Editor's Viewpoint
Working your brand
After a couple of decades in and around FM you might think I'd be used to it, but I am not. Every time we look at brand perceptions I am surprised by the competition, by the numbers involved and by the diverse views on who the market leaders are.
Awards with legs
FM awards season is upon us, with the BIFM celebration due in October and the PFM bash following on in November. Those are the two big ones, and they always leave me with the same feeling: are they enough?
Facilities or workplace?
A growing contingent of FM professionals is championing a transition to the term 'workplace'. At the nucleus of their argument is a belief that this more accurately reflects the discipline as it exists today and would accord it greater respect.
Brands talk, and people listen
'Brand' is one of those ideas that can seem a bit too trendy for their own good. Of course this particular concept means something in the fast-paced and increasingly global commercial world; but what's it got to do with real life?
Where's the proof?
I am a marketer's dream. In the two minutes I wait for a Northern Line train to reach the platform at London Bridge Station, I will have meticulously dissected every poster in my view.
Power to the people
In recent months we've seen frequent declarations that FM is about people, not buildings. True, but this isn't news: FM has always been about people.
Confidence breeds success
Gaining in confidence is key if facilities management hopes to overcome many of the longstanding challenges that have blighted its development.
Can FM save us from the end of the world?
If facilities management is to have a stake in our future, what role can the profession play in shaping the world we will come to live in?
What does FM want?
An impending general election is an easy and obvious hook. Cue journalists from every sector to prepare new feature articles and comment pieces: 'what does [insert industry name] want from a new government?'.
Business Confidence Monitor: why you should join in
Confidence across the UK economy generally has fallen recently as businesses become more cautious about their prospects in the year ahead. Does that trend apply to the FM sector, too? It would be good to know.
Brave New Workplace
The future of working will be defined by the convergence between people, workplace and the mass of data this produces.
Changing times
So, Brookfield is setting out to conquer the global facilities management market. This is significant news: for one thing, it is evidence of just how grown-up FM now is as a business sector.
Shattering glass ceilings
The WIFM Conference has always had a penchant for empowerment. In its third year the event did not disappoint, bringing together a range of speakers to discuss some of the keys to overcoming adversity.
What now for the BFG?
For many, the announcement that the CSSA had decided to reverse its merger into the Building Futures Group will have come as a complete shock.
Changing of the seasons
The season of excess is almost upon us, but before we are permitted to give in to gluttony, it would be useful to reflect on the past 12 months.
Issues, trends, challenges and questions
In these times of change there’s a lot of truth in the notion that if you’re not moving forward, you’re moving backward. So how hard should facilities management work to shape its own future?
A framework for dreamers
Has an organisation so well versed in the intangible finally produced a tangible outcome? Simon Iatrou looks back at Workplace Week 2014.
Brand rankings: should you care?
The honest answer is no. But also yes: you should know how your business is perceived in the marketplace by both customers and competitors.
FM celebrates two of its stars
The BIFM Awards 2014 were more than a celebration of facilities management; they were also a celebration of two people who had a profound impact on the profession and made a huge contribution to its overall progression.
Looking younger
The more conspiratorial amongst us have always seen a streak of competition in FM, specifically in the jockeying for position and influence that may (or may not) be going on between various industry bodies.
Taking ownership
If facilities management has such a fundamental role in the workplace, why is it struggling to take ownership of this area?
The challenges of being in FM
I was recently asked for my views on the greatest challenges that face the facilities management sector over the next few years. How long have you got, I thought.
Which is the strongest FM brand?
Formed by philosopher John Locke in the 17th century and developed by the existentialists nearly 300 years later, there is a powerful school of thought that says what we perceive to be reality is, in fact, our own subjective construction of the world.
Getting involved
FM is a busy place: it would be easy to find yourself with too much to do. But there are three opportunities that you should consider adding to your action list over the next few weeks.
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