Reggie Jackson once allegedly described his role on the 1970s powerhouse New York Yankees as the “straw that stirs the drink,” and the meaning was immediately clear: The team had a roster of good players, but Jackson was the one who mattered the most. Without him, nothing else worked.
That description popped into my head as the sessions unfolded at the International Well Building Institute’s Healthy Buildings Policy Summit hosted in September in Washington, D.C. Several panelists discussed a range of efforts to improve indoor air quality (IAQ) in facilities by emphasizing that such efforts are apt to go nowhere unless the process includes the participation of facilities management teams in the targeted facilities.
Consider this insight from Sean McCrady, vice president of software and advisory for UL, who stressed the critical role in the decision-making process of “people that are in charge of the building. I’m not talking about the asset managers or the VPs of whatever. I’m talking about the guys and gals that are turning wrenches that are really responsible for a building. If they don’t buy in, you can have the best building ever that’s WELL platinum and everything else, and in three years, it’s all for naught.”
That long-overdue sentiment echoed throughout the event, and while expressing it recognizes the central role facilities managers play in the health of buildings, it also puts them on notice. While more managers can finally have their voices heard in discussions of IAQ policies, programs and resources, they — like the straw that stirs the drink — will bear the responsibility of actually delivering benefits for their organizations and, more importantly, healthier indoor air for occupants.
Dan Hounsell is the senior editor of the facilities market.
