Blog Posting # 868; Copyright 21 November 2025. EducateMHC
Know this! HUD-Code manufactured housing (‘MH’) is federally-regulated, performance-based, affordable-attainable, factory-built housing (a.k.a. one of four types of offsite construction: being manufactured, modular, panelized housing & Park Model RVs), routinely paired with traditional stick-built single-family residential housing (a.k.a. onsite construction). Land lease communities, a.k.a. manufactured home communities & ‘mobile home parks’) are the commercial real estate (‘CRE’) component of MH. And, along with various types of housing finance (e.g. chattel or ‘home only’ loans, and real estate-secured mortgages) constitutes the post-production segment of the MH industry.
EducateMHC is an MH historian, trade term & trend tracker, as well as perennial MH information source! Contact EducateMHC via (317) 881-3815; email gfa7156@aol.com, or www.educatemhc.com, to purchase ‘Community Management in the Manufactured Housing Industry’ (This book belongs in every land lease community nationwide!), and ‘SWAN SONG’ – History of land lease communities & official record of annual MH production totals since 1955.
And my autobiography, ‘From Smitty”Alpha6 to MHMaven’, describes personal combat adventures in Vietnam as a USMC lieutenant, a 45 year entrepreneur business career in MH & community ownership, as well as freelance consulting and authoring of 20 nonfiction texts.
George Allen is the sole emeritus member of the Manufactured Housing Institute (‘MHI’), a founding board member of MHI’s National Communities Council (‘NCC’) division, an RV/MH Hall of Fame enshrinee, Allen Legacy columnist and editor at large for ‘MHInsider’ magazine.
1960s Management Wisdom Still Good in 2025
My first brush with management wisdom occurred when I was an officer candidate in the U.S. Marines’ Platoon Leaders Class (‘PLC’) during the summer of 1964. Had no idea what training officers meant when they told us 19 year olds to ‘Keep It Simple Stupid!’ – The infamous KISS Rule; how ‘Pain is just weakness leaving the body!’ when on forced marches; and how we must lead by example. Oh, there was a lot more to learn than just those three truisms, but you get the idea.
Some of the military wisdom, it turned out, was transferable into my civilian career, initially as a management trainee, later as a business owner, writer and consultant. Some examples. In the Marines, we were taught to accomplish missions by planning, organizing, leading and controlling resources and events via the acronym SMEAC: Situation, Mission, Execution, Administration & Logistics, Command & Communication. And it works! Can’t tell you how many times I relied on SMEAC to ensure I ‘crossed my T’s & dotted my I’s’ when planning for combat operations with my platoon.
What’s the civilian equivalent to SMEAC? I articulated and copyrighted a Management Wisdom formula in 1979. Here’re the four major steps and supporting touchpoints:
PLANNING. ‘Proper Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance’ and ‘Failure to plan is planning for failure!’ emphasize the value of this first step to accomplishing one’s mission or being successful. It is here the Problem-solving Procedure begins. This wise exercise follows….
ORGANIZING. Emphasis on Simplicity & Flexibility. This is also where the Basic Ms of Management apply: Manpower (personnel, labor), Machinery (equipment & tools), Material (inventory & services), Methods (policies & procedure) and Money (income & expenditures).
LEADING by directing and delegating; coordinating and controlling. Leading is a matter of management style; authoritative and/or participative? Depends on one’s circumstances, nature of the task at hand, and the makeup of the folk performing. And when delegating, don’t abdicate!
CONTROLLING. Appraise performance to standards; evaluate and improve effectiveness
The above Management Wisdom formula has been a personal mainstay for 46 years!
Now here’s the aforementioned Problem-solving Procedure.
Select a Problem, a Task. Then consider it a Challenge, an Opportunity.
Define it, Document it. Ensure the situation is what it appears to be. Oftentimes it’s not.
Study it, Question every detail. Break the problem down into parts.
Research & Organize Data. Get the facts. Here’s where one applies the aforementioned Basic Ms of Management!
Refine & Digest Data. Internalize and Reflect on Alternatives.
Produce & Rework Ideas. Weigh & decide by combining, eliminating, rearranging, simplifying, testing & selecting the best alternative(s)…Set and schedule Objectives, establish standards of performance.
Implement & Monitor. Take action by adjusting & modifying as necessary, evaluating performance & results.
Follow-up & Recap Results. Review all actions, and plan for the future.
SPECIAL OFFER. The Management Wisdom formula, Basic Ms of Management, and Problem-solving Procedure, along with several other management wisdom tools have been published on wallet-sized plastic cards. If you’d like a FREE package of these cards, simply request them via gfa7156@aol.com All I need from you is a preferred postal mailing address. Again this is FREE.
Not all military wisdom applies to the civilian world. Here’s an obvious example, called AIM POINT. These are rules of thumb for selecting one’s aiming point when firing, say, the M16 service rifle.
Jet crossing in front of you. Aim two football fields in front of plane’s nose.
Jet flying overhead. Aim two football fields in front of plane’s nose.
Jet flying directly at you. Aim slightly above plane’s nose.
Helicopter crossing in front of you. Aim one-half football field in front of chopper’s nose.
Helicopter hovering overhead. Aim slightly above chopper’s body.
Helicopter flying directly at you. Aim slightly above chopper’s body.
Finally, there is a quotation from ‘grunt’ (infantry) doctrine that does apply directly to those supervising and managing just about any type operation in our industry and among land lease communities: “You’re only as Strong as Those you Lead!”
George Allen