and maintenance planning
• The actual execution of the lifecycle delivery activities over the entire life of physical assets to deliver required performance
• The enablers to support execution such as technology, people, data, and processes
• Performance monitoring and reporting
• Continuous improvement”
Darren lets out a deep sigh and continues: “Remember, asset management is intended to provide for the sound stewardship of physical assets, meet customer service commitments, and manage assets in the most cost-effective and efficient manner. This essence is clearly captured in the framework.”
“Once you have created your own asset management framework, I suggest you meet with your stakeholders, give them copies, and explain to them what the framework represents. Clearly show them where they fit in the framework, how their work relates to others, and how their work is important to achieve the goals of the organization.”
”Finally, you can point to them what your role is in the whole framework and how you fit in.”
Jerry looks at Darren as if he does not quite understand how he fits in the asset management framework. He carefully folds the sketch once and places it in one of his folders lying on the table.
Darren glances at his watch to check the time. He figures he still has around thirty minutes before he should really head out, as Debbie will be waiting for him for dinner.
“There is another key document that I would like you to think about or even start working on,” he continues.
Jerry stares at Darren with a surprised look on his face. He must be feeling really overwhelmed with what Darren has been throwing at him so far. However, he does not say a word, and Darren keeps going, cautioning, “Next it is very important that you have an asset management policy in place.”
Step 3: Develop an Asset Management Policy
“Jerry, do you have a health and safety policy in your organization?” Darren asks.
“Yes,” Jerry replies.
“How about an environmental policy, do you have one?” he again asks.
“Yes, I think we do have ... not so sure, though,” Jerry responds.
“I am pretty sure you do have, especially with the business you are in. You must also have many other policies at different levels in your organization, such as an accounting policy, personnel policy, procurement policy, and many others. Therefore, the question is why we do not have one for asset management yet?” Darren replies. “We have policies to protect and manage other types of assets, so why not for our physical assets?”
Then Darren reminds Jerry, “Last time I did mention to you the significant value of fixed assets that organizations end up owning and managing. These same fixed assets can be the source of many health and safety, environmental, or other consequences. The irony is that not having a commitment to manage physical assets in the form of a formal asset management policy can directly impact the goals of the other policies.”
Darren takes a pause and asks, “Isn’t this weird? Physical assets and their contribution have always been taken for granted or gone unnoticed in organizations—especially at the boardroom level.”
He pauses again to collect his thoughts and then says: “This has to change, and, actually, I should correct myself ... things are already changing these days. Many organizations have started to recognize that there is a gap in their commitment to responsibly manage physical assets. Organizations in general do an outstanding job in developing their strategic plan to outline their vision, mission, and strategic goals and objectives. From there they develop their long-term and short-term financial, marketing, and operating plans. The physical asset management portion is dealt with to some degree in the operating plan. However, there exists a considerable gap in this area, and this is what many industries are trying to address these days.”
Then Darren starts on a relatively long explanation of what an asset management policy is all about: “A corporate asset management policy helps formulate the commitment to look at the strategic aspect of managing physical assets. The policy outlines the multiple approaches and requirements the organization endorses and commits to for better asset management planning. It spells out the underlying guiding principles to follow when developing and deploying asset management practices to meet legislative requirements and the organizational strategic objectives. In order to ensure that the asset management system is compatible with the rest of the organization, it has to be clearly specified and defined through a formal policy statement by the organization as a whole. This action is essential so that the organization places the asset management system in context within its overall range of strategic objectives and goals. This is necessary both to give the development of the system visible and distinct credibility within the organization, and to ensure that the goals of the system and the goals of the organization are correctly aligned and calibrated. The establishment of a policy is also the first step in a longer process of developing individual and specific asset management objectives for different functional areas of the organization.”
During all this time Jerry has been listening carefully while trying to capture as much as he can in his notes. Clearly he is trying his best to absorb all the information.
Darren takes notice of that and understands that maybe it is a bit too much for the young man. He looks at his watch and notices that they have been meeting in the coffee shop for more than two hours already.
Darren gets up and says, “I think that’s enough for today. I think you have enough to work on for the next two or three weeks. Don’t worry about the rest; just be patient and focus on engaging and educating your stakeholders. Next time we meet, you will tell me of your progress and how things went.”
Jerry does not say anything. He just shakes Darren’s hand and gives him a little, almost hesitant smile.
“All the best,” Darren says as he walks toward the exit.
THE STRATEGIC ASSET MANAGEMENT PLAN
For the last couple of weeks, Darren has been quite busy. On one side, he has been busy teaching the three courses he has ongoing, and, on the other side, he has been catching up with reviewing some papers his students have drafted.
At home, also, things have been quite busy for him. He tries to spend some good quality time with Debbie as much as possible, while at the same time training hard for long hours to prepare for his next triathlon. With his medium height and slim build, Darren is very fit and does not look his age at all. If it were not for his salt and pepper hair and shortly trimmed beard, he could easily be mistaken for someone in his mid-forties. He is often asked how he manages to keep up with all his activities. To tell the truth, Darren himself doesn’t have a clue at all. He just plans what he needs to do over the year and months, looks at the upcoming week, and takes it day by day. Two of his best-kept secrets are “stick to the plan” and “be consistent.” Debbie plays an instrumental role in keeping him focused and to the task, as she sometimes surreptitiously adds her dose of pressure. She knows very well how and when to do it so as to keep Darren in line. Darren is fine with Debbie’s approach and actually enjoys
