I've touched on how I would characterise the role of a Facilities Manager, in my intro and my other blog moments, and I realise that in each indiviual article, I liken being in FM in various ways but all of them are true to me and many of us in this industry, whether we'd say it out loud or not would agree.
I've touched on the following -
1. What FM is to me.
2. Having mental health conditions and harnassing all that comes with them and flipping them into why it makes me cut out for this sector and vice versa.
This snippet into my FM journey are my thoughts on what is needed to be an effective FM, what works for me.
To be an effective FM is to be a magician, a chameleon, a jack of all trades.
It's office work, liaising with contractors, site visits, complaint handling, networking, researching, analysing data and the market, reading white papers, going to nationwide and sometimes global events, looking at best practice and epic fails (also known as lessons learned),
It's continuous improvement both in your work environment and as a person. It's making mistakes, building teams, tough decision making, being friendly but firm.
And to sum up the above, it's basically, always having your eye on the ball and everyone else's. I hasten to add that I don't mean micro-management.
My two pence (toolkit)
I have four esstential tools that help me do my job to the best of my ability, two of which are physical requirements and the other two being mental requirements.
CAFM - Computer Aided Facilities Management
I don't think, or at least I've never come across, a successful or effective FM function that does not have a CAFM system.
They are a must if you have any hope to achieve anything.
For me, I need to see where I've been, where we are now and know where I'm going. Styles and approaches may come and go but without this PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE bit of equipment, it doesn’t matter what we put in place, we'll be trying to run up an ice slicked mountain in a hailstorm without protective gear, in your underwear and plimsolls.
CAFM enables me to plan, advise, stamp out or solve, pretty much anything.
This is my data, measurables, I use this to track health & safety, reactive and preventative works, see trends, manage contractors and service level agreements (SLA's), track expenditure and report back, give me the granular details and a bigger picture of my portfolio, to name a few things.
With correct system(s), I can review success and identify areas of improvement on a single site or wider scale basis.
Processes & Procedures - SOPs
I'm not talking necessarily about a hard and fast rule book but you do need a guide.
My way of working is that, I don't enjoy being the only person who knows something, the pressure is way too high out there on that ledge alone.
FM is twists and turns, things do not go as planned 100% of the time, if it did we'd be replaceable.
Think of it like this, even self checkouts have people on hand, in the wings because technology is not enough.
So back to my point, even if it's a one page cheat sheet and you can't follow all the steps or you review it and think there may be a better way for the situation that you're in, that blue print, base, bullet point or full playbook is the starting point.
In effect, what I'm getting at is, that if my engineer is not around for whatever reason, the call out log, account manager details, customer number, service reports, gives me at least the starting point to get something done
" I don't enjoy being the only person who knows something"
Communication & Comprehension
This is a multiway street. For my fellow drivers or travellers, it's the M25 orbitual motorway roundabout.
From supplier/contractor to me. From me to the client, my teams, my stakeholders and an ongoing dialogue with myself.
FM, Workplace, Operations, User Experience, whatever you want to call it, is a constant, moving beast that MUST send the right message or a breakdown is inevitable and the damage can quite possibly be irreparable.
But! It can't be communication for communication’s sake, it has to be honest, clear and understood by all parties.
Attitude & Approach
You CANNOT, repeat cannot be a good, great, effective FM leader without the correct attitude! Someone out there will probably say that maybe you can but that certainly isn't the case for me and my tribe.
And when I say attitude and approach, I'm not saying you need to be a mother Teresa or Ghandi. You don't need to be super positive or full of the joys of Spring to do it.
My drive and attitude is nothing more than loving challenges and by being a self-professed weirdo who gets excited and pumped when something goes wrong. I get to use my natural talent and skills to fix it. I do root cause analysis and get to prevent it from recurring.
I'd also go as far as to say that those days, are my favourite days because I get to showcase who I am and how I operate, why I choose to show up every day (yeah, maybe it's a bit of an ego boost, upon reflection) because I'm calm under pressure, decisive, authoritative and innovative.
I get to shine.
Without any one of the above , I feel that I can't do my job to the best of my ability. And for me, being a FM professional is knowing how to take all of these tools held steadfast in my arsenal to train your teams, take strategy and build your vision to knock it out of the park.
Foot note
What my blog is, is easily digestible moments, snippets that come to me about my role in in FM throughout the work day, throughout my “zone out” moments and yes, even sometimes when I’m asleep..
This isn’t meant to be a comprehensive look into the magical world of workplace. these are nuggets, moments that when taken for what they are can click with people and give an understanding into what it means – to me – to be an FM.
This is who I AM and what I stand for.
This is what I bring and believe in
This works for me and may not work for others
This is my story, my truth and you may think it’s nonsense but you know what, I’ll sing it, even if no-one is listening, I’ve never been deterred before.
These are my moments and maybe, just maybe, they’ll help others discover theirs.
Add comment
Comments