Top tips from people in your industry who have been there and done it!

Part Five - Improving your FM knowledge

It's difficult to give a precise top tip, because of the breadth of Facilities management. Know your facility down to every last nook and cranny would be one, make sure your H&S maintenance is as impeccable as can be would be another.

It is better to know a lot of phone numbers of experts in many subjects rather than trying to know everything by yourself.

Always be aware of the bigger picture and where Facilities Management fits into it... Facilities Management is a support function which is there to enable the continuous function of the customer's core business. Continuous review of service should be undertaken to ensure that support function is maintained and that Facilities Management is not disrupting or detracting from the core business delivery.

This can only be achieved by fully understanding what the customer's core business function actually is and the most effective way of doing this is work shadowing or FM / Customer forums. FM isn't all about running round putting out fires, it's more about understanding why fires start in the first place and putting planned measures in place to prevent them happening.

For cross-border FM: use the EN 15221 standards defining FM, its quality, processes, taxonomy, service level agreement. This standard includes the official European Space Measurement standard!

Practice makes permanent not perfect.

FMs MUST feel & know that they are being supported by their management.
FMs must know the business requirements of the occupants of the facilities that they manage and focus upon partnering with those occupants in improving the function of their business.

FMs must be provided with the capability to support their contractors and this means payment of invoices without delay.

FMs must have the availability to select and source from multiple contractors for the provision of services and have a method of establishing that value for money and services is provided.

FMs should not be lazy and expect the contractors to fund their deficiencies in management (a good/poor example is the requirement of some FMs for contractors to pay a fee to be on their selection database - this is fraudulent as well as lazy).
FMs must own the problems given to them until it is resolved to the reasonable and responsible satisfaction of all parties.

FMs must provide feedback to those who initialised a call.

Why not share your top tips? Send them to Liz Kentish the FM Coach coach@lizkentishcoaching.co.uk or call us on 01778 561326

Top tips from people in your industry who have been there and done it!

Part Three - Planning Effectively

Be flexible when planning, be alert when operating.

Always be aware of the scope of services you're working within and establish this with your client unit and customer base as quickly as possible.

You'll establish credibility far quicker with your client unit and customer base by demonstrating awareness of the scope of services and being prepared to say no, than agreeing to everything and then having to go back afterwards and explain that certain requests are out of scope and as such can only be completed at additional cost outside the standard charge.

Many FM Service Agreements run to hundreds of pages but your Commercial Management function should provide an abbreviated "What's In What's Out" document which can be used as a quick reference document in Customer Meetings to confirm the scope of services.

Share your plan. People, including clients, your team, your boss and your suppliers, need to know what you are planning. If you don't tell them, they won't be able to help you implement it.

Flexibility and multi tasking.

Want to share your tips with other FMs? Send them to Liz Kentish The FM Coach coach@lizkentishcoaching.co.uk or call us on 01778 561326 - 07717 787077

An exciting new role from 1 June

I am thrilled that from next week I will be taking over as Chair of Women in FM (WiFM), which is a special interest group run for the benefit of BIFM members (www.bifm.org.uk)

Our aim as a group is to promote women within the FM sector throughout the United Kingdom, to encourage them to join the industry, to develop their careers and to provide networking groups at which knowledge and ideas can be shared. All BIFM members, women and men, are welcome to join us at our planned forums throughout the year throughout the country. In order to meet as much of our target audience as possible, these are held in both the afternoons and the evenings.

People in the industry with experiences to share tell their stories at forums across the UK. The forums encourage open discussion around subjects that are pertinent to everyone involved and there is often the opportunity for a building tour led by the Facilities Manager at the venue.

Want to find out more? Email me coach@lizkentishcoaching.co.uk or call Liz Kentish The FM Coach on 07717 787077