“I was impressed with Hoefer Welker’s promptness, their desire to meet with me ASAP and understand MTN and our mission. They truly listened to what we were seeking to do and came very prepared with their proposal.”
“HW’s presentation was the most professional of the bidders we considered,” Boyd says. “Their approach, discussion on how the project would flow, and recommended contractor and building engineering team was the best match for our needs and culture.”
As President and CEO Jan Finn notes, it’s also important for medical organizations to find a partner with meaningful healthcare experience.
“We felt a strong connection to their work style and reputation,” Finn says. “It was important for us to have a medical team on this project to ensure we were getting a design compliant with medical regulations, and that worked for us.”
A great cultural fit becomes even more critical when the unexpected occurs. Including taking an entire project online during a global pandemic, a process that Kirsch says “went shockingly well” thanks to the team’s chemistry.
2. Focus on the bigger “why.”
Related to finding the right cultural fit, Kirsch says, is selecting partners who understand and support your organization’s overall mission.
For MTN, this project was about more than simple efficiency — it was about saving lives, relieving overwhelmed healthcare facilities, and improving the experience of organ donors’ families. The new Donor Care and Surgical Recovery Unit will achieve all these goals by moving future organ and tissue donors out of crowded ICUs and into a donation-focused space.
“We didn’t start this project to save money,” Kirsch says. “This is absolutely a community resource … If we had it right now, it would be huge because hospitals are suffering so much [during the COVID-19 pandemic].”
Markham says she knew Hoefer Welker was the right fit by their eagerness to understand fully — and embrace — MTN’s mission.
“You could feel their passion for making donation and the donation experience the best it possibly could be … for our donors, their families and potential recipients awaiting these life-saving gifts,” Markham says
3. Bring the entire team on board as soon as possible.
Paramount in building your project team, Kirsch says, is assembling your entire project team at the outset.
Hoefer Welker brought construction firm McCownGordon, MEP firm BranchPattern, and civil/landscape consultant Bartlett & West on board from the beginning. This early teaming allowed MTN to get a complete cost breakdown and avoid the costly change orders — sometimes in the millions — they’d encountered on previous projects.
“Having everyone at the table from the beginning eliminated confusion and focused the entire team on addressing goals and challenges concurrently,” Boyd says. “Had we not started the project in this manner, the time required to address all issues could have required twice the time to complete and made for a frustrating experience.”
Moreover, the entire team was able to provide the MTN Governing Board with comprehensive design and cost options, allowing board members confidence to select the plan with the best value and outlook for the organization. And when the Board requested additional options, that pivot was all the easier because representatives from McCownGordon and BranchPattern were already in the room.
“Most important for me was to know we were heard, and our feedback was important.”
When gauging success with any design-build partner, Finn says it all comes down to the partnership.
“Most important for me was to know we were heard, and our feedback was important,” Finn says. “Hoefer Welker is always responsive to our questions, comments and objections. They deliver a quality design and push us to think creatively, while they guided us.”
Proof of a successful partnership can also come with a return on investment. In fall 2020, more than two years after partnering with Hoefer Welker, MTN broke ground on the 47,000-square-foot renovation and addition. The new Donor Care and Surgical Recovery Unit — made possible by the teamwork between Hoefer Welker, MTN, McCownGordon and BranchPattern — will allow MTN to more efficiently do what they do best: save lives and honor the gift of organ and tissue donation.