Many firms’ expansion and success can be traced back to various aspects of facilities management. These actions are necessary to ensure that businesses operate at their total capacity, essential procedures are in place, and employees are always working in an optimal environment.
Take your business to the next level with the appropriate FM solution.
People, places, and processes are part of facilities management’s purview, and the ultimate goal is to create a welcoming atmosphere for employees and increase the firm’s overall productivity.
FM specialists have a wide range of duties and obligations summarised here. A single statement can’t do justice to all that this industry entails or its ability to transform workplaces in ways that directly affect productivity.
As a result, we’ll go more into the numerous responsibilities of facilities management (FM) in this article and the organisational goals and roles they serve.
Getting a handle on the many responsibilities of facility management
It can be difficult to properly understand the whole spectrum of facilities management. We’ve broken this down into five main sections to make it easier to digest:
- Keeping and improving facilities
- Process simplification
- assisting others
- Keeping track of tasks
- Making use of new technologies
1. Ensuring that facilities are properly maintained and optimised
To begin, facilities are responsible for ensuring that the facilities they manage are in good working order.
Cleaning and decorating the workplace regularly to provide the greatest possible environment for employees, tenants, and customers and doing routine maintenance and reactive repairs are all part of this.
Classifications that are current and correct across all facilities are necessary for this. Without a sophisticated CAFM system to gather and store this data, it becomes increasingly difficult to track when they need to be serviced or replaced, preventing organisations from reaping the benefits of preventive maintenance.
As a result, FMs must be familiar with property layouts and know how to make the most of available space. Keeping expenditures in check and avoiding overcrowding in some areas is essential to the building’s efficient use (which is particularly relevant in a post-COVID-19 environment).
The maintenance and upgrading of facilities also include the requirement to locate and maintain partnerships with essential vendors and future planning for the company’s development over time.
Maintaining a well-maintained facility helps to ensure that:
- Servicing assets regularly helps prevent breakdowns and extends their useful lives.
- Any spills, blockages, or other issues can be reported immediately, prioritised, and addressed to safeguard public health and safety and create a welcome atmosphere.
- Any inefficiencies with assets must be discovered and corrected as soon as possible to minimise the financial impact they would have.
2. Processes are established and streamlined
FMs’ job is to increase the efficiency and predictability of the working day for everyone involved. Employees are expected to know what is expected of them in particular instances, so this FM function is designed to provide order to a sometimes chaotic work environment.
In the workplace, FM specialists can implement and maintain processes such as:
- Requests for work
- Signing in and out of employees
- Controlling the work of others
- Accomplishing a promise
- Greeting and registering tourists and visitors
- Managing the transport of management
- Control of stocks
- Practices in the post office’s mailroom
Facility Management (FM) experts must adapt and evolve their operations to keep pace with changing business and workplace environments. Analyse what went wrong and build a structure for dealing with similar situations in the future should they emerge.
3. Assisting those in need
A facilities manager’s primary responsibility is to ensure that the workplace is accessible to all employees. Employees who are happy and productive are more likely to stick around if they have a good work environment.
On the other hand, if your company has a bad culture, it will frustrate employees and hinder their productivity. It may also affect your capacity to attract and retain personnel over the long run.
It’s becoming more and more common for facility managers (FMs) to recognise this obligation and explore unique ways to differentiate their work while also contributing to its culture. It’s all about making the ‘customer experience’ better for everyone, from the moment an employee walks through the door in the morning to the moment they leave at night.
Providing FM services should not just aim to keep employees happy but should also seek to empower them to take charge of their daily objectives. As part of this effort, the FM team may use an app like our Adhoc Tasks app, which allows employees to report any concerns they find to the FM team.
Facilities managers aren’t just concerned with the here and now; they’re constantly looking for ways to improve the workplace for everyone involved, including employees, visitors, and even customers. They do this by sharing essential strategic data with the company’s top executives.
FM professionals have a lot of responsibilities when it comes to the health and well-being of their employees, including anything from desk and seating arrangements to climate control and water management.
4. Managing projects
FMs must have a firm grip on budgets and timelines if they are to perform their duties effectively. FM professionals are in charge of ensuring that projects, no matter how short-term or long-term, stay within budget and that every task is accomplished and recorded.
In addition to managing the work of in-house employees, a project manager is also responsible for supervising the work of outside contractors and subcontractors. It is critical to control costs that these organisations are on-site, properly licensed and certified, and precisely documenting their time.
- FM personnel can fulfil their duties using tools like FSI’s Contractor Portal.
- All the information a contractor needs to do their job well.
- Updating and properly administering a database of contractors
- Maintaining strict adherence to established security and safety standards
- Receipt of product updates and confirmation of task completion
5. Incorporate technology.
When it comes to facilities management, this article focuses on how technology is implemented in an organisation and connected to existing infrastructures.
As Concept Evolution and other CAFM/IWMS systems have evolved, this has become an increasingly significant part of the FM professional’s responsibility, as these solutions can affect facilities management goals. When it comes to implementing new technology, IT is usually in charge. However, FMs frequently have the last say in what technology is chosen.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is an example of this in today’s facilities management practices. Devices may now communicate with each other and send and receive data thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT), enabling a new level of interconnectedness.
A global network of devices, such as water temperature sensors or real-time climate control, can considerably improve the workplace and make employees’ lives more comfortable. Because of this, it is up to the FM managers to ensure that.
- You must know how to use this type of technology in your job.
- Ensure that the costs required and the benefits that the organisation will receive in return are in line.
- Instead of ignoring the innovation potential, embrace the possibility of change.
Facilities management (FM) has become increasingly dependent on technology in this digital age, and the ability to use this technology has become a critical function for the sector.
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