We're starting our first major portfolio audit for a retail chain with 240 locations across 15 states. The challenge is getting standardized LOAs when each site has different property managers and some are franchised. Has anyone tackled something this size and what's your approach to the paperwork logistics?
Standardizing LOAs across 200+ retail locations
Carla, we did a 180-location grocery chain last year. The key was creating a master LOA template that worked in all states, then having corporate send it down with clear instructions. Still took 3 months to collect them all but it's doable. Franchises were definitely the slowest to respond.
Susan's approach is solid. Also consider having your main contact at corporate pre-sign a master authorization, then you can reference that in your utility requests. Many utilities will accept this for multi-site accounts. Just make sure you track which utilities require individual site LOAs versus accepting the corporate authorization.