We use WhatsApp a lot to communicate and co-ordinate several things at Pearl Marina, it is not without it’s issues but its currently what we have. We intend to keep improving it.
This guide is for homeowners, new residents, management staff, even visitors for how to use and navigate our online community on Whatsapp. First, let’s agree on one some guidelines.
Effective & Responsible Communication Guidelines
- Assume Positive Intent. Always begin with a position of positivity and grace.
- Kindness Matters. You are looking at a screen, but you are really talking to a person. If you wouldn’t say it to a person’s face, do not send it to them in a text message.
- Express Your Thoughts Responsibly and Inclusively. We work in different locations, come from different backgrounds and often have very different perspectives. We want to know your thoughts, opinions, and feelings on things. We also ask you to be considerate when communicating potentially sensitive topics.
- Own It. If you say it or type it, own it. If it hurts the company or an individual, even unintentionally, we encourage you to look at things from other points of view and apologize easily.
- Be a Role Model of the Values you want to see in the community.
- Feedback is Essential. It is difficult to know what is appropriate in every one of the different cultural and family backgrounds of 300+ people. We encourage neighbor to give feedback and receive feedback in a considerate way.
- Do not underestimate a 1:1. Asynchronous communication (e.g., via text) is helpful and necessary. In some cases (e.g., to clarify misunderstandings) it can be much more effective to just call someone directly or even better meet them in-person.
- Focus on what we can directly influence. There are many factors we can’t directly influence and we should avoid spending time discussing those things. For example, Let’s not keep talking about when Centum is bringing the international school or the hospital. Instead, let’s discuss what we can do about how we can share information on which schools close to the neighborhood that other residents have found worth taking their children to. Not the best example but you get the point.
Life in a shared amenities, planned community comes with neighbors and learning to communicate with them effectively requires a mental shift. This can feel unusual or even uncomfortable for those who come from a single home environments but with time, you’ll appreciate having neighbors and enjoy sharing spaces with them.
Everyone is a moderator
One last note before getting into the WhatsApp groups, if you see something that concerns you in the WhatsApp groups or even really in the neighborhood, we encourage you to respectfully say something directly to the individual in a 1:1 format.
If there is an issue to raise regarding someone’s communication or conduct, neighbours should raise to the community via WhatsApp or directly to the Community Manager or HOA committee (also reachable via WhatsApp)
Joining the community on WhatsApp
Why so many groups?
In order to collaborate in community of 300+ people and growing, we need more than one WhatsApp group, some are topic based and others are more membership based. Some may be even short lived but our goal is to create room for asynchronous (without physical meeting) discussions to move all matters forward.
Please see the ones that interest or apply to you, click/tap on the group name to make a request to join.
The admin aka Communication Champion (volunteers in our community) will review and make a decision to approve or deny a request. Please be patient with the admins, they are not paid staff and need to do some due deligence before approving a request especially for some membership based groups.
If you would like to contest a decision an admin made to deny you access to a group, please contact the community manager or HOA committee.
Any member of any of these WhatsApp groups automatically becomes a member of the announcement group where community wide announcements are shared.
Which group to join?
| Group Name | Purpose | Membership |
|---|---|---|
| Pearl Marina Community | Announcements to all community members | Home Owners, Tenants, Property Managers, Service Providers, Staff (Service teams and Developer) |
| Bellavista Apartments | Issues concerning those residing in the Bellavista Apartments sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| Block A | Block B | Block C | Block D | Block E | Block F | Block G | Block H | Block I | Block J | Block K | Block L | Block M | Block N | Block O | Issues concerning those residing or owning property in each block of the Bellavista Apartments sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| Landlords & Airbnb Hosts | Issues concerning renting out homes in Pearl Marina Community | Home Owners, Property Managers |
| Owners Only | Formal communication for Bellavista Home Owners | Home Owners |
| Kingswood Park | Issues concerning those residing in the Kingswood Park sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| Springfield Apartments | Issues concerning those residing in the Springfield Apartments sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| Maribella Villas | Issues concerning those residing in the Maribella Villas sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| La Pearla Bungalows | Issues concerning those residing in the La Pearla Bungalows sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| Riviera Townhouses | Issues concerning those residing in the Riviera Townhouses sub-community | Home Owners, Tenants |
| Cleaning and Landscaping Team | Issues concerning cleaning and landscaping of shared spaces in the Pearl Marina Community | Home Owners, Tenants, Property Managers, Cleaning and Landscaping team leads |
| Security Team | Issues concerning Security at Pearl Marina | Security Team/Service providers, Home Owners, Tenants, Staff |
| Pearl Marina Security Leadership | Private Communication with Security Service Providers | Pearl Marina Estate Manager, representatives for each sub-community, Representatives from each security service provider |
| Electric and Plumbing Team | Issues concerning electricity and plumbing in the Pearl Marina Community | Community Electrician and Plumber Staff, Home Owners, Tenants |
| PearlMarina.org | Issues concerning managing and keeping this website useful for the community | Home Owners, Tenants, anyone else volunteering to their help |
| Bellavista HOA | Issues that need to be addressed to the Bellavista HOA directly | Home Owners, Bella Vista HOA committee |
For general conduct outside of Whatsapp, please refer to the Community Rules and Regulations here
To update this page, please reach out to PearlMarina.org in the Community Group on WhatsApp.