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In an interview, Institute of Real Estate Management Region 8 VP Donald Wilkerson, CPM, discussed the impact of personal digital assistants (PDAs) on the real estate management industry. He said PDAs have become another tool that allows people to interact with their clients quickly and respond to problems almost immediately, no matter where they are. That ability makes them more effective as property managers. He also said that the downside to this technology is that as an addict, he finds himself checking the screen or wanting to check the screen at inappropriate times. In order not to let e-mail overload him, whenever he buys anything online, he uses a separate or different screen name.

In RVP Corner, JPM shares the thoughts and opinions of an IREM Regional Vice President on a single topic covered in the current issue.

IREM Region 8 Vice President Donald Wilkerson, CPM®, discusses the impact of PDAs on the real estate management industry. Wilkerson oversees the activities of eight IREM chapters in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. Wilkerson is president and chief executive officer of Gaston and Wilkerson Management Group, AMO®, a full-service real estate firm engaged in multifamily, commercial and industrial management, development and brokerage.

When did you first start using a PDA and what prompted you to do so?

I feel that I should begin the interview by saying, "Hi my name is Don and I am addicted to my Blackberry, or as some of my friends refer to it, my 'Crackberry.'" My first PDA was a PalmPilot that I was given about 10 years ago. It held an appointment calendar and a list of telephone numbers, but it was more of a novelty. However, I did get a management account from it. A potential client was in my office and saw it sitting in its charger. He was very impressed that I was up-to-date with the current technology and gave me his warehouse accounts. We still manage these assets for him.

What's been the biggest impact PDAs have had on the real estate management industry?

Like mosttech stuff, PDAs have come very farvery fast. Today a PDA is really a mini-computer, cell phone, camera, GPS, alarm clock, MP3 player, calculator, word processer and handheld electronic game all in one. Many PDAs offer limited Internet access, and the new iPhone offers full Internet access.

PDAs have become another tool that allows us to interact with our clients quickly and respond to problems almost immediately, no matter where we are. That ability makes us more effective as property managers. When they first became available, PDAs tended to give a competitive advantage. But today, everyone has one, so nowthey are a required communication tool.

What is a specific instance when you felt a PDA impacted the way you did business?

When traveling out of the country, cell phones usually will not work unless you make special arrangements beforehand. My e-mail account continues to work fine no matter which country I travel to, so I can stay connected with the office if I need or want to.

Is there a downside to this technology?

Yes - as an addict, I find myself checking the screen or wanting to check the screen at inappropriate times. Sometimes I find myself checking every few minutes to see if I have a response to an e-mail I just sent. Also, since I am not the only addict out there, I find clientsor other contacts wondering why it takes so long to respondió an e-mail that they may have just sent.

Do you have any tips for not letting e-mail overload you?

Whenever I buy anything online I use a separate or different screen name. When the online merchants sell the name to spammers and the spam builds up, I simply drop the name and use a new one. Investing in and updating a good spam program is a good idea. Finally, face the demon head on and turn it off when out with family and friends, at a sporting event or at a restaurant.

For a full story on the use of PDAs in the real estate management industry, see "PDA Appeal" on page 28.