In 1987, the Aluminum Company of America—popularly known as Alcoa—was
going through a rough patch. As one of the largest producers of raw
Aluminum, its quality was declining and growth hit an all-time low.
The board appointed Paul O'Neill as the new CEO to resurrect the
company.
At the first investor conference, O'Neill said, "I intend to make
Alcoa the safest company in America. I intend to go for zero
injuries."
People were confused. There was no mention of the debt ratios. Not
even revenues and expenses.
When questioned further, he stood his ground and said, “If you want to
understand how Alcoa is doing, you need to look at our workplace
safety figures.” Profits, O'Neill said, didn’t matter as much as
safety.
But within a year of O'Neill's speech, profits hit a record high.
Within a decade, the company's annual revenue quintupled, and the
market valuation grew by $27 billion.
How?
O'Neill wanted to sow seeds in the present that boosted Alcoa's
long-term value.
He tackled the problem at its root, having a clear eye for Alcoa's
efficiency, quality, and profitability that was fundamentally rooted
in the health and safety of workers.
He made small changes to worker safety that powered a chain reaction
of growth in the long term.
Like O’Neill, property operators are also grappling with tough
decisions to overcome growth bottlenecks. And like Alcoa, you can
build value and bring sustained growth by making decisions that
address the future needs of your property—rather than implementing
reactive or band-aid solutions.
This month, we've curated resources to help you make incremental
progress in the long-term by adopting solutions that are future proof.
EXPERT INSIGHTS:
- Learn the top criteria to consider when evaluating and benchmarking an FDD solution for your property. Get the comprehensive guide now.
- Rethink Property Operations with Data. Check out the video walk-through gallery of our ready-to-deploy toolkit, REbuild - everything you need to reopen with confidence and operate with agility.
- REbuild Episode #6 - Using Digital to Elevate Built Asset Value and Experiences In a Changing World. Emma Hendry talks about how leading properties in Australia responded to the viral outbreak—and how digital-led business models are boosting efficiency.
ARTICLES TO HELP YOU LEVEL UP
GOOD READS:
Facilio Blog:
How Digital Twins Technology can Model Back-to-Work Contingencies
Real Estate Weekly:
Making Offices Safe for Workers, and Making Money Doing It
Real Estate Weekly:
Google Shows the Path to a Clean Energy Future
