What is Facilities Management?

What is Facilities Management?
Facilities management is a complex and
diverse field, a Facilities Manager or “FM” has
the role of ensuring that buildings and their
services meet the needs of the people that
work in them and visit them. Facilities
Managers are responsible for services such as
Security, Catering, Parking and Cleaning and
ensuring there are suitable conditions to work
in. A Facilities Manager is crucial in supporting
the business by insuring that everything is in
place so that the workers can do their jobs safely.
A Facilities Manager will make sure the correct practices and processes are in place in order to
maximise efficiency. This might mean bringing in casual staff to help clean areas at a building or
site when a busy period is expected. A Facilities Manager might need to bring in casual staff to
cover in a canteen, to maintain a car park or to help with security, a Facilities Manager will move
quickly to act upon challenges in order to keep productivity at a high.
A Facilities Manager needs to be a good communicator, be empathetic and understand where
and when a change might be needed to reinforce the companies strategic goals. It helps being a
great listener so they can understand the people who work at and use the facilities in order to
better manager them and service them. They are creative with problem solving, compassionate
where the needs of the team are concerned, adaptable to the daily challenges they face and good
at data analysing finances, performance and service quality.
Training is key to this role, getting their teams to understand their company principles and
standards. Training their team to be vigilant with company machinery and equipment in order to
embrace preventive maintenance to protect the business assets and constantly monitor and
appraise team members to ensure they bring out the best in them while they stick to the strict
health and safety standards that are in place.
Keeping up-to-date with changing legal requirements, health and safety and fire safety standards
are crucial in order to keep team members and customers safe. Updating Facility information for
staff and customers to enhance their experience.
A Facilities Manager needs to oversee and agree contracts with providers for services such as
catering, cleaning, security and technology among others. Understand when to bring in these
service staff to support the business while considering the financial impact on the business.
Industry News
Interserve Group Limited has been awarded a contract worth £18.5 million per annum to deliver
total facilities management (TFM) services at seven of Landsec’s major retail centres across the
UK.
The international Support Services, Construction and Equipment Services group has delivered
soft FM services to Landsec, one of the UK’s leading commercial retail and property companies,
since 2015.
The four-year contract, which started in March, includes project management, engineering and fit
out services as well as existing service lines such as: cleaning, security and customer services at
Landsec’s sites in Oxford, Leeds, London and Cardiff