From Gut Feeling to Data-Driven Decisions
In commercial real estate, many owners and operators still make decisions based on instinct or incomplete reports. But in today’s market, that’s not enough. Tenant expectations are higher, costs are rising, and investors demand visibility. The difference between properties that thrive and those that fall behind often comes down to one thing: how they collect and use data.
That’s why the third step in the 5C Framework for Peak Property Performance is Collect.
What Does “Collect” Mean?
On the Peak Property Performance Podcast, hosts Bill Douglas and Drew Hall explain it this way:
“Your building is already generating data every second. The question is—are you capturing it, structuring it, and using it to make better decisions?”
Collect isn’t about tenant personal data. It’s about building-generated data:
Energy usage from HVAC and lighting systems.
- Access logs from entry points.
- Occupancy patterns in common areas.
- Equipment runtimes and performance metrics.
- When this data is collected systematically, it becomes fuel for better operations, smarter leasing, and new NOI opportunities.
Why Data Collection Matters
- Data is the bridge between knowing your infrastructure (Clarify) and optimizing your operations (Coordinate). Without accurate, structured data, owners are flying blind.
- According to McKinsey, companies that are “data-driven” are 23 times more likely to acquire customers, 6 times more likely to retain them, and 19 times more profitable.
- A Deloitte CRE survey (2024) found that only 28% of owners feel confident in the quality of their building data, even though nearly all agreed it is essential to NOI growth.
- JLL reports that smart buildings leveraging data for operations can cut OpEx by up to 30% while improving tenant satisfaction scores.
Real-World Example: From Analog to Insight
Bill and Drew often share stories of owners who discover valuable insights once they begin to collect data properly. One client moved from a static lighting schedule to a data-driven system that adjusted based on real occupancy. The result:
Lower energy costs.
- Happier tenants who appreciated smarter, greener buildings.
- A measurable NOI lift tied directly to the data they collected.
- Without collection, those savings and improvements would have been invisible.
Common Pitfalls
Owners often struggle here because:
- Data is siloed across multiple vendor platforms.
- Systems aren’t connected, making collection inconsistent.
- Data exists but isn’t structured in a usable way.
That’s why ownership of digital infrastructure matters. If you don’t control the data flows, you can’t collect the insights that drive NOI.
Key Takeaways
- Every building generates data—own it. If you don’t, your vendors will.
- Focus on building data, not tenant data. It’s about systems, not surveillance.
- Structured collection is the foundation of intelligence. Without it, you’re guessing, not leading.
- Collecting building-generated data is the turning point. It transforms your property from reactive management to proactive optimization.
Next Step: Dive Deeper