In episode 161 of the Asset Champion podcast, host Mike Petrusky speaks with Joseph Aamidor, senior product management consultant and managing director at Aamidor Consulting. Joe provides market strategy guidance to building owners and operators, established building management firms, technology providers, investors, and early-stage innovators. Mike and Joe talk about the state of the facility management industry and how the current fragmentation in available technology solutions makes it challenging to choose the right tools. They explore how the industry is in a trial-and-error phase with AI and discuss ways asset management leaders can focus on continuous learning and the broader mission of their organizations to improve the built environment and occupant experience. Joe explains why open dialogue and informal peer groups are valuable for improving new solutions and how providing feedback to vendors can lead to better products and a healthier industry.
Agenda
- Current industry trends and challenges, particularly the fragmentation of solutions and the role of AI
- Practical advice for asset owners and operators on data readiness and leveraging technology
- Importance of open dialogue and providing feedback to vendors and peers
What you need to know: Facility and maintenance takeaways
Takeaway 1: Collaboration and open dialogue with peers are essential for testing and improving new technology solutions in facility management
“Open dialogue with your peers is a really good way, especially when it comes to trial and error of new types of solutions,” explains Joe.
He also emphasizes how informal groups where peers share experiences and insights can be invaluable for learning and improvement.
“Creating groups informally where we’re all working on the same things, we’re all trying the same solutions, we’re all trying the same tools, I think that’s one core value of a conference anyway,” he says.
Takeaway 2: Data readiness is a critical prerequisite for the successful implementation of AI and other advanced technologies in facility management
One of the key challenges in leveraging AI and other advanced technologies in facility management is ensuring that the organization’s data is well-organized and accessible. “Data readiness is still something that I think is overlooked,” Joesph notes, explaining that many organizations still have data scattered across various sources, including paper records, which can hinder the integration of new solutions.
Amador shares a common issue he encounters: “Oh, we can tell you which chiller is going to break next. OK, but a lot of my chiller maintenance records are on a clipboard. How do you get the clipboard into your software?”
He further emphasizes, “Organized data, normalized data, rationalized data, that’s probably table stakes.”
Takeaway 3: The labor shortage in the facility management industry is driving the adoption of technology, potentially leading to higher-value roles
“You’re seeing a lot of aging out, and I think that isn’t a good thing because you have a lot of knowledge that may be lost, but it also will drive adoption of technology,” Joe says.
He notes that the shortage of skilled labor might lead to roles being augmented with technology, including AI.
“If you augment that labor with technology and maybe it’s very hardcore AI focused, maybe it’s just various technology workflow technology, dashboarding technology, I mean all of that, I think you’ll see a lot of adoption.”
He also highlights the potential for these roles to evolve: “Now that like the reporting every month is done somewhat in an automated way, I can actually go figure out like why are certain buildings performing really well and why are certain buildings not performing really well and how do I make those poor performing buildings work better?”
Takeaway 4: Providing detailed feedback to vendors is crucial for the development of better products and solutions
“The feedback is the breakfast of champions,” Joe quotes, emphasizing the importance of continuous improvement and learning.
He encouraged listeners to engage with vendors even if they are not currently in the market for a new solution.
“Even if you’re not actively looking to buy a solution, I think you’re probably hearing from a lot of companies trying to sell you something,” Joe says, adding, “And to that point earlier of the feedback of the Breakfast champions, that feedback is really valuable.”
By giving honest feedback, facility professionals can help vendors refine their products and better meet the needs of the industry.
Joe explains: “Companies that you want to work with should take that feedback and say thank you very much for spending the time to tell us that. Maybe they will come back in 6 months and say, hey, we took your feedback, and we did something with it.”
Takeaway 5: Facility management professionals should focus on understanding and solving real-world problems to drive the adoption of new technologies
Joe stresses: “Understanding the point of view and the way of life almost of somebody in that position is a really helpful point of view if you’re trying to build any solution, but in our case or in my case, technological solution for that user.”
He shares an example of how this approach can lead to better outcomes: “One of the stories I hear are, oh, I spent, I usually spend an hour or two updating the spreadsheet. Is there a way that I can get that down to 20 minutes or five minutes or whatever it is to save and that’s considered a win.”
Maintenance management insights
- The industry is experiencing a fragmentation of solutions, making it challenging for asset owners and operators to choose the best technology for their needs.
- Data readiness, including organization and normalization, remains a significant barrier to effectively implementing advanced technologies like AI.
- Many organizations are in a trial-and-error phase with AI, focusing on simple use cases like automating routine tasks before adopting more complex platforms.
- The labor shortage in the facilities management and asset management industries is driving the adoption of technology to augment and enhance existing workforces.
- Open dialogue with peers and providing honest feedback to vendors are crucial for improving products and solutions in the market.
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