Communication Strategy for Energy Reduction in Federal Buildings

1. General Services Administration Office of Federal High Performance Green Buildings Communicating Energy Reduction Strategies, Technologies, and Practices and Overcoming Barriers to Implementation Communication Strategy and Plan 2.3 September 2011 Dan Jackson – LMI Energy and Environment Keith Herrmann – LMI Energy and Environment Michaeleh Jones – LMI Organizational Improvement www.gsa.gov

2. Version History 2

3. Contents • Project Overview • Purpose • Background • Objectives • Communication Strategy • Strategy • Who the Stakeholders Are • How the Communication Flows • What the Messages Are • Plan • Appendices 3

4. Project overview 4

5. OFHPGB Mission and Roles • Roles of the OFHPGB: • Identify and expand opportunities to improve building performance. • Remove barriers to sustainable facilities. • Pilot and adopt transformative sustainable practices. • Aid in the implementation of Legislative and Executive mandates to meet energy reduction goals. The Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings strategically facilitates the adoption of integrated sustainable practices, technologies, and behaviors to accelerate the achievement of a zero environmental footprint. Project Alignment & Case for Change 5

6. Project Purpose • This requires us to understand: • Target audience: energy managers, facility managers, and project managers engaged in lighting and thermal conditioning projects To bring knowledge about energy reducing technologies, strategies, and practices to the field in ways that are accessible and useful for implementation in building O&M and small-scale renovations. Process Barriers Change Levers People 6

7. Project Background 7

8. Project Objectives • Clarify the process to move energy reducing technologies, strategies, and practices to adoption. • Uncover the roles, influences, and gaps present within the adoption process. • Examine the synergies among decision makers and influencers. • Pinpoint the key barriers and enablers to improve adoption. • Reach a consensus on “no-brainer” lighting and thermal conditioning energy reduction solutions. • Develop an effective communications strategy and plan to disseminate energy research and usage data. To translate research and usage data on energy reduction solutions into communication tools and methods that can be disseminated to decision makers and end users. Objective 1 Objective 2 Objective 3 Objective 4 8

9. Communication strategy 9

10. Purpose of Communication Strategy • To provide the target audience of facility managers, energy managers, and project managers the information and materials necessary to support their efforts to increase the adoption of energy-reducing technologies, practices, and strategies. 10

11. Scope and Caveats • The communication strategy and plan provide a general overview of how communication flows in the retrofit process. • The strategy and plan recognize variations exist between and within regions and therefore were not intended to highlight all contractual relationships and feedback loops. • The following slides are intended to be used by facility, energy, and project managers to identify when and how communications can benefit the retrofit process. • Many more activities support and contribute to the success of retrofit projects and are included as supplemental slides to the communication plan.

12. How to Realize the Communication Strategy • Understand the retrofit process as the method for adopting energy-reducing technologies, strategies, and practices • Identify stakeholders engaged in the retrofit process • Define communication pathways that exist between the stakeholders • Identify key messages and mechanisms that facilitate communication Recognize that success does not rest solely on the actions of facility managers, energy managers, and project managers 12

13. High-Level View of the Retrofit Process 13 *The exact flow and sequencing of the retrofit process may differ depending on the project type and complexity.

14. Who the Stakeholders Are To Be Updated 14

15. How the Communication Flows To Be Updated 15

16. What the Messages Are To Be Updated 16

17. Description of the Messaging • Within the communication plan, there are three categories of messages: • Awareness • Messages crafted to inform the intended audience on a variety of topics • Status • Messages that provide information related to the project and its management • Education • Messages that teach new skills or increase the knowledge of the audience 17

18. Types of Awareness Messaging • Benefits – identify what the audience gains as a result of the retrofit or upgrade • Successful Implementation – present examples where the retrofit or upgrade resulted in energy savings, improved working conditions, etc. • Technical Solutions – provide information specific to the proposed or adopted solution • Alternative Financing – promote financing mechanisms in addition to operational and capital improvement budgets • Project – share general information about the overall project including schedule • Change – address rumors and concerns about the impact on the building and its tenants 18

19. Types of Education Messaging • Technical Solutions – provide tailored training on how to operate and maintain the retrofit or upgrade as well as any necessary behavior changes • Alternative Financing – train Contracting Officers on the policy and procedures governing the use of alternative financing mechanisms 19

20. Communication Plan – Planning 20

21. Communication Plan – Assessing 21

22. Communication Plan – Financing 22

23. Communication Plan – Evaluating / Selecting 23

24. Communication Plan – Designing / Cost Estimating 24

25. Communication Plan – Procuring 25

26. Communication Plan – Implementing 26

27. Communication Plan – Commissioning 27

28. Communication Plan – Operating / Maintaining 28

29. Communication Plan – Monitoring / Verifying 29

30. Communication Plan – Promoting Success 30

31. Supporting Activities There are additional activities that support the target audience and surround the retrofit process. These activities exist in varying degrees of maturity. • Minimum Performance Requirements – these establish the ground rules for determining project requirements; they should be available to project teams and contracting officers for incorporation into projects • Performance Verification – throughout the course of the project, actively measuring how the building is meeting the requirements • Measurements & Verification – set at a national level, the appropriate metrics and acceptable levels • Clearing House – establish a single site that draws from all available experts to allow project teams to find the most recent and relevant materials just-in-time

32. Supporting Activities - continued There are additional activities that support the target audience and surround the retrofit process. These activities exist in varying degrees of maturity. • Guiding Principles – establish and publish standards; require facility managers to report a building’s performance against these standards • Assessments by Regional Subject Matter Experts – Management Analysis & Review System (MARS) and Environmental Risk Index (ERI) are examples of assessments performed at the regional level that support decision-making and prioritization of projects • Working Groups – led by regional SMEs; these provide a mechanism for identifying where resources can be pooled for maximum effect and dynamic scenarios can be explored

33. Appendices 33

34. Project Objectives Communication and Outreach: Barriers and Enablers Objective 2 Objective 1 Players Influences Objective 4 Research Adoption Communication Strategy Relationships Roles Objective 3 Communication and Outreach: Opportunities for Energy Reducing Technologies, Strategies, and Practices 34

35. Gaps in the Process • Stovepiped stages and a lack of feedback loops result in a dysfunctional adoption process (i.e. procurement policy is to purchase lowest price not most energy efficient products). • Decisions to adopt energy reduction solutions do not focus on outcomes such as implementation or performance. • Energy research is not connected with facility-level implementers—focus is on the gadget. • Economics and asset valuations exclude important factors (i.e. real cost of energy and life-cycle costs). During the workshop, researchers and practitioners identified four main gaps in the process to adopt energy reduction solutions. 35

36. Stages of the Adoption Process The process to adopt energy reducing technologies, strategies, and practices includes eight primary stages. Stage Definition 36

37. Adoption Process has Interdependencies • The process to adopt energy reduction solutions tends to occur in a linear direction, … • but the system is more complex and interdependent! 37

38. Roles and Influences The process to adopt energy reduction solutions involves multiple players and organizations with varying levels of influence. 38

39. Synergies to Build Upon Exist • Observed synergies include: • Collaborative and hierarchical decision making approaches exist. • Entities may be both decision maker and influencer. • Procurement policy is about how to procure not what to procure. • Some decisions are technical or managerial while others are policy oriented. • Ground-level implementers need a well-informed outlook from top-level decision makers. Crafting an effective communications strategy requires an understanding of the adoption process, the interrelationships among decision makers and their interests, and funding sources. 39

40. Enablers to Address Barriers • These levers of change address a majority of the barriers: • Bundle energy reduction solutions. • Create a safety net to mitigate tendencies of decision makers to be risk-averse. • Enhance the procurement and contracting processes. • Gear research toward outcomes and the people who can act on it. • Improve education and training for decision makers and end users. • Overcome organizational and cultural barriers. • Use life-cycle accounting. A communication strategy focused on the adoption of energy reducing technologies, strategies, and practices should address the barriers at each stage of the decision-making process. 40

41. Promising Energy Reduction Solutions • Lighting: • Benchmarking / total energy audits • Bundled lighting solutions • Education • Energy-efficient lighting fixtures and systems • Occupancy sensors • Thermal Conditioning: • Cool roofs • Deadband / personal-controlled conditioning • Façade upgrades • Monitoring energy comfort with standardized methods • Retro-commissioning with continuous commissioning Participants identified five promising lighting and thermal conditioning technologies, strategies, or practices. The consensus believe a strategy-based approach is vital to adopt these energy reduction solutions. 41