and expectations. In that complexity, a very expensive assumption shows up: Someone must be in charge of the whole thing.
Boards assume the condo manager, engineer or general contractor is managing it. Managers assume the engineer or general contractor is managing it. Consultants assume they are protecting technical interests, not leading the whole project.
The result is that projects start to run, but it is not actually being managed.
Here is what each stakeholder group is really focused on.
Owners want:
Their questions are practical and immediate: Can I park conveniently? Will I sleep through jackhammering? Is it safe for my kids?
Board members are volunteers pulled from every kind of background. Many:
They are the project sponsor whether they like it or not. If something goes wrong, the finger points to them.
Property managers are in the middle of everything. They are heavily involved in
They want satisfied board directors and owners, and their management contract renewed.
But here’s an important reality: Property management is not project management.
Their focus is very clear:
They are not responsible for resident experience, board politics, or long-term risk. They perform what they were hired to perform.
Consultants are engaged to protect the condo from technical and construction risk. They:
This is technical oversight or contract monitoring. It is not the same as owning the entire project outcome.
Lawyers step in to:
They appear at key moments, but they do not run the project.
Put simply, everyone has a role, but no one by default owns the whole picture.
Project management is not:
Project management is the practice of taking the condo corporation’s goals and making sure every part of the project serves those goals from start to finish.
That includes:
If no one is doing that, you do not have a managed project. You have a construction event.
Most vendors only show up in the middle of the story. Project management starts earlier and ends later.
Here is the lifecycle of a project:
Most individual board directors only focus on items 3 to 7. Most vendors only truly care about 6 and part of 7. Project management has to span all of it.
These terms get tossed around as if they are interchangeable. They are not.
Contract management starts after the contract is signed. It focuses on scope changes, payment terms, and disputes. Contract management is often handled by property managers or consultants. It's important but narrow. It protects the agreement, not the overall outcome.
Contract monitoring (or technical oversight) involves checking whether the work matches the technical scope and quality. It's typically done by consultants or site representatives. Contract monitoring is important, but it is focused on compliance, not the lived experience of owners or the full risk picture.
Project management - The project manager owns the outcome, not just the paperwork. The project manager represents the sponsors interests from start to finish. They coordinate with vendors, consultants, legal, and internal stakeholders. The project manager manages risk, disruption, and communication.
If the only things you have are contract management and technical oversight, you are missing project leadership.
That gap is where trouble lives.
When no one owns the whole picture, basic but critical questions go unanswered:
If the answer is unclear, here is what actually happens: the board or manager become the project manager by default without the tools, time, or mandate to do the job.
That is why boards and managers end up fielding angry emails at midnight, sweating over finances when projects run over budget, arguing with contractors about who agreed to what and taking heat for problems they assumed someone else was managing.
The risk does not vanish. It just lands on the people with the least capacity to handle it.
This pattern repeats in condo projects for predictable reasons:
So the assumption quietly appears: someone must be handling that.
Sometimes, no one is.
Before your next major or complex project, ask one blunt question in a board or planning meeting: “Who owns this project from the moment we decide to explore it until the moment we close it out and measure whether it worked?”
If the answer is fuzzy, you already have a risk problem.
For larger or more complex condo projects:
Whether you use a dedicated external project manager, a specialized firm, or a clearly defined internal role, somebody must be accountable for the outcome from beginning to end.
If no one is clearly managing the project, the project is unmanaged. Unmanaged projects cost boards money, reputation, and a lot of unnecessary pain.
