A Profile of Dawn Moynihan

On her first day at medical device manufacturer Align Technology, Dawn Moynihan was asked if she knew anything about construction. Dawn replied, “No, but I’m willing to learn.” The HR person said, “Well, we’re moving into a new building in two months and I’m going to need your help.” And so began Dawn’s fast track into real estate, design, construction, and facility management.

“I had moments of panic. What am I doing here? They have made some sort of horrible mistake,” she laughed. “But a few months later, they hired someone who then became my boss. He had 20+ years of facility management experience and had seen how the company had transitioned in a corporate setting more to workplace services and software. He was just instrumental for me to help me understand the job.”

Together, they created a path for Dawn that allowed her to develop a real passion for real estate and workplace services.

Dawn quickly realized that she had a bit of a gap in her knowledge. While she understood people and offices, she didn't understand technical terminology. She made the decision to pursue her Facility Management Professional (FMP) certification, IFMA’s knowledge-based credential for FM professionals looking to increase their depth-of-knowledge in core FM competencies. She started working on that in 2017 and completed her certification in 2018 with a stronger foundation of knowledge.

She credits her FMP training with giving her the confidence to be part of the conversation with colleagues and management and voice her opinions.

“It is funny to look back because I'm very direct and have no problem giving my opinions now,” she said. “I just needed that first foot in the door.”

Now the facility manager for Align Technology’s office in Raleigh, North Carolina, Dawn has been promoted three times since 2017 – a rapid ascendance into the exciting, ever-changing world of facility management.

As Dawn’s role and responsibilities expanded, her company has also experienced growth. In the early days, the employees were working out of a 3,000 square foot rental office. Now, they’re in a 200,000 square foot class A office building. Over the course of a few years, Align built a cafeteria, remodeled, and created a high-end educational experience center for their orthodontist and dentist customers.

“I feel like I’ve gained 20 years of facility management experience in the past seven,” said Dawn.

The Align facility in Raleigh is literally always buzzing. They have an on-site beehive that generates honey, a community garden, and a walking trail for staff – all of which sweeten the workplace experience.

Dawn’s team collaborates with a local company called Bee Downtown, that installs and maintain beehives on corporate campuses.

“Employees love the bees. We get all the honey that those hives produce, and we do individual jars and give them to employees. There’s also a fun hive tour,” she said.

Dawn and her husband have two small children under the age of 10. For a while, around the pandemic, both she and her husband worked from home, which was chaotic. Life has been a lot smoother with Dawn back in the office and her husband studying for a new career while being with the kids.

When it was relatively quiet in the office during the COVID period, Dawn and her team had the time to evaluate floor plans and look closely at amenities, knowing the workforce would be coming back to a new experience. “We did a coat of paint, we did a few small nips and tucks, and we also did some major shifts.”

Dawn oversees a team including supervisors and folks on the front lines. She’s a big believer in opportunity and development.

“I’m the poster child of what happens if you’re given an opportunity to develop yourself,” said Dawn. “I always try to give my team opportunities for stretch assignments – something outside your normal role and something that’s a bit more difficult – like AI and how that’s going to affect equipment maintenance.”

To continue advancing, connecting with peers, and learning best practices, Dawn and her team are involved in their local IFMA chapter to share ideas and try new things from participating in facility tours. “I like to give them the opportunity to attend some of these events, so we can all learn and develop together,” said Dawn.