[Jason Levy]

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.? It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.? We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.? We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.? We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.? I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.? I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.? Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.? Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.? Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.? Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Eric Margiotta]

Many thanks Jason!

So many good things to think about!

I really like the idea of adding stakeholders that I haven’t thought through the tenant lens (Housekeeping is a great example) to the list.

Also such a great observation to review reservation policy! We cover use of newly created rooms (and work orders, who pays for what, etc.) in our Memorandum of Understanding. We are planning a series of meetings to help our new neighbors acclimate. We weren’t planning to include existing policies…until now. 🙂

Do you (or anyone else reading along) recall anything surprising or that you weren’t expecting? Do you have examples of how policy has changed based on new folks being in the building?

Thanks again for your help!

-Eric?

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Dean Smith]

Erik,

I’ve opened two student centers in the last 6 years. I can share a number of lessons but this one caught me by surprise.?

You will spend a disproportionate amount of time servicing them because your staff understands facilities and operations. They won’t. It will tax your staff as you answer their questions and service needs that your staff can self-service. For example, they typically don’t know work orders, temperature limits, or what is and isn’t your responsibility. They go to you for everything. They can have unrealistic expectations because they don’t understand operations, such as why everyone isn’t getting 24/7 access???

I would track this. That data can make a case for hiring new staff or cost-sharing. The other direction you can go is to set strict limits on service. I know an SC that makes them take out their trash. Regardless of the direction you go, this data will help you re-write your PRR because to some degree the old ones won’t work for you. When the scope changes, the rules change.?

Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, feel free to contact me.

Dean

——————————
Dean Smith
Director of Student Centers
East Carolina University
Greenville NC
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Eric Margiotta]

Dean, you’re the man – thanks!

How could I forget you opened two buildings recently?

We’ve realized that even though we have an MOU with each group and are in the process of reviewing with each department – there will still be questions. Many, many questions in the first months I’m sure. 🙂

Such a great idea to track them – I already realize I’ll need another Ops person to make this work well.

I’ll drop you a line so we can chat more.

Thanks!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 08:48
From: Dean Smith
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Erik,

I’ve opened two student centers in the last 6 years. I can share a number of lessons but this one caught me by surprise. 

You will spend a disproportionate amount of time servicing them because your staff understands facilities and operations. They won’t. It will tax your staff as you answer their questions and service needs that your staff can self-service. For example, they typically don’t know work orders, temperature limits, or what is and isn’t your responsibility. They go to you for everything. They can have unrealistic expectations because they don’t understand operations, such as why everyone isn’t getting 24/7 access?  

I would track this. That data can make a case for hiring new staff or cost-sharing. The other direction you can go is to set strict limits on service. I know an SC that makes them take out their trash. Regardless of the direction you go, this data will help you re-write your PRR because to some degree the old ones won’t work for you. When the scope changes, the rules change. 

Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, feel free to contact me.

Dean

——————————
Dean Smith
Director of Student Centers
East Carolina University
Greenville NC
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Robert Rouzer]

Well said Jason.  Also remember that the community doesn’t look on the union as a landlord.  Those tenants are in the building and they represent you to the community, like it or not.  The more that they understand and comply with your mission, vision, values, and policies/procedures the better.  Just consider an issue like the management of complaints.  If a tenant disregards student complaints, that reflects poorly on you.

Rob Rouzer

 

Sent from Mail for Windows

 

——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 5/5/2022 7:04:00 AM
From: Jason Levy
Subject: RE: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Eric Margiotta]

Great insight, and so true. Many thanks Rob!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 09:02
From: Robert Rouzer
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Well said Jason.  Also remember that the community doesn’t look on the union as a landlord.  Those tenants are in the building and they represent you to the community, like it or not.  The more that they understand and comply with your mission, vision, values, and policies/procedures the better.  Just consider an issue like the management of complaints.  If a tenant disregards student complaints, that reflects poorly on you.

Rob Rouzer

 

Sent from Mail for Windows

 

Original Message:
Sent: 5/5/2022 7:04:00 AM
From: Jason Levy
Subject: RE: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[mmckinney]

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month.?

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Eric Margiotta]

Many thanks Matt!

What is attendance and participation like for that group? How long has it been going? Do you have any strategies to share to increase involvement?

I’ve worked with groups like these in the past (thanks Virginia Tech!) and have seen a roller coaster of people who care.

I’d love to hear more about what your experience has been!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 14:24
From: Matt McKinney
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month. 

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[mmckinney]

Eric,

Our group is fairly small (usually between 9 and 10 members) and attendance runs at about 80-90% for our monthly meetings. Thankfully, involvement has not been much of an issue. I think this stems from the fact that we started the group sometime during the COVID lockdown, when it was vital that we communicate regularly. Fortunately, that standard has carried forward post-COVOID. It also helps that most of the members are pretty chill and open to suggestions and ideas.?

Forming this group has been instrumental in opening up communication and the flow of ideas. It really feels more like a partnership than at any time in the past (19 years).

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-10-2022 22:59
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Many thanks Matt!

What is attendance and participation like for that group? How long has it been going? Do you have any strategies to share to increase involvement?

I’ve worked with groups like these in the past (thanks Virginia Tech!) and have seen a roller coaster of people who care.

I’d love to hear more about what your experience has been!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 14:24
From: Matt McKinney
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month. 

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Kelly Schaefer]

Eric – what a great thread with tons of great info – thanks for asking this question and engaging with people as they replied. I am curious – have you moved your partners in at this point, and how is it going? If you have a minute, could you reply to this thread to give a little bit of closure if you have some??

Thanks, Kelly

——————————
Kelly Schaefer
Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement
Northwestern University
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-10-2022 22:59
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Many thanks Matt!

What is attendance and participation like for that group? How long has it been going? Do you have any strategies to share to increase involvement?

I’ve worked with groups like these in the past (thanks Virginia Tech!) and have seen a roller coaster of people who care.

I’d love to hear more about what your experience has been!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 14:24
From: Matt McKinney
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month. 

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Robert Rouzer]

I believe I made this comment in the last thread on this topic but it bears repeating.  As part of your building, your partners/tenants are part of the “face” you provide to the campus.  Many students and other guests may not notice or care that your food service is a contractor or that the Dean of Students doesn’t have anything to do with the bathroom being closed for cleaning (hopefully!).  By making sure that you share your mission, vision, values, and culture with your tenant/partners, you help to ensure that the “face” you present is more consistent.  If you can get agreement by your partners with your MVVC, even better!

 

Rob Rouzer

 

Sent from Mail for Windows

 

——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 9/9/2022 6:35:00 PM
From: Kelly Schaefer
Subject: RE: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric – what a great thread with tons of great info – thanks for asking this question and engaging with people as they replied. I am curious – have you moved your partners in at this point, and how is it going? If you have a minute, could you reply to this thread to give a little bit of closure if you have some? 

Thanks, Kelly

——————————
Kelly Schaefer
Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement
Northwestern University
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 05-10-2022 22:59
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Many thanks Matt!

What is attendance and participation like for that group? How long has it been going? Do you have any strategies to share to increase involvement?

I’ve worked with groups like these in the past (thanks Virginia Tech!) and have seen a roller coaster of people who care.

I’d love to hear more about what your experience has been!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 14:24
From: Matt McKinney
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month. 

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Eric Margiotta]

Thanks, great advice!

The first hurdle for us was getting our new partners to understand what we have direct control over and what we have to “manage by influence.”

I think we’re mostly there. Since all of our new neighbors are in Student Affairs (as we are), there’s a general understanding of what it means to be student-facing. Some people still think Dining is ours, think we have a magic button to adjust temps or clean bathrooms AND those are things I’d venture every one of us has had to deal with over the years.

Our VPSA constantly talks about how amazing it is to be in a student building. She has helped frame that for everyone in the division – it is a student building first and we are fortunate to be working with and alongside our students every day.?

Thanks again Rob!?

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 09-09-2022 18:54
From: Robert Rouzer
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

I believe I made this comment in the last thread on this topic but it bears repeating.  As part of your building, your partners/tenants are part of the “face” you provide to the campus.  Many students and other guests may not notice or care that your food service is a contractor or that the Dean of Students doesn’t have anything to do with the bathroom being closed for cleaning (hopefully!).  By making sure that you share your mission, vision, values, and culture with your tenant/partners, you help to ensure that the “face” you present is more consistent.  If you can get agreement by your partners with your MVVC, even better!

 

Rob Rouzer

 

Sent from Mail for Windows

 

Original Message:
Sent: 9/9/2022 6:35:00 PM
From: Kelly Schaefer
Subject: RE: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric – what a great thread with tons of great info – thanks for asking this question and engaging with people as they replied. I am curious – have you moved your partners in at this point, and how is it going? If you have a minute, could you reply to this thread to give a little bit of closure if you have some? 

Thanks, Kelly

——————————
Kelly Schaefer
Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement
Northwestern University
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-10-2022 22:59
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Many thanks Matt!

What is attendance and participation like for that group? How long has it been going? Do you have any strategies to share to increase involvement?

I’ve worked with groups like these in the past (thanks Virginia Tech!) and have seen a roller coaster of people who care.

I’d love to hear more about what your experience has been!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA

Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 14:24
From: Matt McKinney
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month. 

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

——————————
Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
——————————

[Eric Margiotta]

Thanks for asking Kelly!

Also thanks to everyone else who replied! Shout out to Robb Thibault, Dean & his team as well as Geoff Combs. They all spent some time debriefing their experiences with me offline.

Yes, everyone is moved in and, on the whole, things are going well!

Here are a few quick thoughts/reflections:

• The physical move itself was a breeze – from my perspective anyway. Having great staff (thanks Taylor Locks if you see this!) manage the process really helps. I’m not sure she would agree with the “breeze” comment but she made it look seamless.
• We had significant difficulty with placement and location of furniture, office furniture most typically. In particular, I had a hard time reconciling the fact that nothing ever stands still in Student Affairs (especially staffing) and plenty has changed in the months and months since people approved furniture locations with the other fact that our installers and movers were only contracted for a specific set of outcomes. When you mesh this conundrum with power & positional dynamics we were in an uncomfortable no-win situation that had a negative impact to our team cohesion. That was the worst part of it. As we identified that internally, we’ve been able to get back on track.
• On a related note is that I’m now responsible for a project 30 years in the making and SO many people have input and advice on what they want to see and would like to see for us. My AVP (who is my supervisor) has been amazing at helping to navigate! He has been great at reminding Student Affairs leadership that while they reside in the building, it is still my department’s responsibility to care for, create and the manage processes and set the rules and standards for the spaces.?
• ?As Dean mentions above (and everyone reinforced) our new neighbors look to us for everything. We were mostly ready for that and have handled it well (and documented!). What we weren’t ready for was the sense of urgency from some folks about their requests, most of which I would not classify as urgent and which we warned people about in advance. There is no need to put a work order request in, then follow up with an email, a Teams message, a text, maybe even a carrier pigeon. That’s an area where we need some fine tuning in our response. The most frequent example is HVAC (isn’t it always?). The building and your space WILL be potentially uncomfortable at times while commissioning of new AHUs is in progress.
• The good news is that as the academic year began, people suddenly had less time to nitpick our work because theirs picked up.
• The better news is that with help from other ACUI community message boards (thanks Dave Barnes!) we knocked people’s socks off with our kick off party. This was many people’s first experience with seeing what a union can and should (in my opinion) be and they loved it!?
• The even better news is that we’ll be getting some additional funding to help us continue to create the union that our students and our campus needs.

Sorry for the novel! We put in an ed session proposal for Conference to discuss the process and lessons learned. Fingers crossed we get accepted!

Thanks again for the prompt Kelly!

-Eric

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
——————————
——————————————-
Original Message:
Sent: 09-09-2022 18:35
From: Kelly Schaefer
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric – what a great thread with tons of great info – thanks for asking this question and engaging with people as they replied. I am curious – have you moved your partners in at this point, and how is it going? If you have a minute, could you reply to this thread to give a little bit of closure if you have some? 

Thanks, Kelly

——————————
Kelly Schaefer
Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement
Northwestern University
——————————

Original Message:
Sent: 05-10-2022 22:59
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Many thanks Matt!

What is attendance and participation like for that group? How long has it been going? Do you have any strategies to share to increase involvement?

I’ve worked with groups like these in the past (thanks Virginia Tech!) and have seen a roller coaster of people who care.

I’d love to hear more about what your experience has been!

——————————
Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA

Original Message:
Sent: 05-06-2022 14:24
From: Matt McKinney
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Eric,

We have also created a “partners” group for our union. The group consists of leadership from operations, event services, auxiliary outlets like the bookstore, dining services and postal services, Student Engagement, as well as the director for Auxiliary Services. We have set up a google folder, group chat and partner calendar so we can keep one another updated on hours of operations, special events, risk prevention/management, adjusted schedules, COVID response, building renovations and maintenance, etc. We meet once per month. 

——————————
Matt McKinney
Assistant Director, Operations and Facilities
University of West Florida
Pensacola FL

Original Message:
Sent: 05-05-2022 07:04
From: Jason Levy
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi and good morning Eric – congrats on the much anticipated upgrade to your facilities!
One of the things we did several years ago was create a “partners” group for the Student Center.
As we don’t directly manage most of what would be considered ‘tenant’ relationships, and as we have a variety of University departments in the building, we looked at this as a way to bring folks together to discuss operational process, as a communication tool, and more.  It’s ebbed and flowed over the years, but I can share, at it’s best, it’s been a wonderful group.  We typically ask for representatives from the units/offices to be part of the team and to then disseminate info to others in the area.  We also included folks like Temple police, campus security, housekeeping and some central facilities folks as we don’t have have those folks on our team directly.

In addition to regular or semi-regular meetings, we have done table-top exercises, shared info about projects, and other upgrades, and have learned more about what others are doing or what’s in the pipeline.

In our case, we also created an emergency action communication channel so we could stay in touch with folks quickly about anything from a fire alarm to a gas leak.  We used groupme, but anything similar would work. As we have folks from Aramark, Barnes & Nobel, UPS, etc., in the group, using a campus based communication tool like Teams could also work, as long as non-campus emails or cell phones can be included.

More often than anything, this group receives emails from our office about upcoming items and operational impact.

Another area for communication surrounds the use of space and reservations policy.  I’d encourage conversations about expectations, space ‘ownership’ and the like.  I think we sometimes take for granted that people (partners) know our policy and process when they sometimes don’t.  Open communication about expectations about things like events, meetings, trash, recycling, equipment, furniture, and more, really help the process.

Lastly, the simple things.  Signage, wayfinding, maintenance requests, etc. are all topics of conversation.  Should folks go through the Union/Engagement office for updates or go to a more centralized University office (if one is present and active in the process)?

Hope that helps a bit.  Most important… enjoy the new company and be ready for lots of conversation.

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Jason Levy
Director, Student Centers & Conferences
Temple University
Philadelphia PA
jalevy@temple.edu

Original Message:
Sent: 05-04-2022 12:23
From: Eric Margiotta
Subject: New building/expansion move-in lessons?

Hi friends!

We will be opening an expansion that adds a 50% increase in our square footage later this summer. 

We will also be welcoming in about 10 departments from Student Affairs. Including us, we will be housing 50-60% of the division. We have already drafted and shared an MOU covering their spaces, etc.

I’ve been spending some time looking in the crystal ball and trying to identify what to expect on the whole (not just with new tenants), what gaps might be, etc. to allow us some time to plan/prepare. 

Can anyone share lessons from opening and moving into an expansion/new facility? What were unexpected draws on your time/money? What would you do differently? What else should we be thinking about?

Thanks so much!

-Eric

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Eric Margiotta
Director, Student Unions & Engagement
William & Mary
Williamsburg VA
margiotta@wm.edu
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