About Frank L. Giles

Frank L. Giles is senior project manager at Lanier Parking Solutions and serves on the IPI Advisory Council, Conference Program Committee, and Safety/Security Committee.

Parking Career Day

January 10, 2013 By
Frank L. Giles

Do you sometimes find it difficult to explain to people what you do as a parking professional or even what the parking industry is? Try explaining it to a bunch of middle school students. Better yet, try explaining it to them after they’ve had a chance to sit in of a firetruck and talk about what firefighters do all day.

That’s exactly what I had to do a few weeks ago and let me tell you something: if you can sell the parking industry to a room full of 12-year-olds, you can sell it to anybody. Don’t get me wrong–it was a great honor to speak at the McNair Middle School career day. The kids were great and had lots of questions. I think we have to admit, however, that if we’re going to talk to students about parking for 45 minutes, we have to find ways to spice it up a bit.

I was able to get their attention by talking about all the cool cars I get to see and some of the famous people I’ve seen and met while working in parking. That held their attention long enough to get to some of the so-called “boring stuff,” such as leading a team and managing revenue (it helps to make constant references to sports and video games).

All in all, it was a successful career day. Not only did I feel like the kids learned something but I also learned: Even 12-year-old kids are willing to listen to us talk about parking as long as we relate it to something they are already interested in or concerned about. I’m pretty sure this would work with adults as well. First McNair Middle School, next the world!

Filed Under: Lighter Side of Parking

Parking Barking

November 1, 2012 By
Frank L. Giles

Recently my entire parking facility was abuzz with activity from a very large consumer event at the convention center. I was puttering along in my trusty golf kart (the Batmobile), surveying one of the parking lots. Suddenly, I heard a faint yelp coming from a blue SUV. I kicked the Batmobile into reverse and headed back to investigate. As I approached the parked vehicle I found that the yelping sound was actually the bark of a small white poodle mix dog locked in a pet carrier in the back seat. The windows of the vehicle were cracked about two inches and the owner was nowhere to be found.

The good news is that the authorities were called and the pooch was rescued and given water and a much-needed potty break. So here is the bad news… there are still pet owners among us who care enough for their pets to buy them designer collars, fancy pet carriers, and ride them around everywhere they go, but are still willing to leave their pets in lock vehicles on a sunny afternoon for hours. I confess that I was naïve enough to think that no one did this anymore, but I was wrong. This is a public service announcement; the next time you’re perusing your parking facility make sure that your parking is not barking.

Filed Under: Management, Safety

Whistles and Pom-Poms

August 30, 2012 By
Frank L. Giles

What is a parking manager’s greatest resource? You guessed it: the workers. The trick for managers is molding frontline workers and office staff into a productive, well oiled, customer service machine. So how exactly is that done? Retaining good employees and weeding out bad seeds can be a never-ending task, but beyond that, how do you turn a staff into a team? I believe it takes a two pronged approach that I call “Whistles and Pom-poms.”

Now, don’t worry. I’m not suggesting that you turn your next staff meeting into some sort of pep rally. But I do believe managers should be able to assume the roles of both coach and cheerleader. The sports world recognizes that both roles are needed to build a good team and it’s time that we in management realize the same thing.

The role of a coach (the whistle) comes into play when we lay out the game plan. A good manager should make sure that team members are clear about what their responsibilities are and that they are trained and equipped to handle them. The coach also promotes accountability, getting team members back on track when they do not carry out their responsibilities.

The role of cheerleader (the pom-poms) has more to do with the morale and focus of the team, but is just as important as the role of coach. A cheerleader praises success and even anticipates it. A good cheerleader does not wait until the first touchdown is made to break out the pom-poms. A good cheerleader supports the team, the team’s goal and, most importantly, consistently verbalizes support.

Where do you stand as a manager? Are you more coach than cheerleader? Or have you mastered both roles equally? Let us know in the comments below. And when you grab your keys and coffee tomorrow morning and head off to work, don’t forget your whistle and pom-poms!

Filed Under: Management

Parking Hits Close to Home

July 3, 2012 By
Frank L. Giles

The Wall Street Journal recently ran a story on Parking Panda Corp., a small parking company operating in Baltimore, Md., and Washington D.C.

Parking Panda helps parking facilities rent spaces to people looking for parking.  Here’s the cool part; the parking facilities that Parking Panda serves are not 800-space parking decks or sprawling surface lots. Instead, they are at city residences.  This small web-based company helps residents become parking facility managers by renting their driveways, garages, and carports to parkers.  This allows residents and homeowners to make money from unused driveway space on their properties.

Of course Parking Panda isn’t the only driveway sharing company on the scene.  Others such as Parkcirca of San Francisco and SpotHero of Chicago offer the same service, carving out yet another niche in the parking industry.

This type of driveway sharing is becoming more and more popular in big cities where parking can be costly and scarce during big events.  It also gives the everyday homeowner a window into to parking industry.

Can this new parking niche give the lay person a new perspective and even a new appreciation for the parking industry?  I hope so, but in any case, for many city dwellers parking is starting to hit closer to home.

Filed Under: Technology

Ladies and Gentlemen, We Have Autobots!

May 23, 2012 By
Frank L. Giles

In the movie “Transformers,” the self-driving cars that transform into giant robots are called Autonomous Robotic Organisms, or “Autobots” for short. It seems that our friends at Google have given us an autonomous vehicle that drives itself just like in the movie. Ok, it doesn’t transform but I’m sure they’re working on that.

Google says that the car has been driven for 200,000 miles without an accident. It’s outfitted with video cameras, radio sensors, and lasers to help it navigate city streets and will allow a driver-side passenger to take control if he/she so desires.

What does this mean? Will the roads truly be safer with robot cars driving instead of people? Will speeding ticket become a thing of the past? Or valet parking for that matter? Will our personal Autobots be able to pay for our parking wirelessly, drop us off in front of the building or venue, and then proceed to the parking deck on their own?

Let’s face it: we’ve had cars that park themselves for a few years now and they haven’t exactly changed the world, so only time will tell if these vehicles will be practical enough to catch on. If they do, they could affect everything from parking to auto insurance to taxi cabs…and they may be able to take out a few Decepticons as well.

Filed Under: Safety, Technology

Backing into Green

March 19, 2012 By
Frank L. Giles

I still remember my dad’s 1978 Cadillac Coupe de Ville. Whenever he and I stopped along the way on our adventures, he would always back into the parking space. It was almost ceremonial; he would swing wide to line the car up just right, place the ball of his left hand on the wheel, and pass his right arm just over my head so his hand was on the passenger headrest. With a slow smooth turn of the steering wheel, the car would glide into the space just right.

Believe it or not, he was doing something sustainable. I know—you’re thinking, “The only way to get a ’78 Caddi green is paint it.” As it turns out, backing into a parking space can be good for the environment. Now that I’m an adult I find myself backing into parking spaces just like dad did (minus some of the finesse), but I always justified it as being safer than pulling in forwards. There is less chance of hitting another car while backing into a space than there is while backing out into traffic. Also, it’s easier to leave a dangerous situation if you can pull straight out.

Now I have another reason to swing wide and glide into a space: turns out, it more fuel efficient. Studies show that it takes considerably more fuel to back up when the engine is cold than it does when it is warm. This means you help the environment and save a little money. So if you haven’t been able to start your personal green initiative head-on, take a cue from my dad and back into it.

Filed Under: Lighter Side of Parking, Safety, Sustainability