April 2003
Any major project should build on the successes and learn from the failures of past projects of a similar nature. For space delivery, a post-occupancy evaluation (POE) is the tool to use. The nature of a POE is threefold.
- It focuses on how well a project fulfills the needs of its occupants.
- It provides insight into the consequences of decisions made during the course of a project.
- It forms a sound basis for creating better projects and facilities in the future.
A POE process usually includes a combined approach of building diagnostics and work or function support evaluation—in other words, how the building performs as a physical structure and how well it supports the occupants in their work. POE is a natural complement to space programming. Whereas space programming is a predictive tool used to define project requirements, a POE is an evaluative tool used to assess how well those requirements have been met. Many of the tools and approaches used for POE are similar to those used for space programming.
The success of a POE can be measured by how well it meets the objectives, which can be summarized as follows:
- Provide feedback to the evaluated facility for purposes of immediate problem solving
- Troubleshoot during the acclimation period immediately after the move-in to correct unforeseen problems in facility use
- Balance and fine-tune the facility and its use through continuous feedback
- Audit or otherwise inquirie into select aspects of facility performance, such as space utilization
- Document and measure the successes and failures in new facility performance, thus justifying new construction or remodeling existing facilities
Benefits and Drawbacks of POEs
POEs are, by nature, best done at a difficult time—when the project is over and the customer and facilities staff are eager to get on with other work. In this era of great attention to customer service, there is also a risk of survey backlash, a situation in which occupants are besieged with satisfaction surveys by many corporate departments (as well as in their personal lives) and provide only enough information to dismiss the surveyors and get on with their jobs.
POEs also can be misinterpreted as purely fault-finding missions to place blame for failures on key project team members. Since many POEs are performed by architects and designers, such firms have been reluctant to become involved in a POE because it can display a failure of designed building systems and work environments. Some feel that this positions the design firm for a lawsuit, and so they decline to conduct POEs.
Despite their limitations, POEs have several important benefits to the organization.
The short-term benefits of POEs include identifying and providing solutions to problems occurring with start-up and initial occupancy. Feedback on building performance and improvements recommended by building occupants can be helpful for both the POE team and the occupants. A long-term benefit will be an improvement in facilities standards and criteria for the organization as a whole.
Information from the POE is compared to that contained in the original performance standards. Evaluation of how well the created environment is meeting prespecified performance objectives provides the basis for fine-tuning facilities operations.
In order to be most effective, the facilities manager must determine specifically what information is to be derived from the POE and how this information could be most appropriately used. Performance criteria provide the basis for planning and show how well the facility works.
The benefits of a POE are directly proportional to the extent of the investigation performed: the more you investigate, the more return you will get. However, it is critical to remember that your project customers, as well as the facilities department, must enjoy this benefit. They must know in advance what advantage their time and effort on the POE will provide them.
A Strategy for the POE
When implementing a POE, the application of good strategic planning can overcome the inherent difficulties and help you to best recognize the benefits. Some keys to your planning should include the following phases:
- Design the POE to retrieve only the data that will be used for a specific purpose—no more and no less. As with space programming, avoid asking for nice-to-know but nonessential material that will only waste your customer’s time. It can be seen as a “customer focus” vehicle.
- Administer the POE survey after occupants have had a chance to get used to their new surroundings. Several studies have demonstrated that conducting a POE too soon after occupancy can produce distorted, negative, unrepresentative results. For a typical 5,000-square-foot project, it is best to wait at least two months after move-in.
- Present the POE as a vital component of the entire project delivery process when the project is first discussed. Make it a condition of project delivery and give occupants a chance to get used to the idea. This approach will help to avoid the perception of a POE as a fault-finding mission and will reduce defensiveness among all parties.
- Make sure that the questions in the POE relate directly to the project objectives defined prior to space programming.
- POE results for each project will be more meaningful if they are incorporated into a continuous process of evaluation and feedback gained from all projects delivered by the facilities department.
- Be prepared to follow up on POE results, incorporating as many suggestions as possible into the execution of future projects. This is the most convincing step you can take to demonstrate to customers that the POE is worth doing and will produce results.
You’ve just read a lot of information on POEs regarding what they are and why you need to use them, and also some basic strategies for conducting the evaluation. Still left to discuss are the several possible approaches to POEs, survey methodologies, and the all-important follow-up actions to a POE. Without those, there’s really no point to begin with! Let’s stop here and pick up next month where we left off.
This installment of FM Check List is adapted from BOMI Institute’s Facilities Planning and Project Management, a course in the Institute’s Facilities Management Administrator (FMA) designation program.