FM Cheat Sheet: Five Tech Strategies That Will Make Your Team’s Efficiencies Skyrocket
Does your facility management (FM) team fall short of their full potential and struggle to keep up with tasks?
Fear not! Here’s a cheat sheet with five tech-driven strategies that will propel your team's efficiency to new heights. These strategies will help you transform your FM operations into a well-oiled machine—even if you're not a tech expert.
Harness the Power of a Unified Platform Approach
You might not realize it, but you are currently stuck in a software maze. Overcome the challenge of fragmented tools and systems by opting for a unified command center for all your O&M needs. This increases productivity, reduces errors, and eliminates the need to juggle between different applications.
By harnessing the power of a unified platform, your team can collaborate effortlessly, access information easily, streamline workflows, and make data-driven decisions. The result is a more efficient, productive, and effective facility management process.
Democratize Control
Create a plug-and-play environment to develop and deploy use cases on the go that require changes to the building systems—without the need for painful system integration. By embracing no-code tools and platforms, individuals with varying levels of technical expertise can actively participate in the creation and customization of digital solutions. This inclusivity fosters collaboration, promotes innovation, and breaks down traditional barriers to entry—allowing a diverse range of stakeholders to have a voice and contribute to problem solving. Quickly gain the freedom to operate and optimize without any limitations.
Move from Reactive to Proactive Maintenance
Moving from reactive to proactive maintenance represents a strategic shift in the way you approach asset management. Reactive maintenance involves addressing issues and performing repairs only when failures occur, while proactive maintenance focuses on preventing problems through scheduled inspections, preventive measures, and planned repairs. Deloitte's recent report shows that proactive maintenance can increase productivity by 25%, reduce breakdowns by 70%, and lower maintenance costs by 25% compared to reactive maintenance practices.
Transitioning to proactive maintenance offers several benefits. It allows organizations to anticipate and prevent equipment failures, it reduces downtime, and it minimizes the impact on operations. By implementing regular maintenance schedules and conducting condition-based assessments, potential issues can be identified early. This prevents costly breakdowns and extends the lifespan of assets.
Proactive maintenance also enables better resource allocation and planning. By having a clear understanding of maintenance needs in advance, organizations can schedule resources, personnel, and spare parts efficiently—optimizing productivity and reducing the risk of emergency repairs.
With this move, you are essentially moving from fire-fighting mode to future-proofing mode!
Get Your Single Source of Truth
Once you have adopted a unified platform approach, its easy to use that single pane of glass to access all the data you need to make strategic decisions. This becomes your single source of truth. The platform consolidates and centralizes all relevant data and information, offering a comprehensive view of facility operations to facility managers, technicians, executives, and other stakeholders.
By accessing this single source of truth, all stakeholders involved can make informed decisions, collaborate effectively, and align their actions based on accurate and real-time insights. The single-pane-of-glass approach ensures transparency, lets your team work towards common goals, and promotes a shared understanding of the facility's status, performance, and requirements.
Make Reporting Straightforward
Inadequate reporting capabilities can hinder your team's ability to make data-driven decisions. To address this challenge, invest in a solution that offers robust reporting features. A good reporting system should provide real-time insights into key performance indicators (KPIs), allowing you to monitor metrics, identify areas for improvement, and track progress over time.
By having access to comprehensive and visual reports, your team can make informed decisions, identify trends, and optimize their operations.
Final Thoughts
The FM function impacts everything from customer and employee satisfaction to sustainability effort and even business outcomes. When you build the entire function with tech at its core, strongly connecting systems, people & processes, you set up your team for success.