As we discussed in FM360’s previous article, The In-Your-Face Business Case , it is one thing to assemble your business case; it is another to sell it… Selling your business case (or any other proposal to management) starts long before you enter the meeting room to present your case. “Selling” is an on-going, active effort […]
Category: Facility Management
The In-Your-Face Business Case
After multiple postponements and reschedules, you are finally in front of upper management to present your business case upon which you have spent many hours to make it as bullet-proof as possible. It’s your turn, you’re on. You pass the packets around the table, thank them for their time, and start walking them through your […]
The 411 on TeleWorking (Part 1) – Why…
While teleworking may not be an option for many facility professionals, it is a growing trend that has significant impact on the assets they operate & manage. For example, in 2007 Sun Microsystems reported annual savings of $68 million in real estate costs, $3 million in reduced power consumption, and $25 million in IT expenditures […]
Getting an A-Grade at the C-Level
As facility professionals, we are pretty good at reacting in an emergency, dealing with difficult people, figuring out how to get a square peg into a round hole, doing more with less, and many other challenges that fly at us daily. However, the one key area where programs fail or struggle time and time again […]
Make a Negative a Positive – Using Failures to Gain Support
No, I’m not trying to teach you any “fuzzy math”; rather I want to talk about failures – yes, those things that blew up on us that we would rather forget. How many of you enjoy getting phone calls from the company president complaining that their office is hot? Or how about the breaker that […]
“Facilitopia” – A Brighter Vision for the Facility Industry
In speaking at the IBOA/Northern Rockies Chapter of IFMA’s 2nd Annual Facility Professionals Convention in Boise, Idaho this June, I shared my vision for the facility industry – I called it “Facilitopia”. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am not looking for facilities to be the new glamour career. The only fame we might get […]
From Boiler Room to Board Room by Brad Howlett, CFM
Let’s face it—the facilities management industry has been undervalued since buildings became more than shells. While facilities specialists and operators realize this, usually top brass does not. Buildings are believed to be static, boring, and simple, so why should they pay a business manager to run the facilities department when any ol’ janitor will do? […]
No More Firefighting – Planning for Success with a Capital Replacement Program
Published in the July/August 2014 issue of IFMA’s Facility Management Journal (FMJ), this article discusses the need for a Capital Replacement Program and provides simple steps on how to implement one. Follow this link to read more: No More Firefighting Sign-up for the FM360 Newsletter…
The Rule of 100/10/1 – Learning to Speak Bean
If the facility management industry is to ever move beyond being seen as just a cost center, then they must learn how to see and convey the impact facility departments have on revenue generation and the bottom line. There must be a clear understanding of the organization’s financials and how management perceives value. The facility […]
The Need for Capital Renewal Planning by Scott Leadbetter, CFM
Other than its employees, a corporation’s facilities are its most costly asset. In our roles as facility managers, we are constantly faced with how we can extend the life of this aging infrastructure. Taking its toll is the deferred and/or insufficient preventative maintenance processes, which accelerates the systems’ deterioration. Combine that with not being able […]