Having efficient and smart facilities management is becoming more important with the ongoing automation of many industrial processes. Buildings are now smarter and technology more sophisticated. If you want to avoid interruption to your business, you will need effective management.
That is why facility managers are so valuable. Facility managers are the ones who make sure that the physical infrastructure of your building is operating smoothly. They are also the ones who are responsible for identifying points of improvement within your building to ensure better productivity and cost-effectiveness.
Why It is Important To Have Effective Facilities Management
Regardless of the size of your business, good facilities management is crucial in ensuring top performance. With effective facility management, you can expect that your business will be more adaptable, sustainable, and less prone to technical mishaps.
In the absence of a facility manager, you might find it hard to enhance the efficiency of your properties. Facility managers work to implement day-to-day inspection, organize the demand and supply of facility service providers, and may also directly oversee security, cleaning, visitor management, reception, room booking, and other sub-services within the building.
What Do Facility Managers Do?
One of the main roles of facility managers is to verify that your facility is running properly by conducting routine inspections and maintenance, both preventive maintenance and reactive maintenance.
Apart from that, facility managers are also responsible for guaranteeing that building users are happy and are getting the most benefit out of your facilities. Ultimately, you want to keep your facilities in the best condition to ensure a better return on investments.
Here is a non-exhaustive list of some of the things you can expect your facility manager to do:
· Manage contracts vendors and service providers
· Oversee staff
· Look for ways to improve business efficiency, cost-saving, and productivity
· Handle building emergencies as they occur
· Prepare maintenance reports
· Make sure that facilities comply with standards and regulations
· Oversee facilities management budget
· Manage renovations and restorations
· Assist with office relocations
· Assess what the facility might need and require in the future
What Makes A Successful Facility Manager?
The key factors that determine the success of a facility manager depend on a variety of skills and expertise. For one, facility managers need to be able to foster a good working relationship with staff, managers, contractors, suppliers, and service providers. They also need to be adept at leveraging technical knowledge as the tasks of facility managers are often complex and diverse. The ability to make wise decisions and use critical thinking to solve problems is also important. It’s also good to have relevant past experience as this will help facility managers foresee possible issues and resolve them right away before it gets worse.
Here some qualities required for good facility management:
· Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills including the capacity to transfer technical information
· Capability to multi-task
· Good time-management skill
· Ability to work well in a team and maintain a good relationship
· Procurement and negotiation skill
· Good comprehension of soft and hard service delivery
· Proactive
· Drive to convey consistent high-quality service
Effective facility managers must also be knowledgeable in technologies like computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS). Technologies like this help in boosting overall productivity, coordinate daily operations and lessen downtime.
Should You Hire A Facility Manager?
No matter the size and scope of your business, you should consider getting a facility manager to oversee facility management for you. The facility manager could be an in-house hire, or a specialized facilities management company.
Automating your facility management to help your facility manager is highly recommended. Companies that are struggling with internal facility maintenance will surely benefit from technologies like CMMS. It can take off some of the menial responsibilities from your facility managers so they can focus on what really matters.
