What’s on the minds of construction owners and stakeholders these days? Which themes prick the conscience of owner organizations? What are we to make of these challenges, or are they opportunities?

These topics were compiled during the Owner’s Roundtable discussion at the Construction Owners Association of America (COAA) Spring Conference 2022. This year’s conference theme was “Adapt and Overcome.”

List Provided by: Howie Ferguson, COAA Executive Director (far right in photo)

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Pressing Matters on the Minds of Owners

The only constant in construction technology is change. At this year’s COAA Spring Conference in Baltimore, owners from multiple industries including higher education, technology, healthcare, and medical research came together to discuss pressing matters their industries are facing.  Owners and industry allies sat down in a round table format to brainstorm topical areas of need for further best practice education and insights. Read about some of the topics they identified! 

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The Topics that Construction Owners are Thinking About

COVID Related

• Fully remote vs. Hybrid vs. Full time office: How are owners and owner allies handling this? What makes most sense given our industry requirements?
• Dr. Manny Hernandez’s Presentation at COAA Wisconsin/Illinois Event discussing hospital challenges around the clash of facilities infrastructure requirements against lack of resources in the care systems to support the expansion. What good is it having more hospital space without personnel to fulfill that space?
• Looking at the number of air changes in a facility; what is required for health safety, what is practical, and what is our current state?

Cyber Security

• Issues with crossing firewalls; what if I can’t cross a firewall to access documents, data, and information I need?
• Plugged into U.S threat level; how does national security and possible cyber attacks/terrorism inform our technology?
• What are the federal security requirements and what do they mean for my business?

Mental Health

• What is the owner’s role in addressing this? What precedence can an owner or stakeholder play in a culture that considers mental health just as importantly as physical health?
• What does a safety recognition program look like? Are there best practices, institutes or credentialing programs to minimize risk?
• How can an owner provide, encourage, incentivize or mandate mental health programs for their partners and their subs?

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

• Monthly check-ins; what are these, what does it look like, how do we build awareness and facilitate education?
• How are high-performance organizations providing incentive programs that promote talent acquisition of underrepresented and minority populations?
• Affinity Groups; how can groups of ‘people who look like me’ or ‘people who talk like me’ (have some distinguishing similarity) help to build a sense of equity and provide a sense for connection in an organization or team? “Are you the only one in the room?”
• Training for Diversity and Inclusion; what does it look like,? What is the best method for conducting it? Is there an accreditation or institute that provides credentialing for this education?

While the things that owners worry about is constantly changing, we at Avicado are prepared to meet you where you are. We’re listening and our team brings flexibility and adaptiveness to help owners as they transition through changes like these. Our team’s combined construction technology experience can provide leadership and consultation to help owners respond and adapt to often complex and frequently changing requirements.

Author & Contributors: Kristofer Johnson, Marketing Manager and Christy Hunt, Director of Marketing

COAA: “Founded in 1994, the Construction Owners Association of America (COAA) is a national organization of public and private owners who manage facilities development and capital improvement projects. COAA supports Owners’ success in the design and construction of buildings and facilities through education, information, and collaboration.” -COAA. To learn more about COAA check out their website: Click here.