Post-Occupancy Evaluations, part 3

Post-Occupancy Evaluations,
part 3
June 2003

This is the final part of a series on executing post-occupancy evaluations. In the first two parts, we addressed the purpose for POEs and the benefits to be realized. We talked about strategies for implementing POEs and explained the four basic types. Now we need to go into the details of survey methodologies. After that, we’ll discuss follow-up actions, which come right back to the purpose of POEs.

Survey Methodologies

The method you choose to collect POE data must be chosen with care. It should be commensurate with the approach taken. Investigative and diagnostic POEs are almost always tailored to a specific project. In most cases it is best to consult with a space planner, space programmer, or architect when designing such a program.

For typical small churn projects, a more standardized approach is usually appropriate. A simple questionnaire distributed to every occupant can yield some basic but valuable information. You may choose to supplement the questionnaire with some personal interviews to emphasize your department’s personal commitment to occupant satisfaction and delivery of good service.

In her book Planning and Managing Interior Projects (R.S. Means Company, 1999), Carol Farren, a former facilities manager, provides some statements designed to gauge occupant satisfaction for a small project. The respondent rates each statement on a scale ranging from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” You may choose to provide six points on the scale so respondents cannot pick a neutral position for each question. The following points could be asked of each occupant involved in a move:

1. My work area ambient lighting is sufficiently bright.
2. My work area ambient lighting is sufficiently adjustable.
3. My work area task lighting is sufficiently bright.
4. My work area task lighting is sufficiently adjustable.
5. I have sufficient work surface and desktop area.
6. My work surfaces are adjustable to a height that is comfortable.
7. I have sufficient file storage in my workspace.
8. I have sufficient file storage near my workspace.
9. I have sufficient book storage.
10. My work area is aesthetically pleasing.
11. I have sufficient acoustical privacy in my work area.
12. I have sufficient visual privacy in my work area.
13. My workspace is free of annoying distractions.
14. My work area is appropriate for my status.
15. My desk chair is sufficiently adjustable for my comfort.
16. The ambient temperature is sufficiently adjustable.
17. My keyboard tray is sufficiently adjustable.
18. My computer screen is free of glare.
19. The height and angle of computer monitor are sufficiently adjustable.
20. The printer I use is conveniently located.
21. The fax I use is conveniently located.
22. The location of my telephone is comfortable for me.

To these typical statements that could apply to any project, you should add some pertaining to your project’s specific goals, such as:

1. I was adequately informed of progress throughout the course of the project.
2. I participated to an appropriate degree in project meetings.
3. My requirements were taken into account during the planning process.
4. As a whole, the department functions as well or better now than it did in its former location.
5. Given the history and development of the project, it was completed in an appropriate time frame.
6. Space and furniture standards were appropriately applied for this project.

Even with such simple statements, many valuable insights can be gained from analyzing the responses, particularly if results from numerous projects can be tracked over time. For example, you could compare results for projects for the same department; projects of similar square footage, budget, or population; projects by building; or by type of occupancy.

For simple POEs, great care must be taken when analyzing data to ensure that the data are viewed properly in context, lest inappropriate comparisons be made with other projects where direct comparison is not possible. Remember that all the statements above are designed to gauge the occupants’ opinions, rather than facts about the history of the project. Other research is required to identify the reasons behind these opinions.

Follow-up Actions to the POE

Once the surveys and interviews have been conducted, it is extremely important to follow up on the data collected. For a small project, the process need not be formalized; an informal chat with a department head can be valuable in that it serves several purposes.

To share summary information so the department head knows how the workforce feels about the move

• To gain more information that may be evoked by sharing the tabulated responses
• To convey genuine interest in the occupants’ opinions
• To share what you have gained from their input and how any of their suggestions could be put into practice on future projects

Priority Actions

The first items to be taken care of should be the factors that deal with the health, safety, and welfare of the occupants: for example, work spaces that are incorrectly configured, insufficient light, equipment that doesn’t work, and so on. It is important that the facility project manager continue to view these actions as steps that “market” the final success of the project. It is important that staff feel that someone is paying attention to their needs.

In most projects, a close second to work spaces is the functioning of mechanical systems and automated controls to test working effectiveness and performance criteria.

In cases where major building problems such as a leaking roof or leaking building skin present themselves well after project completion, when climate conditions are right, it may be beneficial for the facility manager to reconvene the project team as quickly as possible to resolve the problem.

Input to Future Projects

The facilities manager is in a good position to implement information gained from POEs into future projects. If a project involved modifications and innovations in building performance and workplace standards, a POE may yield valuable information about how well these changes worked. A facilities manager should evaluate the information against current standards and decide what changes might be implemented throughout the space inventory.

Large projects often create the most dramatic changes due to their scope and scale. Some of the standards that are affected by the implementation of a large project include:

• Introduction of movable full-height walls and an open plan approach using systems furniture
• Establishment or simplification of modular space standards to reduce costs and rationalize space allocation
• Standardizing the menu of components allowed for personalization of work spaces
• More rigorous adherence to space standards (by both occupants and space planning consultants), coupled with more flexibility within each workstation footprint regarding the allocation of components
• Minimizing the number of sizes of space standards to as few as possible Instituting a briefcase move policy, whereby people, not offices, are moved wherever possible
• Location of common rooms and services such as conference rooms in a permanent suite, rather than within individual departments Reserving complex and expensive detailing for more permanent spaces, such as lobbies and conference suites

Smaller projects also yield valuable information; for instance, whether corporate standards support the work of a particular department, or whether one group needs a different standard. Such information may indicate the need for deeper analysis. In some cases, it can inform and support much larger-scale decisions, such as moving to a different space in the longer term. There are some cases, for example, where an organization occupying a building constructed in a 48-in. module performs work best in a 60-in. module. No amount of design will compensate for the disparity between the work and the building; misfits will be prevalent and may be the source of a series of churn projects where spaces never quite seem to function properly.

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.