Curious Teams Fred Gutierrez, Barbara White Bryson

Just Curious...Did you enjoy season 2 of Curious Teams?
In this last episode of the season, Fred and Barbara talk about the interviews and inspirations that formed this season.

Season Two Interviews:
Scott Pheiffer, Acoustician, helped us understand the importance of effectively sharing complex information with the entire team https://curiousteams.com/2023/01/16/season-2-teamwork-with-acoustician-scott-pfeiffer/

Randy Deutsch, author of Super Users, helped us understand the value and characteristics of industry talent https://curiousteams.com/2023/03/12/randy-deutsch-superusers/

JD Schramm and Jeff Bryson show us how to apply communication skills to the design and construction industries https://curiousteams.com/2023/04/02/total-cost-of-ownership/

Season Two inspirations:
Dave Gilmore of Design Intelligence and his ideas on leadership in difficult times https://curiousteams.com/2023/01/22/leadership-during-challenging-times-leadership-part-3/

Priya Parker inspired us to talk about the Art of Gathering https://curiousteams.com/2023/02/13/virtual-meetings-inspired-by-priya-parker-the-art-of-gathering/

This American Life kickstarted a conversation about deadlines https://curiousteams.com/2023/01/30/deadlines-how-to-deal-with-urgency/

Brene Brown insights on onboarding started us thinking about onboarding to project teams https://curiousteams.com/2023/02/27/onboarding-a-critical-collaborative-tool/

Other Season Two topics:

Budgets https://curiousteams.com/2023/02/05/budgets-the-good-the-bad-and-the-complicated/

Schedules https://curiousteams.com/2023/03/19/schedules-the-push-and-pull/

Total Cost of Ownership https://curiousteams.com/2023/04/02/total-cost-of-ownership/

Disruption https://curiousteams.com/2023/02/20/disruption-are-you-ready/

Successful Owners https://curiousteams.com/2023/03/05/how-to-be-a-successful-owner/

Please visit us at curiousteams.com

And for Home Owners building their design and construction team please join Fred
https://www.thehomeownersinstitute.com/

Just Curious...How do you successfully close-out a design and construction project?
In this episode, Barbara and Fred discuss the technical aspects of closing out projects but through the lens of collaboration? How can teams work together during closeout to minimize long term problems and to ensure success for all team members? Avoid Post Project Stress Syndrome by communicating and collaborating!

Critical elements of project closeout include:
1) Certificate of Occupancy does not mean you are one
2) Inspections and punch lists can be stressful
3) Warranties and post project services must be clarified
4) As-built documentation including BIM models can be an opportunity to help the owner
5) Saying good-bye to a project is a team experience

Please visit us at curiousteams.com

And for Home Owners building their design and construction team please join Fred
https://www.thehomeownersinstitute.com/

Just Curious...Do you know what buildings really cost? Fred and Barbara discuss TCO, the Total Cost of Ownership, and why knowing the TCO is critical to effective decision-making during design. Shouldn't you be curious about the energy costs, maintenance costs, interest costs, and other costs that may make it difficult to afford ownership?

See the ChatGPT assessment of TCO below:

When trying to reduce TCO, building owners may face several challenges, including:

Balancing short-term and long-term costs: Some cost-saving measures may have an upfront cost but lead to long-term savings. For example, investing in energy-efficient technology may have a higher upfront cost but lead to significant savings in utility costs over the building's lifespan.

Finding the right balance of cost-saving measures: Building owners may need to implement multiple cost-saving measures to achieve their desired TCO reduction. However, finding the right balance of cost-saving measures can be challenging, as some measures may conflict with each other or have unintended consequences.

Maintaining quality: Cost-saving measures should not compromise the quality of the building or its operations. For example, reducing custodial staff to save on wages may lead to a decline in cleanliness, which could negatively impact the building's reputation and tenant satisfaction.

Securing financing: Some cost-saving measures may require significant upfront investment, such as upgrading to energy-efficient technology or retrofitting a building for accessibility. Building owners may need to secure financing to implement these measures, which can be challenging, particularly for small or medium-sized building owners.

Changing tenant behavior: Some cost-saving measures may require changes in tenant behavior, such as turning off lights or adjusting thermostat settings. Building owners may need to educate and incentivize tenants to adopt these changes, which can be difficult to achieve.

Overall, reducing TCO requires a careful balance of cost-saving measures, long-term planning, and a commitment to maintaining quality and sustainability. Building owners may benefit from consulting with experts in building operations and finance to develop a comprehensive strategy for reducing TCO.

For more information about TCO see the following:

https://www.appa.org/appa-total-cost-of-ownership-tco-part-1-key-principles/
https://www.appa.org/facilities-manager/appa-total-cost-of-ownership-the-link-to-excellence-through-data/
https://system.suny.edu/media/suny/content-assets/documents/capital-facilities/ppaa/Total-Cost-of-Ownership-v1-1.pdf

Please visit us at curiousteams.com

And for Home Owners building their design and construction team please join Fred
https://www.thehomeownersinstitute.com/

Just Curious...Were you taught how to communicate effectively in school? In this episode, Barbara and Fred talk to two communications experts inside and outside the Design and Construction industries to explore how you can communicate more effectively. JD Schramm, communication consultant and author of Communicate with Mastery, joins Jeff Bryson, a construction industry communications educator and principal of Talking Forward, provide insight on when to speak, how to speak, and what to say to be better communicators within complex teams.

Resources:
Find JD Schramm at
https://jdschramm.com/about/
https://jdschramm.com/books/

Find Jeff Bryson at
jeffcolebryson@gmail.com

Please visit us at curiousteams.com

And for Home Owners building their design and construction team please join Fred
https://www.thehomeownersinstitute.com/

Just Curious...why are schedules so difficult to manage? In this episode Fred and Barbara deal with the difficulties and opportunities of using schedules as a tool for success. Like budgets, some professionals embrace the use of schedules to manage proactively and predictably.

Please visit us at curiousteams.com
And for Home Owners building their design and construction team please join Fred
https://www.thehomeownersinstitute.com/

Just Curious...what makes a great design and construction professional? Fred and Barbara talk to Randy Deutsch, FAIA about his book, SuperUsers: Design Technology Specialists and the Future of Practice. SuperUsers has won prizes for Best Future Technology of All Time and Best New Design EBooks both awarded by Book Authority. What characteristics should design technology (and other professionals) have? How can firms retain great talent?

Please visit us at curiousteams.com
And for Home Owners building their design and construction team please join Fred
https://www.thehomeownersinstitute.com/