The Covid-19 pandemic is an unprecedented event in living memory. It has had, and continues to have, far-reaching impacts on individuals, our society, the economy and our industry. Many of those impacts have of course been negative; and the challenges implied by that, as well as by the long list of other changes we have been experiencing, will be with us for some time to come. On the more positive side, this does bring some opportunities, too, in terms of highlighting the possibilities of working in different ways, deploying new and appropriate technologies and finding ways to better use resources, for example. And, yes, there may also be some new business opportunities.

A key part of our role is to help provide the FM community with the news, information and insights needed to understand and manage the pandemic impacts, challenges and opportunities. You can access all of the relevant content on i-FM from this page. News, features and comments are shown in the boxes below and to the right. In addition, you can use our Search functions to explore the site for related issues. You can search the news by date or topic, for example ‘Covid-19’. Or you can search our full content on any keyword via our Search page.

This site hub aims to provide easy access to a range of resources for FMs. All suggestions for additional content are welcome – contact us anytime.

Next 24 Articles

Home-working: a success for most in financial services

Almost three-quarters of employees (70%) working in financial services rate their working from home experience as positive, according to a new survey from Deloitte.

Calls to couple pandemic recovery with climate challenge

KPMG, the advisory group, has joined growing calls on the government and business community to put the green agenda at the heart of economic recovery plans.

Return to work: employee experience gets high priority

A survey of HR professionals finds almost two-thirds prioritising employee experience more highly now than before the coronavirus outbreak.

Retrofitting workspace to meet new demands

The Covid-19 pandemic is causing us to rethink what is important for the workplace and how offices are designed, built and managed.

UK workers have mixed views on where they want to work

Rumours of the demise of the office are much exaggerated is the predictable conclusion emerging from research commissioned by the British Council for Offices.

Sodexo unveils support to help organisations adapt​

'Rise with Sodexo' has been designed to support clients in meeting health, operational and confidence challenges when reopening workplaces.

Honeywell offers real-time 'healthy building' solution

With the prospect of a return to the workplace nearing a reality for many, support strategies of all shapes and sizes continue to emerge from product and service suppliers.

Back to work: social distancing will be critical

A UK-based technology company providing workplace sensors, digital signage and data intelligence has launched a social distancing solution to support businesses with the phased return to work.

BESA warns on false claims

There is a lot of smoke and mirrors being used to drive demand for particular HVAC technologies in the Covid-19 crisis, according to the chair of an influential industry group.

Universities plan for an uncertain future

Living under pandemic conditions has split the country along numerous lines, one of the most recent being how to deliver education services.

Axis Group signs C-19 Business Pledge

The security, cleaning and front-of-house services provider is supporting the pledge's goal for businesses and universities to help employees, customers and the community during the pandemic.

Why hot-desking is the way forward

The government is wrong. Hot-desking is a good solution to get people back to work.

Compass launches £2bn fundraising

The food and support services group has released half-year results and at the same time launched a major equity fundraising initiative to cut debt and boost its finances.

CH&CO strengthens position through refinancing

The catering services group has completed a refinancing and fundraise with its existing lenders and shareholders. 

Employers plan cautious return

Most companies plan to take a gradual approach to bringing employees back to their workplaces as governments begin to lift restrictions tied to Covid-19.

Lockdown working: what are we learning?

Last week we launched a quick poll of the FM community, asking if people were looking forward to returning to their usual places of work. There's a lot of ambivalence out there, and the reasons for that hold some lessons for us all.

Sodexo introduces employee reward scheme

The company has announced that it will redirect funds from its annual bonus scheme to a special fund that will reward frontline staff who have worked through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Samsic calls for greater user engagement

The cleaning services provider is rolling out a programme enabling users to participate in real-time environment hygiene control in the post-Covid workplace.

myfm offers return to work guide

The specialist FM consultancy and interim management organisation has pooled the expertise of its team and its associates to produce a guide to preparing buildings for safe occupancy following lockdown.

Vacherin moves to mobile ordering app

The mobile ordering platform aims to bring operations in line with 'the digital age' and the needs of the post-coronavirus workplace.

Returning to the workplace: a matter of consent?

The subject of returning to work is on everyone's lips at the moment, following the relaxation in England of restrictions to control the spread of coronavirus.

Bellrock rolling out wellness app

The property and facilities management services company is deploying a new mobile app to track the health and wellbeing of its remote workforce during the Covid-19 crisis and beyond.

CIPD: three tests before bringing people back

The UK HR body says employers should not bring their people back into the workplace until they have taken all practical steps to ensure employees feel safe 

IWFM: people worry about coming back

As lockdown measures begin to ease, many UK office workers are concerned about going back to the office. But working from home isn't perfect either.