Energy Goals Are Easy to Set in January. Harder to Maintain in July.
Every January, building owners and managers set energy goals with the best intentions.
- Reduce utility costs.
- Improve efficiency.
- Stay compliant with local and state regulations.
- Run a smarter, more sustainable building.
On paper, the plan seems simple. Budgets are approved, targets are defined, and energy performance is monitored.
Then summer arrives.
By July, those same goals are often forgotten about. Energy use tends to spike, and operational focus shifts to putting out immediate fires. The original energy strategy quietly fades into the background.
This pattern is common, and it reveals an important truth about building performance: energy goals are not hard to set, but they are hard to maintain without consistent operational follow-through.
Why Energy Goals Lose Momentum Midyear
The biggest reason energy plans fall apart is not lack of commitment or motivation. It is lack of structure.
Most energy goals are set as monthly or even annual objectives, but buildings operate daily. Without systems in place to track performance and course-correct, even the best plans drift.
Common reasons energy goals subside:
HVAC schedules slowly expand beyond occupancy needs
Thermostat overrides becoming permanent
Equipment operating outside optimal setpoints
Staff turnover leading to inconsistent practices
Seasonal demand masking inefficiencies
By summer, these small changes add up. Cooling loads increase, operating hours stretch, and energy costs climb faster than expected.
The issue is not the heat of summer itself. It is the absence of ongoing monitoring and accountability.
Energy Performance Is an Operational Habit
Buildings that consistently hit energy targets treat efficiency as a habit, not a one-time initiative.
They do not rely on a single audit or an annual benchmark report to guide decisions. Instead, they turn energy awareness into everyday execution.
This includes:
Regular review of energy use trends
Scheduled check-ins on HVAC controls and setpoints
Clear ownership of system performance
Documentation of changes made throughout the year
Energy efficiency improves when it becomes part of a routine.
The Role of Benchmarking in Maintaining Momentum
Benchmarking provides a baseline, but its real value lies in continuous comparison.
When used properly, benchmarking allows building owners to:
Track month-to-month performance changes
Identify abnormal spikes in energy use
Compare seasonal trends year over year
Validate whether efficiency measures are working
Without regular review, benchmarking becomes a compliance exercise instead of a useful management tool.
Buildings that only look at benchmarking data once a year miss the opportunity to catch performance drift early.
Why Midyear Is the Most Critical Time
July is often when inefficiencies surface.
Cooling systems are under peak demand. Occupancy patterns change. After-hours usage increases. Temporary overrides made for climate control become permanent, extending throughout the rest of the year.
This is also when energy costs are the hardest to reverse.
Once excess consumption imperializes a building, it is difficult to dig it out of its self-sabotaging hole. That is why midyear reviews are so important.
Buildings that do a midyear reassessment on:
HVAC schedules
Control sequences
Setpoint consistency
Equipment runtime
Are obviously far more likely to finish the year on target.
Audits and Retro-Commissioning Are Only Effective With Follow-Through
Energy audits and retro-commissioning play a crucial role in identifying opportunities, but they are not solutions on their own.
Many buildings complete audits, receive detailed reports, and still see little to no improvement. The reason is simple: the recommendations that said audits give are not implemented consistently.
To maintain energy goals, audit findings must be:
Prioritized based on operational impact
Integrated into maintenance workflows
Revisited periodically to confirm persistence
Without follow-through, even the best audit becomes shelfware.
Monitoring Turns Intentions Into Results
The difference between intentions and outcomes is monitoring.
Monitoring does not have to be complex, time-extensive, or expensive. It can start with:
Monthly utility bill reviews
Simple trend analysis from building systems
Alerts for abnormal energy usage
Routine operational checklists
These practices create accountability and transparency.
When building owners can see performance changes in real time, they are more likely to respond before costs escalate.
Energy Goals and Compliance Go Hand in Hand
In cities with energy and water regulations, maintaining energy goals is not just about savings. It is also about compliance.
Programs like EBEWE, EBO, and AB802 require accurate reporting, performance tracking, and periodic audits. Buildings that operate reactively often struggle to meet these requirements smoothly.
Those that maintain consistent and assertive energy oversight find compliance easier and less disruptive.
Instead of scrambling at deadlines, these type of building owners already understand how their building performs.
Consistency Beats Ambition
The most successful buildings do not set the most aggressive energy goals. They set realistic goals and maintain them consistently.
They focus on:
Incremental improvements
Stable operations
Data-driven adjustments
Long-term performance
Over time, this approach delivers far more effective results than ambitious plans that are forgotten about after the first quarter.
So What Did We Learn?
Energy goals are easy to write down in January. Maintaining them through July and beyond requires discipline, monitoring, and operational alignment.
Buildings that succeed do not rely on aspirations alone. They build systems that support consistency.
Energy efficiency is not a seasonal initiative.
It is a year-round operational practice.
The buildings that stay focused when summer pressure hits are the ones that finish the year with lower costs, better performance, and fewer surprises.
