Mazzetti Team Recruits Healthcare Facility Management Expert, John Wood, Creating an All-Star Roster for Healthcare
Preparation. Resiliency. Passion. John Wood’s impressive career in Healthcare Facility Management illustrates these reoccurring themes. From 25 years as the Northwest Region Facilities Director with Kaiser Permanente, one of America’s leading health care providers, to the past ten years primarily independently consulting, John has no shortage of experience and drive for serving this niche. He is a Certified Healthcare Constructor, Certified Healthcare Facilities Manager, and a Senior Member of ASHE, including a former ASHE President.
John officially started working with Mazzetti August 6. He is in our Portland office, though he will have national responsibilities and breadth of visibility.
Given that John is somewhat unique, not being an engineer, we wanted to share more about his journey, leading him to the Mazzetti Team, and a sneak peek into what’s next for four clients…
How did Mazzetti originally appear on your radar, leading up to your move to join the team?
I first met Walt (Mazzetti CEO) in 2005 while serving as the ASHE Region 10 Director. We shared similar interests/priorities pertaining to sustainability, at a time before it was “cool”. In 2008, when I became ASHE President and formed the “Sustainability Committee”, I asked Walt to participate, as I knew he was a proponent for this cause. We explored how sustainable practices could improve the operations of our facilities. Additionally we strove to increase the knowledge of Healthcare Facilities Management re sustainability, including how to more effectively communicate with the C-Suite, Design & Construction, and hospital teams to begin a journey towards creating a more sustainable environment.
Walt and I maintained a relationship, post committee-work, regularly connecting at ASHE Annual and PDC each year, learning more about Mazzetti’s work on the design side. Earlier this year at ASHE PDC, we started talking about a service in line with what I know—Healthcare Facility Management. (I’m not a Designer or PE, but I do know hospitals.) We met shortly after PDC and discussed the further needs and opportunities of hospitals/healthcare systems, which was sounding more like what I had done as a consultant. And I was starting to connect the dots as to how I could work with the engineers…
I believe there is a strong connection between Mazzetti’s existing services and Facilities Operations Management Consulting (FOMC) services. For example, a hospital wants to replace a chiller. It needs Design Engineering services to do so. But what else is happening in the building? Does the facility’s condition have other needs? Has maintenance been deferred? I’ll be able to define what those FOMC services look like at Mazzetti. The primary objective will be to assist, advocate, and consult existing facility management staff and their organizations. We want to be able to help them do their jobs better, improve their operations, and enhance programs that benefit the environment of care.
What’s your greatest accomplishment and greatest challenge in your career to-date?
Accomplishment: As a Facilities Director, making the mental shift of not letting the tail wag the dog. This often is what many of us find ourselves doing as we spend our time responding to demands, at the point of realizing that it’s so much more productive to be creative in ways to avert urgency. By being prepared for what could happen, we reduce stress and provide value to our teams, organization and ourselves. This for me is perhaps the greatest accomplishment that has led to many other rewarding accomplishments.
Challenge: Transitioning (due to budget cuts) from a successful 25-year career with a large institution and reinventing myself on ways to continue to serve the industry that I knew and loved. I received tremendous support from friends, peers, and the ASHE board, which led me to more of a consulting role and a way to serve many organizations.
What excites you about coming to Mazzetti?
Working with people that are creative, entrepreneurial and share my passion for not just serving but improving the healthcare environment.
What do you hope to accomplish at Mazzetti?
To develop and implement programs and services for healthcare at both the facilities management level and the organizational level that meet their needs and goals towards improving the environment of care.
What are your predictions for the future of Healthcare Facility Management (HFM) and organizations that service HFM?
Healthcare facility management will continue to be challenged to improve and adapt—to become more efficient, reduce costs, comply with increased regulatory constraints, and face new environmental conditions. As all of this is occurring, there’s still the basic premise to provide an appropriate environment of care. Those of us serving healthcare facility management must not only be current with understanding their needs but also serve as thought leaders to help them move forward.
Share a glimpse into you life outside of your career.
Family is most certainly first priority. My wife Colleen and I are blessed with two daughters and four grandchildren, ranging in age from 7-15 years old.
To really enjoy the beautiful Northwest, we regularly spend time at our mountain retreat near Mt. St. Helens in Washington or on our few acres of farmland (with farm animals!) in Molalla, Oregon. We’ve been blessed to travel to many beautiful places in the U.S., enjoying the local sites, food, and activities but always enjoy getting back to our Northwest home.
As a young man I served in the U.S. Coast Guard—so many life-shaping memories with, now, life-long friends. Many of my former shipmates and I reconnect annually to experience new adventures together. At the end of the month, we’re sailing a boat from Nassau in the Bahamas to Charleston, SC. FUN FACT: The origin of the Coast Guard was the Revenue Cutter Service, which was responsible for intercepting “Rum Runners” from the Caribbean into the U.S. This trip is along the same route, and I’m sure rum will be involved again.