To POE or not to POE, that is the question

It’s always exciting to finish a book. I am not quite there but I have recently approved the draft layout of “A Practical Guide to Post-Occupancy Evaluation and Researching Building User Experience”. The book is based on my 25 years’ experience of conducting POEs and I have completed over 100 evaluations during that time. The book will be out in September but is available to pre-order from Amazon.

Without conducting an independent evaluation of newly built or refurbished workplaces, we cannot be confident that they meet the needs of the occupying organisation and its people. 

This is more pertinent than ever as:

1. we attempt to attract people back to the office,
2. we need to guarantee that buildings are as energy efficient and sustainable as modelled and designed, and
3. we restore national productivity and ensure offices promote wellbeing and performance.

But a POE also offers additional hidden value to architects and designers. Offering a POE to a previous client is a fantastic way of reintroducing your business and renewing old relationships, especially 9 to 12 months after project completion. I worked for an architects practice many moons ago and we offered a basic POE to all our clients. We found, more often than not, that the offer was gratefully received and would lead to further project work. 

Using on-line surveys (just one of many elements of POE) at the briefing stage is also a cost-effective means of collating feedback to inform the brief; it also forms the baseline for a cost-effective post-project evaluation. 

Do let me know if I can help reintroduce you to old clients and conduct a POE on your behalf. 

Also, hopefully you will have seen that I am conducting research on the appeal and relative attractiveness of working in the office and working from home. It would be great if you could complete this short 15 minute survey in return for entering a prize draw for a MillerKnoll chair and Workplace Trends conference ticket.