What if the air inside your building is shaping your health, your productivity — even your organization’s performance? 

In this episode of the Connected FM Podcast, host Edward Wagoner sits down with Dr. Joseph G. Allen, associate professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, director of Harvard’s Healthy Buildings Program, and author of Healthy Buildings. Together, they unpack why indoor air quality (IAQ) has become one of the most important drivers of FM strategy today. 

Dr. Allen explains why FMs aren’t just maintaining buildings anymore. They’re impacting brain function, human performance, organizational resilience and long-term asset value — all through the air people breathe indoors. 

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What You’ll Learn in This Episode

1. Why Buildings Are a “Once-in-a-Century” Health Opportunity

Dr. Allen shares, “Buildings are the single greatest health and business opportunity of this century.”  From cognitive function to immune response, the indoor environment is influencing human health in ways far beyond what most organizations realize. Facility management professionals, he says, are essentially the doctors of buildings — shaping health every day through air, ventilation and operations. 
 

2. The Science Behind Ventilation, Filtration & Cognitive Function

Research from Harvard and others shows that better ventilation and filtration directly improve brain performance. That means stronger decision-making, higher creativity and better problem-solving across an organization.  

If your conference rooms make people feel sluggish? It might be the air, and not the meeting. 

3. Minimum Standards Aren’t Enough 

Most buildings still meet only the minimum ventilation standards. The solution? 

  • Increase outdoor air intake 
  • Upgrade filters (MERV-13 or higher) 
  • Commission and tune building systems regularly 
  • Monitor IAQ like any other performance metric

4. Why Employees & Tenants Are Paying Attention

A landmark shift is underway: low-cost air quality sensors are now in the hands of employees, consumers and tenants. Anyone can walk into a space with a device and evaluate CO₂ levels, pollutants and filtration performance.

5. What CEOs Should Be Doing Right Now

Return-to-office strategies often emphasize collaboration, amenities, AV upgrades and culture, but overlook the most essential ingredient: healthy air. 

For organizations trying to unlock innovation, boost performance and attract people back into buildings, Dr. Allen recommends executives prioritize IAQ as seriously as any other business metric. It directly shapes the creativity and productivity leaders say they want. 
 

Links From the Episode