Category: Management & Leadership

Sparring Partners – At The Facilities Show, Birmingham, UK

I had the privilege of speaking at The Facilities Show in May. My seminar is based on a cover article I wrote for Building Operations Management Magazine called ‘Sparring Partners’ (email me for a copy of the article) and focused on the 3 ways we fail to develop a strong partnership with our service providers and what has to change in how we procure services, structure contracts and financial models and manage performance.

After all, it is critical to our success in FM to have service providers who are also successful and the old-school approach that is founded on an adversarial relationship that takes more time and energy than it should to manage, distracting us from strategic and business responsibilities.

Posted by Michel Theriault May 31, 2011

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IFMA Facility Fusion 2011 Panel in Boston – The Evolution of FM

Recently, I was invited to be on the panel at the opening session of IFMA’s Facility Fusion conference in Boston.

The focus of the panel was the ‘Evolution of Facility Management’, a topic I am very passionate about.

My recent business trips to the Middle East and Aftrica re-emphasized to me the need to develop Facility Management beyond its original roots of a very technical and tactical function into a profession that while still grounded in technical requirements, leverages strategic business skills to make a difference for the companies we serve.

It was a privilege being on the panel with the other panelists, all senior FM leaders. You can watch a video of the panel further below.

Posted by Michel Theriault May 15, 2011

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The Developing FM Profession: Middle East

I learned about the Middle East Facility Management Association (MEFMA) when I was in Abu Dhabi delivering a workshop on Strategic FM. (read what I said about FM in the Middle East)

At the time, I heard that they were developing a “Foundations in FM” course for local facility practitioners. Recently, they decided to provide a copy of my new book “Managing Facilities & Real Estate” to each participant in the course.

As a result, I decided to learn more about what MEFMA was trying to accomplish in the Middle East so I asked the Membership & Event Director, Sinead Bridgett, a few questions, which are answered further below.

On the subject about developing the profession, I’ve just returned from Abuja, Nigeria, where they have a strong IFMA chapter and quite a few FMP certified Facility Managers. I gave a short speech about the “Sustainable FM” at a chapter meeting and will do a future item on my trip.

Posted by Michel Theriault May 10, 2011

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Commute Times & Teleworking – Making the link

Yes, there is a link, and because of gridlock, the time is right for more alternate work arrangements at the office. Not to mention the high cost of real estate. There you go, two drivers (pun intended), one for the employee, one for the employer.

20 years ago, the Corporate Real Estate department I worked with was very progressive in trying different things for the company. We were implementing green initiatives, trying to get the occupants involved in reducing energy, investing in technology, implementing universal space planning and trying work share, hotelling and teleworking.

Unfortunately, some of those CRE initiatives didn’t work as well as hoped – they were simply ahead of their time. Costs hadn’t risen significantly yet and commute times were relatively modest, so making change where change wasn’t wanted was a painful initiative that didn’t create enough benefits.

In two recent ranking studies of international cities, the Economist 2011 Liveability Ranking and the Conference Board of Canada’s Scorecard on Prosperity 2011, there is an interesting characteristic at play. While both studies give give very different rankings to the same cities, a key characteristic for Toronto, Canada had an impact on its ranking, which were #4 in the Economist report and #8 in the Conference Board’s report.

Posted by Michel Theriault Apr 25, 2011

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Facility Management Magazines Listing : A Great Source for Information, Solutions and Ideas

Magazines are a great way to learn and to keep up-to-date with what’s happening in the Facility industry. Even if you can’t read every article, you are likely to find something you can use, and if you pass your magazine around your office, everyone will benefit.

Many have on-line content so you don’t necessarily need a subscription. Some are free to qualified FM professionals, some are association publications provided to members and others require a paid publications.

This is a fairly comprehensive list of magazines from around the world, directly from the ‘References’ section my new book, “Managing Facilities & Real Estate”. In my book, I also list associations and conferences.

The list is alphabetical and mostly includes magazines that deal with FM in general with a few that focus on specific facility types, such as hospital, retail or corporate.

Whether or not you’re in the specific industry or country where the magazines are from, check them out on-line and you may find useful information, ideas and solutions you can use.

If you know of others, even specialized magazines targeting suppliers and contractors in the industry (such as janitorial, plumbing, etc. ), please feel free to add them by adding a comment below with information about the magazine.