Today asset is not only a physical asset, but also the intangible assets and resources, like; the human, knowledge, information etc. All previous efforts by the academia and professionals have failed to find a total solutions to the existing and emerging problems and dynamics of the global situation. Last year, ISO 55000 has been published to find a solution. what do you think on ISO 55000?
In my view, there is no hypothesis that has proved that "quality inputs, quality processes and quality strategies could deliver quality products and services". Despite this challenging phenomenon, quality brings in trust, measurable metrics, accountability and evaluation for benchmarks etc. though not in order. Quality management could be an effective tool that is not an end by itself but means to achieve goals. Thus the quality standard in question would definitely be of help achieve goals. Interesting question sir.
Dear Prof Misra, Thanks. An interesting observation. Yes, quality is an important part of asset management, but not other way round. Though Qulaity management ISO 9000 started early, it was not able to take care of asset's internal perspectives for which PAS 55 and later on ISO 55000 came into existance.
ISO 55000 is a major improvement on other asset management standards, but like any other standard it only provides guidance on what aspects should be considered. It is not a solution in its own right. Nonetheless, unlike previous publications there is recognition of the strong sociotechical nature of asset management, which is a formalised acknowledgement of the move away purely hardcore asset focused asset management . It is now up to those embarking on conformance or even alignment with standard to interpret its meaning and to develop solutions to the challenges presented by the standard. In my opinion academia has, only in limited cases and only recently, started to catch up with this and is still largely addressing the technical aspects of asset management. From my own point of view, there are some interesting multi-disciplinary challenges created by the new standard that will have to address the complexity created by sociotechical complex systems.
Dear Simon, Thanks for your answer. Yes, ISO 55000 asks to look into all organizational assets only. One needs to look into non-financial or intangible assets of the organization also.
All problems? No. First of all the ISO only states 'what' needs to be in place regarding your asset management systems. The 'how' is up to the organizations. And that leaves many organizations still in the dark. Second, looking for a grand unified theory is the same as looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Reality is far more complex than a (generic) standard can embrace. However, the ISO is a very good starting point and will certainly help solving present asset management problems. In my opinion the emphasis on value and alignment (although not new) is of great help for breaking down silos in organizations. I think that taking a more service oriented approach (in stead of value) could even bring more merit to asset management.
Thanks Rob for the answer. Certainly it is much more complex to find a total solutions. I agree; it is a good beginning.
I entirely agree with Professor Bush regarding usual scope of traditional asset management. The various players/participants (academia, practitioners, industry people, research institutions etc. have mainly focused on its technical aspects. I am also of opinion that Asset management should be viewed as a complex multi-disciplinary challenge.
In a recent publication in “Safety Science” we discussed it in the paper:
Komljenovic, D., Gaha, M., Abudl-Nour, G., Langheit, C. and Bourgeois, M. (2016), Risks of Extreme and Rare Events in Asset Management, Safety Science, 88, 129-145.
In this article we claim that in a contemporary complex operational and business context, modern enterprises should be considered as complex adaptive systems (CAS). The methods and tools of the complexity science (theory) are recommended in such circumstances in order to help better understanding their behavior, grasp associated uncertainties and risks, and design appropriate management policies. Consequently, we argue that the overall asset management strategy should be considered and analyzed as a CAS.
Abstract
Modern companies operate in a complex business and operational environment, which generates new types of risks that were relatively unknown just a few decades ago (e.g. cyber security), and creates favorable conditions for the emerging of extreme and rare events that may seriously perturb the current and long-term performance of enterprises. Current practices generally neglect taking into account those risks. Analyzing and managing them through traditional methods has recently shown to be less efficient. Advice and input from technical experts, strategic planners or knowledgeable managers may be insufficient or too narrowly focused to adequately manage the complexity of the systems and structures in a constantly changing and barely predictable environment. It is generally due to a lack of knowledge regarding the type and range of uncertainties, the nature of interconnections, the level of complexity, as well as our low ability to predict future events. Consequently, enterprises need alternative and enhanced methods and tools in order to better understand and model the complex business and operational environment and the associated risks.
This paper proposes a high level Risk-Informed Decision-Making framework in asset management that integrates risks extreme and rare events as part of an overall risk assessment and management activity. The research focuses on the methodology aimed at identifying, assessing and managing those risks in asset management. We believe that this approach may support organizations in becoming companies more resilient and robust in a changing and complex environment. We expose two case studies that demonstrate the applicability of the proposed model.
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