Case Study

Building a culture of Asset Management thinking in Michigan

Michigan Infrastructure Council

Michigan’s infrastructure asset management journey began in 2016 with the creation of the 21st Century Infrastructure Commission.  The Commission was formed to help Michigan with the planning, development, and management of infrastructure over the next 50-years. From the final report and over 100 recommendations produced by the Commission, two important initiatives came to light.

1) A regional infrastructure pilot would be launched in order to identify existing infrastructure data and gaps and then using that data, coordinate asset management data and planning across infrastructure sectors.

2) The Michigan Infrastructure Council (MIC) was established to provide a body responsible with overseeing the implementation of the pilot’s key findings and coordinating the state’s infrastructure-related goals.

MIC looked around the world for best practice public infrastructure asset management that could be replicated within the State. They weren’t interested in reinventing the wheel but learning from others that have gone through it. Over the last few years, the MIC have established several powerful pillars that are enabling Michigan infrastructure owners to take major steps forward in their asset management journeys.

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    Asset Management Champion Training Program

The AM Champion program set out to establish a network of talented individuals and organizations across Michigan. icInfrastructure developed and delivered a full scale, state-wide, customized training program in Michigan.  

The program has established a graduated network of over 500 individuals and organizations across Michigan. It is a key initiative for the State which helps build awareness, develop knowledge, and establish a community of asset management leaders who will be driving change across Michigan over the coming decades.  

98% of participants feel that they are now able to be a successful AM Champion for their organization.

This fast-paced and interactive training program combined asynchronous education, facilitated discussions, peer interactions and industry learning into a professional certification from MIC and included:

  • Asynchronous E-Learning Modules: 9 lessons featuring AM content and interactive activities. All material aligns with the 5 topic areas featured in the AMRS.
  • Facilitated Discussions and Peer Interactions: Three 90-minute “Learning Pods” consisting of in-depth thematic discussion with peers and industry leaders. These serve as effective learning reinforcement while building everyone’s network.
  • Industry Learning: Access to a comprehensive library of webinars and presentations through a collaboration with the Canadian Network of Asset Managers (CNAM), while supporting MIC to collect their own library of local case studies.

These Champions went through the program to help strengthen best practice asset management with the following objectives in mind:

  • 1. Build Awareness – build AM Champions to foster a culture of asset management best practices across Michigan.
  • 2. Develop Knowledge – develop AM Champions who understand and promote the value of asset management, aligned with the five topics in the MIC AMRS.

Read more about our custom regional and state programs here

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    "icInfrastructure developed and delivered a distinguished statewide asset management learning program in Michigan, training well over 500 professionals to build confidence and knowledge on industry best practices.


Their unparalleled expertise and customized approach have empowered Michigan infrastructure owners to make smarter, more efficient decisions. With their guidance, we are changing the culture of how we manage infrastructure in Michigan.

For any state or municipality seeking the best in enterprise asset management training, icInfrastructure is the clear choice."

Erin Kuhn, Michigan Infrastructure Council Co-Chair and AM Champions Executive Sponsor

Michigan Infrastructure Council

    “If you seek partners to help understand the technical, financial and public challenges of asset management, I know you will not be disappointed.


The team of icInfrastructure has the ability to not only teach and develop highly complex curriculum, but also bring in local, national and international experiences to the training."

John Weis, Michigan Infrastructure Council Past Chair

Michigan Infrastructure Council

Bill Bohlen, Director

Bay County, Department of Water and Sewer Cohort 3 Graduate

   Asset Management Readiness Scale (AMRS) Tool

icInfrastructure’s initial engagement with MIC was to develop a customized AMRS to help infrastructure owners in the state understand, measure, and advance their asset management proficiency. The MIC AMRS is based on Canada’s FCM AMRS with their blessing. In 2022, MIC performed trend analysis and benchmarking on aggregated and anonymized AMRS assessments. Results from this analysis allow MIC to develop the appropriate asset management resources, trainings, and tools to support Michigan’s communities.  

The excel AMRS tool is available for free download from https://www.michigan.gov/mic/am-champions/assess