Much More Than an Afterthought: Updating the Owner Advisor Primer for Better Design-Build Outcomes

Discover the keys to successfully engaging an Owner Advisor in design-build projects with the latest episode of the Design-Build Delivers Podcast, and get ready for the upcoming release of the updated DBIA Owner Advisor Primer. In this episode, we explore the updates and feature insights from two of the top industry experts. Learn how Owner Advisors can significantly impact project outcomes by guiding procurement processes, supporting strategic decision-making and supporting a collaborative project environment. 

Guests:

Molly Jones, AIA, LEED AP, GGP, GPCP, DBIA
President, CEO, Jones Design Studio 

Grace Lin, AIA, CSI-CDT, DBIA
Senior Consultant, Turner & Townsend

Access all our free design-build resources and learn more about Design-Build Done Right® at dbia.org.

DBIA members are shaping the future, one successful collaboration at a time.

Chapters

• 0:09 An Overview of What’s Coming in the Owner Advisor Primer Update
• 4:16 How the Owner Advisor Primer and the Universal Best Practices Work Together
• 6:04 A Crash Course in Using an Owner Advisor in Design-Build
• 12:55 Design-Build Done Right® When Design-Build is the Right Fit
• 16:28 Bringing an Owner Advisor onto a Project
• 23:22 Engage Owner Advisors as Early as Possible
• 25:05 Looking into the Owner Advisor Crystal Ball

Transcript

Erin Looney  00:09

Welcome to another episode of the design build delivers podcast brought to you by us CAD. I'm your host, Erin Looney. In this episode we are going to talk about a popular topic and design build with two popular pros. Okay, I don't know if they're actually popular, but I say they are. I liked them, I think you'll like them. Anyway, that topic is the crucial role of owner advisors in design build projects. Graceland and Molly Jones are the best of the best in this arena. And it's wonderful to have them on to share their wealth of experience and insights into how owner advisors can impact project outcomes. This conversation will also get you even more excited for our upcoming owner advisor primer update available soon in the DBIA bookstore. Bookmark this page now, it's store.dbia.org. Molly and grace will share more about what to expect in that release as well as talent the value of both the primer and the owner advisor full stop. So let's meet our guests. Grace Lin is a senior consultant at Turner Townsend in New York. She's an experienced owner advisor specializing in planning, design and construction for large healthcare organizations. Starting as an architect, she transitioned to the owner side at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and now brings her unique perspective from both architecture and ownership to her current role. Grace is passionate about integrated delivery methods focusing on people process and performance to advance her clients goals. And veteran design bill delivers guest Molly Jones is President and CEO of Jones design studio, an owner advisor and sustainability consulting firm with offices in Tulsa and Little Rock. Molly leads her team in transforming mindsets and fostering sustainable outcomes through design build, and architect licensed in multiple states. Molly's career has evolved from practitioner to visionary helping clients achieve their sustainability goals and innovative project performance. But we are covering a lot of ground here on such a seemingly singular topic. But as we'll see, this owner advisor primer is just another of many tools in our design build tool belts. Since last year, we've had a veritable storm of resources come out and this primer is just the next one up. My understanding is we are anticipating a fall release. So let's lay the groundwork here. Molly, let me ask you first talk to us about the updates we can expect in the owner advisor primer,

Molly Jones  02:26

probably the biggest one is that we had updated best practices that came out in March 2023. And those are now reflected within the content of the updated owner advisor primer. The second big update was that we realigned the primer to address big topics or topics and big areas I should say. So the way that the primer is organized will really follow the organization of the best practices themselves. So there's a big introduction portion that really talks about what the definition of a owner advisor is how you can leverage them what the importance of an owner assessment, those types of topics. And then we go into part two, which is about procuring the owner advisor. So how an owner would hire an owner advisor. And then part three is really about how the owner advisors supports the design build project during its procurement, contracting and execution phases. And then of course, you know, at the end, we have a long list of resources to help provide additional information for those folks that are using the primer.

Grace Lin  03:33

Yeah, Larry did on track to roll out the new owner advisor primer in the fall this year. There's a lot of collaboration, and also intelligence that we're putting into this document is a privilege to be able to serve the industry in this capacity. So As Molly mentioned it, the new owner advisor primer is organized to complement the design builds on right best practices. The owner advisor primer will help align the owners needs and interests with the engagement of the owner advisor. The primer will describe the roles and qualifications expected of an owner advisor and the possible scope of work and when to onboard an owner advisor.

Erin Looney  04:16

So I'm gonna go full tilt with the cheesy puns today. I mean, really, let's let's be real. I don't know how that's different from any other episode, but stay with me here. We're gonna keep in mind that designbuild delivers tool belt and how DBAs resources work together to get the job done. Let's talk now about the relationship between the universal best practices and the owner advisor primer specifically, you briefly mentioned it in your responses just a moment ago, both of you but let's focus more now on how these two resources in particular work in tandem.

Grace Lin  04:48

So the primary role of the owner advisor is to guide the delivery process and support owners in timely decision making with that primary role Will, the primer will highlight the knowledge and experience in the procurement contracting and execution required of the owner advisor. It will give insights into how the owner advisor supports the owner during the procurement contracting and execution phases of design build projects.

Molly Jones  05:21

The relationship between the two primers the universal best practice primer and the owner advisor primer is that they they work in conjunction with each other. So if you're an owner, who's looking to engage an owner advisor, or maybe you have folks on staff that have the skill set and the capacity to be the owner advisor, and taking this owner advisor and primer is really a complementing handbook and guide for what that owner advisor would be doing it within the context of the design build done, right best practice project. They work together, they're complementary. The owner advisor primer follows the structure of the best practice primer in order to help facilitate them being used in conjunction with each other. I

Erin Looney  06:04

think that that answers a question people have and maybe didn't know they had or maybe didn't know, they should ask, because we put things out there and we say this is going to be really great for your project. And that's true it is. But when you start gathering your resources, the question might then shift to well, this information here in this document is kind of repeated in this other document. So do I need both? And it sounds like the answer is yeah, you do need both. But it's just a matter then of figuring out for your project, how to weave them together. But before we move on to more about the primer, let's let's zoom out a bit. We're going to talk about the idea of an owner advisor on a wider scale. Now we have covered this topic a few times. Molly, you know that because you covered it on the design build delivers podcast before I got here, and we've covered it throughout some of our other channels like our blog, but just for the sake of review, let's have a quick crash course. So where and how does an owner advisor fit into a design build project walk us through that relationship? Grace, I'll start with you.

Grace Lin  07:08

The role of owner advisors fits seamlessly into a design build project, the leadership, tactical and facilitative skills of owner advisors are instrumental in rallying the entire project team around one team. One Goal principle that underpins a streamlined delivery system. And an advisor can guide owners in thoroughly considering the procurement issues, assessing the risk and supporting strategic decision making. And owner advisors. Leadership in collaborative delivery can promote diversity and inclusion as well. And energize innovation to help organizations effect transformation owners priorities vary, and each project is unique. And this precept of no one size fits all underscores the need to align owner advisors qualifications and competence with the needs and interests of the owners recruiting and owner advisor.

Molly Jones  08:04

When we talk about the role of the owner advisor, that role can vary the scope of work and vary and we've in the primer tried to address that in conjunction with some resources that have been brought forth from DBIA, including the contract for the owner advisor and the exhibit, which is the scope of work exhibit. And even that exhibit is not intended to be all inclusive. So because that scope of work varies the role of the owner advisor. And the depth of that role in the project team will also vary. And as Grace mentioned, there's really three big categories of skill sets. And an owner advisor needs to be really excellent at what they do. And then there's the soft skills, which are really the facilitative skills. And that is where when we talk about the relationship of an owner advisor to the rest of the project team, it's really these facilitative skills and the soft skills, which is where that magic happens. And so we talk a lot about that in the primer and how important those facilitative skills are. And as far as the impact that an owner advisor can have on a project team. These facilitative skills are really where owner advisors are looking for continued and continuous team cohesion and collaboration across the team especially when we move from pre award where we've got an owner team and then a design builder and Design Build Team which are distinct and separate from each other one put out the procurement the others responding to the procurement. And when we move into post award. That team goes through a metamorphosis and becomes a single entity and grace is mentioned it there's one team one goal mentality and shifting and bringing that team into a one team mentality where we have one set of goals, which is a successful project. You know, hopefully a wildly successful project is really where those facilitative skills come into play. And that's really where a lot of the Magic happens in design build is bringing that cohesive team together, expanding it and post award and maintaining it throughout. And

Erin Looney  10:08

this comes up all the time, Grace, you just reiterated it, but design build is not one size fits all. In fact, it isn't always the right choice either. So what about for an owner advisor? Again, you're you're dealing in the gray here simply by the fact that no two projects are alike. No two owners are alike, and no two owner advisors are alike. So when is it a good time to engage in owner advisor.

Molly Jones  10:31

I'm going to just answer that simply by saying it's always a good idea to engage an owner advisor. Owner advisors should be starting with the selection of project delivery method. And owner advisor is going to help you as an owner, perform an owner assessment and understand your culture, your mindset, your capabilities and skill sets within your organization and make an unbiased recommendation on the project delivery system. Now, I know that we're on a DBA podcast, and I know we're talking about a DBA primer. But there's nothing worse than a failed design build project for someone who loves design build. And so for me and for I believe other good owner advisors, we're not going to recommend that an owner engage in design build if they're not ready for it. And especially not in design build done right, so we will be interested in helping owners match up with the delivery system that will work best for their project and their culture and their organization, and also make recommendations on how they can move more into alignment with the success factors that have been proven in the design build dunrite delivery model.

Grace Lin  11:44

I agree with Molly and to reap the reward of having an owner advisor on a project, it is advisable to bring the owner advisor on board as early as possible. And whether we're using design, build, or other project delivery systems. Engaging an owner advisor early helps in developing the framework and strategies for procurement, contracting and execution. And right from the start. Owner advisors can assist owners in establishing performance metrics that are crucial for ensuring a successful project and an optimal outcome.

Erin Looney  12:20

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Erin Looney  12:55

As we know, design build is great when it's great successful projects are cause for celebration. And as you just said, Molly, they're also painful when they're not successful. So increasing the chances for success is why DBIA has such an extensive library of guidance. And one of those guidelines is in fact that design build isn't always the answer for every project. If you are going to do it do it right. And realistically for us to do design build right? We have to acknowledge there are times when it isn't the answer. Molly you stressed and odor advisor always always a good idea. And Grace, you agreed? You both mentioned briefly how that owner advisor assists in the selection of the project delivery method. So whether it's design build, whether it's any form of project delivery, how does that owner advisor assist in the selection of the right project delivery method,

Molly Jones  13:43

the big thing is to perform the owner assessment, right. And that's really all about knowing who you are as an owning organization, understanding the capacity and the skills and the mindset that you have both in your technical group and your contracting group, then your legal, really understanding that and knowing that you've made that mental shift and owner advisor can help you they can see that pretty clearly. And they can really help you understand that, yes, you've made that mental shift, or, you know, we've got some areas where we may need to do some additional education and training or have some additional experience. And so that assessment, it's one of the most critical things in the process. And it's about knowing who you are as that owning organization and where your opportunities exist and where you have opportunities for improvement as well. Again, you know, I can't say it enough, in my opinion, loving design build as much as I do. I really dislike design, build projects that fail. And so making sure we match the project delivery system to the project and the owner is absolutely critical. And this owner assessment is really how we do

Erin Looney  14:57

that. Yeah, Molly. We don't like design I build projects that fail here at DBIA. I there Right, right. Yeah,

Grace Lin  15:04

indeed, determining the project delivery method is one of the most important decisions made by owners when they're embarking on a construction project. Project drivers and owner culture have fundamental impacts on the delivery methods selected. And the primary role of the owner advisor is to guide the delivery process and support owners in timely decision making. The owner advisors act as the single point of contact for the project team, and he or she must serve without any conflict of interest. That's important for an owner advisor to have in terms of helping the owner assess those risks, and making informed decision. A qualified owner advisor supports the analysis and selection of the delivery method. Determining the optimal approach for a specific owner and project requires a broad understanding of various delivery methods, and a commitment to a balanced evaluation of the pros and cons of conventional delivery versus collaborative methodologies such as design build, just to emphasize owner advisors importance a little bit more is to say that owner advocates delivered methods grounded in a collaborative and integrated approach where the owner, designer and contractor work together in the project's best interest. In

Erin Looney  16:28

that ideal world of design build done right that we wish for. And we work so hard for everything move smoothly, everyone is willing to play along with what's best for the project, and everyone is on board. It is as Grace just emphasized collaborative. Now, what are some ways then to get everyone on a project on board when it isn't so easy. So this odor advisor, for instance, might be a stranger to a team of people who've worked together successfully before, or a team might have done a great job in the past consistently without an owner advisor at all. And now they're bringing it up as an idea. There might be any number of reasons for resistance. That's just two examples. So what obstacles do you encounter when you first start engaging with an owner as an owner advisor?

Grace Lin  17:11

In many cases, known projects as a matter of fact, the owners needs an interest must first be understood, because owners set their goals and values and therefore owners set the tone. The owner advisor then shares their qualifications and experience, while representing the owners interest, owner advisor response and acts on the owner's behalf to deliver the owner advisor scope of services. Now, you might ask like so why are there pushback sometimes, in my world, I see it there's a lack of understanding of the principles under design and build on right. This could be one of the reasons for pushback driving other industry professionals to the design build table could be challenging sometimes in organizations that resist change. Shifting from design bid build to alternative methods, such as design, build, or progressive design build requires a mental shift. And legislation may not always support the use of progressive design build, for example, the selection of owner advisor purely based on qualification and without an open, competitive bidding process, me sometimes not garner enough support from supervisory agencies, and procurement policymakers. So owners who do not have the resources to conduct contract negotiations, males are pushed back. So in a nutshell, it's sometimes the lack of understanding of the principles of the design build on right, that caused us pushback.

Molly Jones  18:46

Really, when we talk about and we did earlier, we talked about the soft skills that owner advisors have. And that's really how owner advisors rally people around the project. So it really comes out of creating that culture that's based on trust and mutual respect across the entire project team, and really supports and encourages that collaboration and innovative culture as well. Those are really some of the ways that owner advisors help rally people around the project and get to this one project one goal mentality, some of the obstacles that I'm seeing, they come out of really a lack of understanding about the actual implementation of the design build done, right, best practices and and the implementing techniques and a lack of experience with that. So what we see happening in some projects is that we'll see an owner who has, you know, engaged in some DBA training and believes that they're ready to go it alone, right? And what we find is that that is a critically important time for an owner to engage the services of an owner advisor because the owner advisor has the experience and the knowledge across multiple project types, multiple owners, different implementing techniques and strategies for implementing the best practices. And they can bring all of that experience to the table and help that owner, gain the knowledge and experience that they need to be their own HR advisor if they have the skill set and the capacity to do so. So that's where I see that we get a lot of pushback, they have this capacity to do it. But they don't have the skill set fully developed yet, when we encounter that we really try to help owners understand that the role of the owner advisor is really to, although they're project centric, they're also leading the way and you are being educated by them so that as time goes by and you gain more experience, you can take more of that scope in house when you have the skill set. In addition to the capacity.

Erin Looney  20:56

DBIA offers a standard form of contract for design, build owner Advisor Services and our bookstore. Again, if you didn't bookmark it earlier, it's store dbia.org. Along with all those other resources we've talked about today, there are so many more whether they're owner advisor focused or otherwise. So let's talk a bit now about how the owner advisor primer and the contract can help an owner create a scope of services specifically for bringing on an owner advisor. What

Molly Jones  21:24

we've got is the DD 501 contract that is the standard form a contract between the design builder and the owner advisor for owner Advisor Services. In the primer, we do talk about the fact that the scope is not as great as mentioned, it's not one size fits all, the scope of the owner advisor needs to be carefully crafted to complement like I've mentioned the skills and capacity that an owner has in house and the tasks that then are related to those that they want to self perform. So it's the meshing of these two things, the skills and capacity of the owner, what the project needs and what the owner adviser can bring to the table for that project. I've mentioned the exhibit in dB 501. It's a pretty exhaustive list. But it's not a complete list. But it really is a great place for owners to start thinking, what services do I need for my owner advisor. And what we see happening oftentimes is that we are engaged in helping to write the scope of work for the services that we provide. And again, we do that by meshing those needs of what is available in house at the owner and what they need to complement the project and round out those services. What

Grace Lin  22:37

you said it's very true because owner advisor scope of services is rooted in and shaped by the owners needs and values. For example, the owner advisor can assemble a team that treats the owners interest and goals to deliver the projects effectively and efficiently. And what are the gaps in house that they're trying to fill? Those will help define the scope of services that an owner advisor may provide. DBAs new primary and owner advisor will guide owners in selecting an owner advisor for needs alignment. So what the owner aims to achieve will drive the needs and what qualifications and expertise are required to meet those needs. These will help define the scope of work of an owner advisor.

Erin Looney  23:22

It sounds to me like if you could take a theme away from our conversation so far, it would be that the owner advisor should not be an afterthought and that having an owner advisor from the start is key Am I Am I close?

Molly Jones  23:36

I think the way I would probably put it is engage them early. And if you can't engage them as early as you can. So you know because they can impact a project in a positive way at any stage of the project. They maximize their impact when they are hired and brought on the project team as early as possible even before you've selected a project delivery methods. So that part is really key. And that's why we're pushing that but they can provide a real positive impact. The lesson learned case that I shared in the example was we were brought on to draft the RFP RFQ had already been done and the shortlist was done independent of our input. Although I did have a couple phone calls during that process that I answered, that still was a very successful engagement.

Grace Lin  24:26

It goes back to the needs alignment, and whatever stage they're in in the process. There are some needs that they identify needing owner advisors to come in and help them out. The advisement of engaging owner advisor early is to enable the perspective, that owner advisor can share with the owner so that they could see a bird's eye view of how the project could be and also helped set up the roadmap for project implementation. Those are some of the values also the owner advisor can bring to the owner when brought on board as early as possible. Okay,

Erin Looney  25:05

final question. Let's fancy ourselves futurists for just a moment, how do you see the role of the owner advisor evolving in the future of design build projects,

Molly Jones  25:16

we're heading towards 47 to 50% of the market share just within the next handful of years. And with design build, really no longer an alternative project delivery method, as it's becoming more and more mainstream, we need more and more excellent owner advisors that really have taken on the best practices are dedicated to their implementation. And we just need more of them. So because that kind of market share, we don't have currently, my assessment is that we don't have enough excellent owner advisors to really handle that. And again, as I've mentioned, I don't like design, build projects that failed. DBIA doesn't like design, build projects that fail. And really the key to ensuring success is to fill this owner advisor role on these projects, especially for owners that are new to design, build delivery, and using the best practices and implementing them. So I see that role changing. The term owner advisor is a relatively new term within the profession and the related construction industry. And so as that term gains more and more public awareness, we're going to see more and more people offering that service as well. I would love to see them make sure that, like I said that they're excellent in that and that they have aligned themselves with implementing the design build done right best practices. Where do I see it 15 years from now, I see owners that intentionally make the decision that even though they have the skill set and the capacity in house, what they don't have is that capacity and skill set and the experience across multiple projects in the marketplace. And so they continue to use owner advisors, because they're bringing all of that knowledge across the breadth of their entire practice to their project, and that they understand the value proposition that's engaged with that experience meeting them where they're at to execute their projects.

Grace Lin  27:09

I would say that change is constant. That's just the nature of the market landscape. And project delivery practice innovates owner advisors function also evolves, the increasing complexity of projects and contractual obligations require more stewardship. And so with a crystal ball I have here, I'd say that the owner advisors role as a steward of the owners interest will be valued even more to Molly's point, we need more of them. I couldn't agree more. And the more integrated projects become, take the progressive design build model for an example. Owner advisors equipped with leadership, technical and facilitated skill sets best align the project team, we the owners priorities throughout the project. And this allows the owners to focus on their core business, knowing their interests are addressed throughout the project lifecycle.

Erin Looney  28:13

Okay, I said final question. But let's build on that a little bit what new challenges or opportunities might arise? And how should the industry prepare? Well,

Molly Jones  28:21

I'll give a shameless plug for the previous podcast on the book that I'm writing called Build beautifully, which is really about the intersection of project delivery, selection and sustainability. And I think we're going to see, owner advisors need to be highly skilled at sustainability and at strategies for mitigating climate change as we go forward. Design Build is the best project delivery method in our toolbox for delivering sustainable outcomes. And as a result of that, we really need to have on the owner side of the table, someone that is very well versed in bringing those outcomes to bear on a project so that they can meet the design builder where they're at and with the performance criteria that have been put into the RFP in the case of best value. And then in the case of progressive help that involve through the validation process so that we have a project that not only meets the requirements that the and basically the owners why for its existence, but also helps mitigate climate change. So I see that as a real opportunity for owner advisors. It's the reason I'm an owner advisor. And I think that that opportunity is going to become more and more prevalent as we move through the next handful of years as we really need to tackle significant issues with climate change that are right in front of us today.

Grace Lin  29:50

changes constantly happening, and that presents challenges but which challenges opportunities are also presented to best prepare for The future. Education is an important piece that DBIA offers to the industry. So I think this is a very meaningful purpose that design build offers to the industry. So that's what I would advocate continuing education, always constantly learning about the new trends in the market, the industry. That way, we are more prepared to face the challenges whatever the future bring to us. It could be in the aspect of sustainability As Molly mentioned, it could be other economic aspects, and how do we manage costs better? What are the techniques and tools we could employ? To deliver projects more efficiently? We need talents we need more owner advisor to help the owner organizations.

Erin Looney  30:51

You heard it here. Maybe first, but maybe you already knew it. The industry needs more qualified and passionate owner advisors. Whether you're thinking about filling that gap yourself or bringing an owner advisor into the project or you just want to stay on top of the rapid growth of designbuild keep an eye out for the release of the owner advisor primer coming this fall and available for free in the DBIA bookstore at Say it with me store.dbia.org Just something else to be excited about for fall, you've got leaves changing colder weather, pumpkin spice, do we still care about that? And the updated guidance on owner advisors and design build projects that we do you care about? There's more to this chat to stay tuned for a bonus episode where grace and Molly paint a picture of the impact of an owner advisor on a couple of real world projects and talk about the lessons learned from those cases. Thanks to Molly and grace for joining the show. Thanks as always to you for listening. And thanks to Fred Yee who's editing and production skills make the show sound good. And thanks to us CAD for making the design build delivers podcast possible. Learn more at us cad.com/dbia