Facilities Management – The Front Line for Customer and Employee Experience

Like many traditional business roles, the face of facilities management has transformed over the recent years. Instead as being see as a services provider, facilities management is now being recognised – justifiably – in their role for their impact on employee engagement and client service. The quality of your facilities management plays a vital role in keeping your building full of happy clients and customers as well as keeping it operational and safe, playing a vital role in strengthening workplace culture, productivity and client experience.

Agile, Successful Businesses Want Experiences, Not Services 

For leading organisations, facilities management is not defined as a department that fulfils services – instead, they are on the front line of delivering exceptional client experience. This changes the focus from replacing lightbulbs, servicing air conditioning equipment or co-ordinating janitorial services to playing a strategic and vital role as a business partner, designing and delivering exceptional client and employee experiences. This includes an active role in:

• Analysing, designing and developing network capabilities and expertise.
• Creating a workplace experience that attracts and supports top talent and is aligned with a brand’s value proposition.
• Addressing the workspace as an entity that can strengthen company culture, enhance employee engagement, support productivity and streamline work processes.
• Support office space design and enhancement by playing an active role in providing critical statistics and analytics supplied by smart, interconnected building systems.
• Attracting and supporting high-quality tenants to your building.

How to Realise the Full Potential of Your Building’s Facilities Management 

For building owners, it’s critical to recognise this shift from compliance/service provider to leaders in providing a holistic and successful employee/tenant experience in order to realise the full benefits of attracting high-quality tenants. This means:

• Redefining the role and mission of facilities management to include new responsibilities and areas for improvement.
• Restructuring facilities management to include these specialists in your overall business strategy.
• Upgrading technology to smarter, integrated systems that empower facilities management to deliver in their new role, including smart HVAC, security, and lighting systems.
• Investing in facilities management training to help people entering or working in this industry to grow into their new role and develop these essential capabilities.

Jason Scholtz is the CEO at Envision Investments and a leader in the property and strategic investments industry in South Africa. For more investor tips and an insider’s look into the South African market, be sure to get in touch, keep an eye on this blog or visit http://www.envisioninvestments.co.za/.