08 Why Buildings Are the Gift That Keeps on Taking — and What to Do About It

Cameron Christensen grew up with a front-row seat to pioneering work in facility asset management. His father, Doug Christensen, literally wrote the book on Total Cost of Ownership — Building Total Enterprise Asset Management Solutions — and famously said: “Buildings… the gift that keeps on taking.”

In this first clip from our Café Zai conversation, Cameron shares how that legacy shaped his career and why the cradle-to-grave view of buildings developed at BYU is more relevant than ever, long before “asset management” was even an industry term.

It’s a story about legacy, the true cost of our built environment, and why a ribbon cutting is just the beginning of the journey.

Watch the clip here, then listen to the full 22-minute conversation:Full Episode – Café Zai with Cameron Christensen

In the full episode:

• How to balance shiny new construction with aging existing facilities

• Why “It begins and ends with inventory”

• The concept of a Living Master Plan and why 10-year plans are obsolete

• Where AI fits in (as an accelerator, not the strategy)

What’s the “gift that keeps on taking” in your organization?

OPERATIONAL LEADERSHIP
- More than fifteen years of experience leading organizations in planning, maintenance, operations, and project management
- Twenty years of experience directly related to facilities and grounds operations
- Directed maintenance, custodial, and grounds operations
- Developed and managed both short and long-term operational budgets
- Experienced managing unionized staff including staff from the CSU Employees Union, State Employees Trade Council, and District Council 37 of New York City
- Participated in collective bargaining sessions and labor/management conferences with union representatives
- Developed and implemented proactive maintenance programs consisting of preventive, predictive, corrective, and other planned maintenance programs
- Developed and implemented new work flow procedures that included a new computerized maintenance management systems, space planning and management, new work flow procedures, inventory management, tool crib, and other operational administrative tasks

PLANNING, PROJECT MANAGEMENT, & RECAPITALIZATION
- Participated in the development of the APPA American National Standard for Total Cost of Ownership (APPA ANSI TCO 1000)
- Leading an APPA Center for Facilities Research group on the study and application of a new, dynamic form of living master planning
- Developed and managed Total Cost of Ownership programs consisting of tracking the cradle-to-grave cost of construction, operations, maintenance, and recapitalization of the facility’s assets
- Developed and implemented Capital Renewal and Deferred Maintenance programs including 5-year deferred maintenance and 40-year life-cycle management plans
- Developed and implemented multi-year ADA action plans to strategically address deficiencies and increase the level of accessibility to persons with disabilities
- Worked with city and state agencies such as the California Department of Capital Planning, Design, and Construction, New York Departments of Buildings, Landmarks, and Citywide Administration, as well as other public utility, construction, and capital asset management agencies

https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameron-christensen-cefp-fmp-3531515/