Government/Industry Forum on Capital Facilities and Core Competencies Summary Report (1998) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
Pages 1-7
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Many corporations have reorganized their facilities engineering programs more than once as they try to achieve an optimal mix of size, skills, and responsibilities to support their overall business needs. Federal agencies face challenges similar to private corporations as they seek to reorganize their facilities engineering programs to support their missions.
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With declining budgets, smaller staffs, and higher expectations, private companies and federal agencies alike are learning the value of identifying and building on core competencies as a strategy for more efficient facilities management. Because the issue of capital facilities and core competencies is of great importance within government and for private companies, The Business Roundtable, the Naval Facilities Engineering Command and the Federal Facilities Council joined forces to cosponsor a forum on March 25, 1998, at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C.
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Speakers at the morning session of the forum presented an overview of the pressures on infrastructure and capital projects in the federal government and how similar pressures affect private companies. Corporate facilities managers gave their perspectives on capital facilities engineering functions and core competencies from an owner's viewpoint.
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Of particular concern is the loss of technical competency to assist businesses in defining the most appropriate projects to meet the businesses' needs and the competence to execute capital projects. The Business Roundtable found that those organizations that have lost competence in capital projects delivery and management did not do so overnight.
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From page 5... ...
Core Competencies As both federal agencies and private corporations reorganized their facilities engineering programs and practices, they went through a process of identifying their core competencies, that is, the essential skill sets they should retain in-house to support the larger organization effectively. Attendees were cautioned that divestiture of engineering capabilities can lead to a future in which there might not be an appropriate person on staff ready with an appropriate answer to problems that arise-at great financial and management cost.
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One of the speakers noted that at his company, a cadre of contractors has been developed who not only know the company's staff and operations, understand its technology and work processes, and provide continuity of personnel, but also adjust personnel as workloads shift from business to business. The Business Roundtable found that there appears to be no correlation between the use of alliances and project results.
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One federal agency representative reported that his organization is seeking to enhance its capabilities for the future by continuing ongoing engineering work, providing specialized engineering services as appropriate, concentrating certain types of work in particular offices, altering division staff size and functions, and strengthening program management. Two agencies are developing focused "centers of expertise" to consolidate their capabilities and move toward becoming full project management organizations.
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