Facilitate - January/February 2023 Full

FRONT DESK

VIEW POINT

KNOW HOW

SUPPLY SIDE

ONLINE

OPINION

A personal odyssey

IWFM CEO Linda Hausmanis shares her learnings from Anthropy in Cornwall’s Eden Project. tinyurl.com/Fac2301

Put IAQ at the heart of ESG

Poor indoor air quality is a debilitating issue in the office setting, says WindowMaster’s Erik Boyter. tinyurl.com/Fac2302

Strategic FM

Mark Chivers, Government Chief Property Officer, shares his thoughts on the Government’s new FM strategy. tinyurl.com/Fac2303

PEOPLE

NHSPS appoints director of responsible business Ethical and sustainable construction expert Dr Shamir Ghumra assumes the role. tinyurl.com/Fac2304

Elior UK appoints new MD of education & healthcare Jo-Anne Robertson has been promoted to the position, increasing female board representation to almost 70%. tinyurl.com/Fac2305

FACILITATE

RESEARCH

Green walls good for employees’ health

A Finnish study concluded that indoor walls with plants or other greenery attached to them can improve workers’ skin quality and the immune systems. tinyurl.com/Fac2307

Workers are not thriving in UK offices

Research paints a gloomy picture of the UK workplace as a demotivated world of insecurity, dogged by a sense of being undervalued. tinyurl.com/Fac2308

Hybrid workers concerned about IAQ

More than half of hybrid employees in the UK are worried about the quality of air in their work environments. tinyurl.com/Fac2309

Remote workers report feeling more stressed Stress is reported as being higher for home-based employees (82%) compared with office-based workers (66%). tinyurl.com/Fac2310

YOUR AWARD-WINNING MAGAZINE

Facilitate – the magazine and online news content resource of the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM) – keeps IWFM members and others up to date on all workplace and facilities management issues, ensuring that you are informed of the latest developments and thinking.

In 2019, Facilitate won Best Magazine (10-32,000 members) award at the Association Excellence Awards, judged by a body which assesses the media brands of trade bodies, membership organisations and associations. Also, our editor Martin Read took the title of Editor of

the Year at the 2020 MemCom Awards, as run by the association for membership communities. We are further developing our award-winning product for you, so feel free to contact us with any thoughts and ideas. Got a story? email editorial @ facilitatemagazine.com

Facilitate, incorporating FM World, is the publication of IWFM, the professional body for workplace and facilities management. For information on membership, qualifications and training contact us:

Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management

Charringtons House, 1st Floor South, The Causeway, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire CM23 2ER, UK

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EDITOR Martin Read 020 7880 7664 martin.read@facilitatemagazine.com

DEPUTY EDITOR Bradford Keen 020 7880 7615 bradford.keen@facilitatemagazine.com

NEWS EDITOR Herpreet Kaur Grewal 020 7880 8544 newsdesk@facilitatemagazine.com

SUB-EDITOR Deborah Shrewsbury 020 7880 6223 deborah.shrewsbury@redactive.co.uk

SENIOR DESIGNER Joe McAllister 020 7880 2747 joe.mcallister@redactive.co.uk

PICTURE EDITOR Claire Echavarry 020 7324 2701 claire.echavarry@redactive.co.uk

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IWFM members with Facilitate subscription or delivery queries should call the IWFM’s membership department on +44 (0)1279 712650.

Facilitate is sent to all members of the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management and is available on subscription to non-members. Annual subscription rates are UK £110, Europe £120 and rest of world £130.

To subscribe call 01580 883844 or email subs@redactive. co.uk – alternatively, you can subscribe online at www.facilitatemagazine.com/about-us/subscribe/

Editorial Advisory Board

Simon Ball, market director, EQUANS

Peter Brogan, head of research and insight, IWFM

Rob Greenfield, health & safety director, Avison Young Ian Jones, director of facilities, ITV

Dr Matthew Tucker, Reader in Workplace and Facilities Management, Liverpool Business School

Kate Smith, head of workplace & portfolio strategy UK, CBRE

Liz Kentish, managing director, Kentish and Co.

Simone Fenton-Jarvis, workplace consultancy director, Relogix

Average net circulation 11,287 (July 2019 to June 2020)

Facilitate (Print) ISSN 2752-5171 Recycle

Printed by Warners

COMMENTS

MAKE CHANGE HAPPEN IN 2023

“When will it end?” has been the common refrain in recent years, but the answer is much closer to home than you may think. Just look in the mirror.

As an individual, many factors are outside your control; as a workplace and facilities professional, the power to create positive change is within your grasp. After all, it’s when we focus on what we can control that change happens.

Our profession’s opportunities are fostered by the same challenges we share with business and society, such as successful sustainability outcomes, adapting to changes in building safety to prevent further tragedies, and unblocking the future-of-work impasse.

By focusing on social value to empower communities, you can brighten futures that are overcast with the gloom of the cost-of-living crisis. These challenges and more land squarely within your remit and spheres of influence.

As FMs, you have special status as the controller of key levers that drive organisational performance and the unique ability to bring functions together. With these capabilities combined, you can make change happen. That gives you remit, influence, and rare abilities.

The final piece of the jigsaw is having the knowledge and skills to deliver; to this end, we have consulted members on their needs to identify areas for investment in 2023 and will continue to develop our offer to ensure you’re empowered to meet the challenges ahead.

Another annus horribilis is behind us; together, we can make our anni mirabiles – but only if we take the chance to change.

MARTIN READ

From the editor

One impact that nighon three years of extreme economic and workplace uncertainty has had on organisations is of steady, linear progress in the pursuit of a gradually evolving set of corporate priorities being replaced by, as Radiohead put it in their now 22-year-old dystopian classic ‘Idioteque’, “everything all of the time”.

In 2023, organisations will continue to be assailed from all sides by myriad economic, environmental and human challenges, each touted as crucial to future success. And to address these challenges they’ll have more choices to make than ever before. What’s needed, then, are guidelines, tools and frameworks that can help decision-makers feel more comfortable that they are on the right path.

There is much disquiet about how the government’s way with rousing environmental rhetoric and strategy setting is not then matched with clear paths that organisations can follow, markets being left to sort it all out for themselves. Concerning Net Zero, many now bemoan what they see as a lack of political leadership or connection between policy pledges. Strategies are one thing, they say, practical ways to deliver on strategy aims are quite another.

We are fortunate, I think, that this sector is so blessed with enterprising individuals and organisations enthusiastically seeking to plug knowledge gaps. Standards can take you quite a long way, and it just so happens that we highlight the ISO 41000 series of FM standards in this edition. These can offer a cost-effective means of sustaining and measuring service quality.

We’re also talking in this edition about how the sector is coming together to create an accountable holistic carbon net zero strategy toolkit for FM decision-makers. There is no doubt that such a toolkit will prove an

extraordinarily difficult thing to deliver, such is the variety and scope involved. But in an increasingly loud world, it’s good to know that this kind of activity, with likeminded workplace and FM professionals and organisations working in pursuit of a common aim, is really happening.

MARTIN READ is the editor of Facilitate magazine LINDA HAUSMANIS is CEO of the IWFM

LINDA HAUSMANIS

What’s needed are guidelines, tools and frameworks to help decisionmakers

FRONT DESK

At the beginning of 2022 the worst of the coronavirus pandemic was starting to fade and the year looked hopeful. Health, wellbeing and cleanliness were predicted to be major issues for FM as the year progressed. 2022 certainly saw this sector begin to be taken more seriously, and recently the government published its own FM strategy (see pages 8-9). So, what might 2023 hold for workplace and facilities management?

Real estate

Alistair Craig, managing director at property management firm Anabas, said: “In 2022 businesses, heads of corporate real estate and FMs could only sit on their hands in terms of real estate strategy. We all witnessed the effects of Omicron in Q1, followed by the gradual return to the office and the demise of Fridays.

“So, while this year has been ‘wait and watch’, 2023 will see FM coming out of paralysis and will be driven by action. The pandemic is now endemic, so decisions will need to be taken on real estate strategy. Organisations must ask ‘What do we want our workplaces to deliver for our teams?’”

Craig acknowledges that 2023 “will also see recessionary pressures likely to affect many organisations, while cutting-edge technology will fuel organisations to act”.

He urges FMs to work with clients to “manage cost constraints and the smaller numbers of employees coming into the workplace with a ‘mid-week peak’”.

“They’ll also need to decide how to deliver value from that workspace during the bookends of the week when more people will work from home,” he said.

Solutions

Craig thinks “affirmative action, perhaps including a reduction in floor plate, leases permitting, will start to be taken” and “the type of fit-outs will likely

A FLEXIBLE FUTURE

What does 2023 hold for FM?

by Herpreet Kaur Grewal

change too. Focused, desk-based and Microsoft Teams work will happen more in people’s homes, so the workplace needs to be focused on delivering spaces that foster collaboration, are efficient and effective.”

He believes that from an occupant perspective, “service expectations will be more business-to-consumer rather than the traditional business-like expectations of the past”. Craig said: “FMs, particularly in locations like London, will need to ensure that the office really works for individuals spending time and the cost of a train ticket to use it. It must be the enabler for a productive experience, free from issues with AV equipment or meeting room double-bookings and guarantee a great day of collaboration for office teams.”

Hybrid working

Craig thinks that hybrid working “is here to stay, so FMs need to be flexible around it”.

“Everything we do is going to be demand-driven; if that demand peaks on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, there’s no need for the same resourcing of reception and cleaning operatives on a Monday or Friday. Security resourcing is, of course, a different issue.

“FMs will need to adapt to make sure that when the building is full on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, for example, they’re fully resourced to deliver a great office experience with everything working as it should.

IWFM’s 2023 focus: building safety, sustainability, data and technology, and workplace

Resources for the rest of the week should be scaled appropriately in line with a client’s hybrid strategy.”

Training and skills

At the end of last year, the director general of the Confederation of British Industry called for an expansion on “fixed-term immigration” visas. Tony Danker determined that a greater number of working visas would enable vulnerable industries to “plug the gaps” in their stretched workforce with skilled foreign workers.

When it comes to skills in FM Andrew Wood, chief executive of property maintenance firm DMA Group thinks “education is at the heart of the problem”.

Wood said: “Unless people are attracted in volume to FM from schools, colleges and universities we will not see a step change in the quality of what we do. And ‘FM’ means every element of the business from being on the tools to developing new technology to environmental innovation.

“Technology will make us more efficient and profitable for a while, but if we’re going to sustainably push FM up the hierarchy of respected, desirable professions we need structural change on the ‘people’ side of the equation.

“Ours is a complex world. To me, BIM is an amazing concept and a step in the right direction to solving complex problems. Hopefully, this sort of visionary thinking will go further, into government policy and ultimately into the curriculum.”

Building Information Modelling (BIM) Hazel Bedson, marketing and operations director, global provider of CAFM facilities, BIM & space management software at Service Works Global, expects BIM to “play a bigger role in the operational phase of building management”.

She said: “We’ve been talking about this for a while, but the building safety bill has

pushed this even further forward on the priorities list. I anticipate that the value of as-built buildings with BIM technology will be more widely recognised, as well as existing buildings being BIM-fitted.

“The building safety bill is not just for the seven-storey-plus high-rise buildings; everyone will see the impact of this new legislation. The value of BIM data as information management to drive informed decisions about buildings and their assets will deliver facilities that meet the needs of their occupants.”

She predicts “a digital transformation of the built environment in 2023”. Phrases such as ‘smart buildings’, ‘IoT’ and ‘digital twins’ have been the “technology buzzwords of the year”, she said.

Benson foresees that “we will start to see such technology more widely adopted in all areas of FM and workplace management, and not just talked about as a future premise”.

“As adoption of such processes and technology increases, so will available usecases which demonstrate their value to the industry. By allowing FMs to understand how this technology can offer real benefit and apply it to meet the specific needs of their building, huge impacts can be made across various industries and sectors.”

Sustainability

Unsurprisingly, Benson also believes that sustainable operations and supply chains will continue to dominate the discourse.

“Organisations are imposing greater sustainability agendas upon themselves, driven by the need for reduced emissions, soaring energy costs, and secure ESG programmes,” she said. “Many companies are tightening their supplier screenings and vendor selection processes to cut

through the marketing noise and seriously look at the environmental credentials of potential business partners.

“For FMs, this means greater insight is needed into asset performance, reliability, and repair/replacement decisions to minimise energy use. This will impact all areas where FM and technology plays a big role. An organisation’s sustainability credentials are increasingly being connected to its ability to win bids and retain its current customers’ business.”

Asset management

Others contend that asset management growth will be a shoo-in – a trend linked to sustainability, according to Rachel Houghton, MD at Business Moves Group.

She said: “Sustainability is at the top of the agenda for virtually every organisation, so companies are getting smarter about how they use and manage their assets, for example, through furniture management software. Moving towards the digitalisation of assets and away from traditional spreadsheets will be a big trend.

“More businesses will start to use asset management software, which can capture in-depth data including asset location, condition, age, colour and more. If employees are given access to this database, they can see what equipment an organisation already owns before going out and buying something new. For estate managers, they can determine what items can be refurbished, sold, donated or relocated. Sustainability is improved as equipment is given a longer life cycle.”

Workplace change management

Houghton expects workplace change management projects to become more effective. “Companies are trying to find a balance between offering individual desks and collaboration areas. The truth is that the workplace pendulum is always swinging, and as such the expertise of change management specialists will be much sought after. They can help businesses to find the equilibrium between offering focused spaces for work, and collaboration spaces where culture can thrive. Key to finding that sweet spot is clear and consistent communication with employees – before, during and after projects.”

Sustainability is at the top of the agenda for virtually every organisation, so companies are getting smarter about how they use and manage their assets

At the tail-end of last year, the government published a new Facilities Management Strategy for the first time.

The strategy sets out “a coordinated, crossgovernment vision for facilities management, setting the strategic approach and standards which will govern what good looks like and the quality of service which should be aspired to”.

It covers the period to 2030, and is aligned to the overarching timeline of the Government Property Strategy. This timescale reflects the extended horizon of many FM contracts across government. It sets out to improve the performance of the government’s estate of almost 140,000 buildings, which currently generates an annual FM bill of more than £13 billion – 18% of the total UK market.

Large FM contracts and their management arrangements are often more than five years in duration and full implementation of some aspects of the strategy will only occur as departments re-procure their FM services. Given current procurement pipelines, it is expected that all FM arrangements will be able to align with this strategy by 2030. The facilities management sector contributes more than £65 billion to the UK economy. Of this, around £13 billion comes directly from public sector procurement.

Mark Chivers, the government’s chief property officer, described the launch of the strategy as “a landmark moment”. He added: “For the first time, we have a cross-government strategy describing what excellent FM should look like.”

New government FM strategy highlights ‘critical’ role of the sector

by Herpreet Kaur Grewal

As has become increasingly apparent in a world which had to urgently get to grips with a global pandemic, facilities management has gained more significance in recent years that has perhaps led to an exclusive government strategy for the sector.

Linda Hausmanis, CEO at the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management concurs. She noted that “pockets of excellence in government have led the way in FM’s professional development”.

She said an FM-wide strategy is “a key next step

in enabling estates functions across the piece to deliver the competence for which government generally has a strong reputation”.

Hausmanis added: “The government’s first Facilities Management Strategy articulates the critical role that workplace and facilities management plays in achieving government’s estates objectives and delivering effective services for UK citizens. The institute’s own work is aligned with its important pillars – workplace productivity, sustainability and levelling up through FM’s

central role in driving social value; and IWFM is delighted to have been able to bring expertise to the strategy’s development.”

Underinvestment

The government acknowledged there had been long-term underinvestment along with “inconsistent and varied approaches” which meant many of its buildings had “deteriorated to the point where functionality was becoming affected”.

The Office of Government Property Function (GPF), which is a part of the

PERFORMANCE GOALS

Cabinet Office, said its FM strategy should ensure that government offices had a “positive impact on productivity” leading to better “recruitment and retention of talented people”.

“A whole-life asset management approach to maintenance can build value, reduce liabilities, and ensure longevity of the estate,” it said.

The strategy calls for all public sector organisations to produce a consistent asset register and be aware of the condition and maintenance requirements of each of their buildings.

Better use of data

It also promotes better use of operating data to support

procurement decisions, greater transparency around mandatory and statutory maintenance to support safety and compliance, and targets aligned to the government’s sustainability goals.

“Value is not cost,” said the GPF. “FM organisations need to understand what their users require and how to effectively manage and leverage data to improve customer service experiences. Maintenance choices need to account for where a building is on its life cycle journey and should target investment accordingly.”

Connectedness

The Building Engineering Services Association welcomed the strategy. The industry body created and manages the industry FM standard SFG20 –one of a group of organisations working with the government to standardise the way data is gathered, managed, and shared across project supply chains to improve life cycle costing, carbon assessment and digital-led maintenance.

SFG20 managing director, Kirsty Cogan said that there was a direct link between quality, well-targeted FM and better health, wellbeing, and productivity of building occupants. “This is not just about saving money; it is also about making sure people have a better experience in buildings,” she said.

Cogan added: “Many FM functions are out-of-sight, out-of-mind, which tempts

THE BRIEF

THE STRATEGY SAYS THAT BY 2025 IT WILL HAVE:

● Embedded whole-life asset management methodologies into all life cycle replacement and maintenance investment decisions.

● Implemented the FM standard FMS 002 Asset Data.

● Seen development of FM management organisations’ data analysis capability.

● Used the FM control and procurement processes to widen assurance across all government FM contracts.

building managers to cut back on them to make short-term cost savings, but the long-term financial and social impact can be catastrophic.”

She described the publication of this strategy as “a timely reminder of the importance of FM work, which contributes more than £65 billion to the national economy every year and plays a crucial role in improving working and living conditions for millions of people”.

Cogan added: “The way buildings are managed and maintained is a critical, but widely overlooked, part of dealing with the biggest challenges we face including keeping people safe and healthy, mitigating the impact of climate change and addressing energy security.”

THE OUTCOMES

RESULTS THE STRATEGY PREDICTS:

● A holistic approach to FM asset management enabling returns on maintenance investment to be maximised.

● Standardised and assured FM data and analysis enabling maintenance activity to be evidencebased and targeted on priorities where it is needed most.

● Assured facilities management contracts delivering consistent value and quality services to support operations and customer requirements regardless of delivery model.

The government estimates that delaying maintenance by between two and four years can lead to an almost doubling of the eventual cost. Currently, 61% of the government estate is graded as being in ‘Good’ or ‘Satisfactory’ condition, but annual running costs are approaching £22 billion. The GPF is charged with delivering greater value for money for the taxpayer and a more efficient and effective estate by ensuring FM expenditure is well targeted.

BESA technical director Graeme Fox, also said: “Lack of investment in FM leads to deteriorating assets, equipment failures and rising operating costs… With the current economic situation putting even greater pressure on budgets, rather than cutting back on spending in this area, an FM review is a quick and cost-effective way to identify energy-efficiency improvements and avoid spending on expensive repairs and replacements.”

For the first time, we have a cross-government strategy describing what excellent FM should look like

One of the most important issues of our times is how organisations create a low carbon, energy efficient and sustainable future for themselves and the estate they manage. To which end, empowering energy and facilities managers to do evetything in their power about power is important. And it was these professionals who gathered, as has become the norm in recent years, at the EMEX energy management event last November.

What emerged at EMEX feeds into what has emerged as aa new year’s rallying cry in this edition of Facilitate. As is recounted in our main features later in these pages, issues of strategy development and implementation, and the many challenges in meeting them, now trump – or are at least as important as – issues of technological capability or the ability to capture performance data.

EMEX delegates heard that the most significant hindrances come where there is a lack of leadership and joined-up visions – a problem exacerbated when it comes from government itself. Indeed, one speaker at EMEX pointed to the lack of consistency even when it comes to green policy implementation within politics.

Ed Gemmell, leader of the recently launched Climate Party, told EMEX delegates: “The problem is that the government can be good with setting strategies… but not with the levers to get there… there is a great fear of implementation.”

Gemmell was speaking on a panel session about the UK’s energy crisis. The lack of ‘levers’ meant that climate change as an agenda “lacked the leadership needed to really drive it forward”.

Government finds itself in the dock over Net Zero

by Herpreet Kaur Grewal and Martin Read

He added that core issues such as the refurbishment of housing stock, more environmentally friendly transport and more green heating methods, while “well on the way” in theory because of certain government pledges, were not part of any “coherent plan” to drive policies forward in a joinedup, collective way.

“What we need is real leadership,”

said Gemmell. “The technology is there, the metrics are there – but we need leadership.”

Lord Rupert Redesdale (pictured), chair of the session, concurred by adding that there was a lack of this understanding “in all political parties”.

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle, a life peer representing the Green Party, said the government

Government can be good with setting strategies… but not with the levers to get there

had “no clear vision” of how all its different green policy pledges connected. She called for ”system change not climate change” as this was what she identified as undermining the implementation of green policies.

Lord Robin Teverson, Lords spokesperson on energy and climate change for the Liberal Democrats, called the government’s

GOALS FOR 2023

OPPORTUNITIES FOR GOVERNMENT

UKGBC’s has identified what it says should be important government goals for 2023:

● An overhaul of the planning system to support net zero, with climate and nature improvement at its core.

● An end to building homes and buildings ‘not fit for net zero’.

● The forthcoming consultation on the Future Homes and Buildings Standard,

to be introduced in 2025, ‘must set a path to new buildings that are genuinely zero carbon’.

● A focus on fasttrack retrofit of UK homes. (‘There are almost no policies to encourage and support owner occupiers to decarbonise their homes and no national retrofit strategy to upgrade all the UK’s homes’.)

dependence on nuclear energy short-sighted. Speaking before the end of year announcements from California, he said “nuclear fusion is a form of clean energy in a way and it should be explored, but we should not rely on it [solely] for the future”.

Gemmell also called for energy managers to collaborate directly with parish and town councils to demand changes to energy policies. It is interesting to see so much coming from the machinery of government itself about the scale of the issue. Just weeks after the EMEX session, government was being told that it had made an ‘alarming lack of progress’ in decarbonising the built environment over the past year. The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has assessed progress since the government’s Heat and Buildings Strategy, launched in October 2021. UKGBC has compared the policies announced or in delivery against the policy recommendations made in its Net Zero Whole Life Carbon Roadmap for the Built Environment, the

scorecard analysis concluding that most of the government’s proposals or plans failed to deliver progress towards, or indeed even ‘actively hindered’, a net zero carbon built environment.

Policies for the UK’s buildings are piecemeal and not designed to drive the scale and pace of change needed, the UKGBC continued.

Current policies put the UK on track for only around half of the emissions cuts needed.

Policy to decarbonise nondomestic buildings has frozen and draft policy for new homes and building standards from 2025 falls far short, UKGBC concludes.

England’s planning system currently frustrates net zero goals, while the issue of embodied carbon represents ‘a huge gap in government policy’.

Bold and ambitious UKGBC’s view is that industry is ready and willing to take on the significant challenges in front of it – but that national government leadership to drive industry-wide progress is needed.

“Bold ambitious government policy to decarbonise the built environment is a huge opportunity for the economy and for green businesses, yet our analysis shows it is largely missing within the current government’s agenda,” said UKGBC chief executive Julie Hirigoyen.

“However, the new government has a chance to put things right and the next year is critical. The size of the prize is huge in terms of saved energy bills, energy security, a massive jobs boom, and levelling up and export opportunities. Stepping up action in this area is the definition of smart government and smart investment.”

Bold ambitious government policy to decarbonise the built environment is a huge opportunity for the economy

Greater collaboration and datasharing between office building owners and occupiers will be needed to achieve the country’s net zero goals, according a report by University College London for the British Council for Offices (BCO) outlining measures required.

Achieving net zero carbon emissions and managing the current energy crisis are focusing minds and investment on improving energy efficiency. Yet improving the energy performance of offices is challenging, particularly as 50% of the office building stock in the UK is tenanted – meaning there is little consistency even within single buildings as to how workspaces are designed and used. Only 12% of building professionals and office occupiers consulted for the BCO report believe that operational carbon targets are currently being achieved by those involved in designing and developing office buildings.

For the office sector to move from ambition to tangible action, there is an urgent need for robust benchmarks and verifiable data, as well as government requirements and incentives to support businesses’ ESG objectives and facilitate the transition to net zero.

Energy use measurement

The report calls for tailoring lease agreements to promote lower energy use and carbon emissions, known as ‘green leases’, as a potential solution to reaching net zero targets.

Currently, it is difficult for occupiers to measure carbon emissions accurately because targets for energy use intensity do not differentiate between different types of offices, and dysfunctional metering strategies do not allow for a breakdown of energy use between communal and occupier areas.

Improving performance

BEST PRACTICE

SOME OF THE MEASURES THE REPORT RECOMMENDS:

● Greener and longer leases, with office occupiers having more say over refurbishments;

● Greater collaboration and data sharing between building owners and occupiers;

● Sub-metering and the use of sensors to measure exactly where energy is used; and

The report states that retrofit is “an increasingly popular approach among developers but the works involved make it highly disruptive to any existing occupiers of a building”. But it says “careful phasing and use of prefabricated components can mitigate disruption on site – and contribute to a circular economy if designed for disassembly in the future”.

● Use of prefabricated, reused and recycled materials and furniture.

It is vital, the report says, to assess carbon emissions associated with the complete life cycle of a building to strike a balance between operational carbon and embodied carbon when refurbishing buildings: “a clearly defined division of funding responsibility for net zero improvements is also needed to avoid any doubt, or dispute, between building owners and occupiers”.

Ending wasteful practices

The report highlights an issue that needs to be solved: ‘Category A’ interior fit-outs (lighting and basic finishes such as flooring) being installed by the building owner and discarded by the incoming occupier in favour of their own bespoke fit-out.

Most office spaces would benefit from ‘Cat A+’ (plug-and-play) fit-outs for shorter and more flexible tenancies. Prioritising locally sourced materials with lower embodied carbon and using recycled, reused and further recyclable furniture can also support more environmentally friendly fit-outs.

Report author Dr Esfandiar Burman, associate professor at UCL’s Faculty of the Built Environment, said: “This report shows that greater energy and carbon accountability and more effective ESG frameworks can be achieved through greater collaboration between building owners and occupiers, along with data sharing and greater transparency.”

Richard Kauntze, chief executive of the BCO, said: “There is a clear desire from those involved in creating and occupying workspace to hit ambitious targets, but we need to see evidence of innovation and improvement which demonstrate meaningful progress.”

required to

workplace net zero targets

by Herpreet Kaur Grewal

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NEWS IN NUMBERS

300%

Increase in the rate of building retrofits needed each year – from 1% to 3% – to meet the 2050 decarbonisation targets in the Paris Climate Agreement, according to a report by JLL. Achieving this, it says, would cost around US $3 trillion in the office sector alone.

81%

Percentage of Generation Z workers feeling disconnected from their peers when working from home, according to a study of 3,000 workers by workspace firm Unispace. It suggests Gen Z values the structure, socialisation, and support that a physical office provides more than older workers.

Decrease in corporate real estate capital values across all UK commercial property in October 2022, according to the latest CBRE Monthly Index. Rental value grew by 0.3% while total returns were -6.4%. The news was worst in the industrial sector, where the decrease was -10.6%

62,000

Number of security officers that must be recruited, trained and licensed over the next 12 months if the sector is to keep up with demand, says the British Security Industry Association (BSIA). The figure takes into account 20,000 officers likely to leave the sector in the same period.

$111.6 BILLION 2 IN 5

The size of the global energy management system (EMS) market by 2030, with growth averaging 13% per annum fuelled by the number of smart buildings, general growth in IoT linkages and soaring demand for real-time visibility of energy use (Data: Grand View Research, Inc.)

10.72 MILLION SQ FT

Amount of available high-grade office space in London in the last quarter – its lowest level since late 2010, at just 41% of the total supply. The data from real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield says that this is despite demand for such space having “rocketed”. 10-30%

The percentage global decrease in energy used for heating, cooling and appliances, as measured per square metre of floor area in commercial buildings relative to 2015 levels, by 2030, according to the United Nations’ latest Emissions Gap Report.

Total revenues at Compass Group for the year ended 30 September. The group says its first-time outsourcing market remains buoyant, accounting for about 45% of new business wins.

Number of higher education (HE) and further education (FE) institutions (42%) either not confident or not knowing whether they will meet their decarbonisation target, in line with the government’s goal of a 78% reduction in emissions by 2035 compared with 1990 levels.

BUILDING SAFETY ACT

2023 focus

The New Year’s challenge will be focusing on key developments across building safety, sustainability, data and technology, and workplace

2023 will be the year for implementing the Building Safety Act 2022. It will also be the year when we expect the future-of-work conundrum to stabilise with a greater understanding of the paradigm shift from the Victorian workplace mentality to postpandemic working approaches.

We touched on expectations for building safety in the last edition; suffice to say, golden thread developments and supporting members’ competence will be central.

In sustainability, there are two overlapping areas. Scope 3 work by the

SFMI, which we are supporting, will deliver a stress-tested framework – with accompanying tools – for measuring and reporting FM Scope 3 emissions. This is important because further to offering an industry-wide measurement tool, the data will form an important evidence base underlining FM’s key role in reducing the 27% of global emissions attributable to building operations.

We have known for years that FM is pivotal to delivering net zero; now the data will prove it and help members to have more influence.

EQUITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION FOCUS GROUP

KEY CONTACTS

Sofie Hooper Head of Policy

● 2023 will build our voice and support for colleagues affecting greater inclusion, diversity and equity, including through greater collaboration with other groups.

BUILDING SAFETY ACT

● Building registrations need to be completed by

October 2023 for all higher-risk residential buildings. Secondary legislation is expected around February.

BUILDING SAFETY ALLIANCE

● Special interest groups are working on industry tools for the golden thread, competence requirements for trades and a certification scheme.

It’ll be important for stakeholders to engage with the new energy-efficiency task force, due to be launched alongside plans to bolster the UK’s energy resilience. All too often it’s assumed that the basics of the energy hierarchy are embedded across our sector, but 2023 will be about ensuring that the assumption is true.

Driving ambition in the UK’s policy while supporting our members will be key for IWFM. Additionally, ensuring outcomes are embedded in social value frameworks and contract KPIs will be an important step forward.

Actionable data is central to FM: if we can’t measure it, we can’t improve it. Helping the sector towards digital maturity is critical for compliance across the FM’s remit. With increasing legislative requirements, we need to optimise investment across the FM portfolio and use it to improve workplace productivity and sustainability outcomes. The policy work in this area will be complemented by more guidance.

Skills make up another central pillar. Organisations’ talent strategies for the short, medium and long term will remain challenged. For policy, this means engaging with the recently announced skills reform, which sees Sir Michael Barber collaborate with the chancellor and the education secretary.

While pushing for a more integrated approach for labour market solutions, we also have an ongoing role in making FM a ‘Career of Choice’. Making FM more attractive is also about ensuring that it’s inclusive and diverse; equity needs to be real, not a tick-box exercise. The EDI Focus Group will continue its important role, raising awareness across the membership and the profession.

SCOPE 3 EMISSIONS

GUIDANCE PROJECT

● The SFMI standardised Scope 3 emissions measuring project will deliver data showing the impact of FMs.

FIRE SAFETY (ENGLAND) REGULATIONS 2022

● These regulations contain information requirements, including secure data

boxes, enforceable from 23 January.

NEC CONTRACTS

● Two more practice notes are due soon: TUPE and asset data.

GET

INVOLVED

● IWFM’s policy work is informed by members’ priorities. Share your views at: policy@iwfm.org.uk

FACILITY MANAGEMENT STANDARDS

OVERARCHING STANDARD FOR FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

Benefits of BS EN ISO 41001

● It is based on the ISO high level structure (HLS) that brings a common framework to all management systems. Aligning different management system standards brings greater efficiency and effectiveness. That’s why BS EN ISO 41001 is commonly integrated with asset management BS EN ISO 55001, health and safety BS EN ISO 45001 and environment management BS EN ISO 14001.

● It is the international standard for a facilities management system. It provides a framework to develop, implement and maintain effective facilities management across different sectors worldwide.

● It helps you recognise the scope of your responsibilities and create a management

structure, with appropriate resources to fulfil the needs of your stakeholder.

● It raises the profile of facilities management as a profession and recognises the value it delivers as part of your organisation’s strategic direction.

● In response to the growing demand for scalable facilities management services, it helps facilities management providers ensure consistency when increasing their capability on a global scale.

● It provides a systematic approach, which requires you to continually review your service delivery and assets to deliver effective operations, minimise unnecessary cost and derive tangible value for your business.

RECOMMENDED

BS EN ISO 41001:2018 FACILITY

BS EN ISO 9001:2015 Quality management systems. Requirements

Nick Blake recently took over as chair of the British Standards Institute’s FM steering committee, FMW/1. And as economic pressures see the C-suite’s growing acceptance of FM’s value, the adoption of a standards-based approach to facilities service and project management is back in the spotlight. Martin Read reports

Aforthcoming systematic review of The British Standards Institute (BSI)’s ISO 41001 series of FM standards is due to commence in April this year, offering an opportunity for the sector to give its feedback . To which end, and to bring potential users up to speed with its FM offerings, the BSI has published an infographic detailing what’s available; turn

ACQUIRE SPACE

BS EN ISO 41011:2018

Facility management. Vocabulary.

BS EN ISO 41012:2018

Facility management. Guidance on strategic sourcing and developing agreements.

BS EN ISO 41014:2020

Facility management. Development of facility management strategy.

DESIGN SPACE

BS 8536:2022 Design, manufacture and construction for operability. Code of practice.

BS EN ISO 41018:2022

Facility management. Development of a facility management policy.

the page to see it, or see the link to the online version at the end of this piece.

In one sense, the review is itself an advertisement for the standards, showcasing how a regular reassessment is built in to ensure ongoing applicability. Not that such a review should be needed to point out why now is a good time to buy into what standards can bring – because times are changing, and with them the status of FM within organisations.

“I think FM is getting more ‘ear time’,” says Nick Blake, newly in post as chair of the BSI’s FMW/1 group steering committee.

“The voices of FMs are starting to be heard a bit more. We’re not just the oily people in the basement or on the roofs anymore;

facilities managers are now taking their seats on organisational boards. We are in a new era, and this is a really great time to capitalise on it and do what we can do to support what really is a key industry.”

New year, new standards focus 2023 could prove an important year for ISO 41001 FM standards. For Blake, there are signs that the historic focus on newbuild capital investment projects at the expense of efficiency-focused operational projects has altered significantly, and with it any previous ambivalence to the use of standards. Bluntly, there is more willingness to accept, and curiosity about the process surrounding life cycle costing, an associated demand for a more structured approach to facilities decision-making and, by extension, the potential for standards to

CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS

CONSTRUCT SPACE

BS 8536:2022

Design, manufacture and construction for operability. Code of practice.

BS 8572:2018

Procurement of facility-related services. Code of practice.

PRE-OCCUPATION STANDARDS

FIT OUT SPACE

BS 8572:2018

Procurement of facility-related services. Code of practice.

BS EN 15221:2011

Facility management. Area and space measurement in facility management.

BS EN ISO 41018:2022

Facility management. Development of a facility management policy.

OCCUPATION STANDARDS

MOVE INTO SPACE

BS 8892:2014

Transition management of facility-related services. Code of Practice.

inform and underpin performance.

By way of example, Blake talks of the use in construction of polypipe over traditional copper piping; a saving at the specification stage perhaps, but a potential maintenance costs nightmare after only a few years of operation. Similar might be said about air handler unit specification –“you may save a few pennies now, only to cost a whole load in operations later”.

Organisations rocked by the pandemic, aware of the fragile economic sustainability of their estates and now tasked with new environmental sustainability targets, are beginning to take a far more considered view of such arguments. And what follows is that the use of ISO standards – as a way of introducing a greater consistency into such decision-making – becomes a practical consideration.

“The fact is that we are now much more aware of ventilation, for example, and the impact it has on our health,” says Blake. “So these standards can help people to understand that this short-term decisionmaking is exactly that. You need to be focusing on that long-term approach.”

It’s a mentality change, says Blake, with the government’s welcome adoption of the phrase ‘whole life asset performance’

important in getting the message across.

Blake believes the BSI’s FM standards can typically get an organisation “70% of the way to where they need to be in fixing their problems. They really are a way of sharing best practice in as accessible a way as possible”.

Now an associate director at Gardiner & Theobald, Blake was previously principal FM consultant for BSRIA, where the

“These standards can help people understand that this short-term decision-making is exactly that. You need to be focusing on the long-term approach”

MANAGE SPACE

BS 8210:2020 Facilities maintenance management. Code of practice.

BS 8544:2013 Guide for life cycle costing of maintenance during the in use phases of buildings.

BS 8587:2012 Guide to facility information management.

BS EN 15221-3:2011

Facility Management. Guidance on quality in Facility Management.

BS EN 15221-4:2011

Facility management. Taxonomy, classification and structures in facility management.

BS EN 15221-5:2011 Facility management. Guidance on facility management processes.

PD ISO/IEC 17021-11:2018 Conformity assessment.

Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems. Competence requirements for auditing and certification of facility management (FM) management systems.

REVIEW SPACE

BS 8210:2020 Facilities maintenance management. Code of practice.

BS 8544:2013 Guide for life cycle costing of maintenance during the in use phases of buildings.

BS EN 15221-7:2012 Facility management. Guidelines for Performance Benchmarking.

LEAVING SPACE

BS 8892:2014 Transition management of facilityrelated services. Code of Practice.

government’s Soft Landings agenda was an important area of process development. He believes what’s needed to go with a culture of standards use within the sector is the type of openness between parties that has been difficult to cultivate in the past.

“We in our industry can be too good at siloing our information, and solving that is 80% culture and 20% process. It’s about an openness to sharing, be it about a mistake or a brilliant idea – that honesty and sharing and pushing everyone forwards rather than dragging everyone back.”

Standards remain ‘just’ guidance, even though some can be referenced in primary and secondary legislation.

“But being guidance, they’re optional. So what I’d like to do is raise the awareness that they are a good option,” says Blake. And an option that can be cheaper to deploy than other proprietary standards, says Blake,

who is keen to emphasise the applicability of the existing 14000 series and the pipeline of further new standards to be published in the future.

“There are digital standards being put together on things like machine readability, data analytics and how to deal with the vast amount of information that can bring about,” says Blake.

Zero tolerance

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT STANDARDS IN DEVELOPMENT

BS EN 15221-9 Facility Management –Principles and processes.

BS EN ISO 41015 Facility management –Influencing organisational behaviours for improved facility outcomes.

PD CEN ISO/TR 41016 Technology in facility management – Scope, key concepts and benefits.

BS EN ISO 41017 Facility management –Guidance on emergency management of epidemic prevention in the workplace.

PD CEN ISO/TR 41019 Facility management –The role of FM in sustainability and resilience.

ISO/TR 41030 Facility management –Existing performance management in facility management organisations – State of the industry to the FM standards in development.

IWFM is a nominating organisation for the BSI’s FMW(1) Committee. You can find details of all of the ISO FM standards by scanning the QR code above.

Blake’s predecessor as FMW1 chair, Stan Mitchell, had expressed frustration that the government was not itself promoting the value of BSI standards. For Blake, Net Zero and the energy crisis is helping to bring the concept of a standards-approach to both building and operation into the open.

“What’s happened in the last few months is that people are starting to look for ways of quantifying it [Net Zero],” says Blake. And refurbishment of buildings, as a way of tamping down levels of embodied carbon, offers another opportunity. Ultimately, Blake’s message is that the many challenges of 2023 could have a standards solution.

“If you are looking to make a difference – and everyone is tightening purse strings at the moment – it genuinely is a really good way to go about that. You don’t have to make a big investment. There are other assessments you could go through, but just following the standard, and the guidance that’s in there, will get you to where everyone else is.”

BRINGING SUSTAIN INTO FOCUS

With a tough business year ahead, the role of facilities management as ground-up facilitator and senior influencer of net zero carbon strategies is set to come under intense pressure. IWFM is stepping in, seeking to help FMs to develop holistic strategies that can bring greater clarity to their organisations’ sustainability objectives. Martin Read reports

uch is the scale of the Net Zero challenge, and with it the depth of our current economic malaise, that it can be easy to baulk at the magnitude of the sustainability project roadmap ahead. When renewable energy projects are delayed, ironically because organisations are diverting funds to cover the rise in energy bills, it could be easy to become defeatist.

So in a sea of often uncomfortable statistics, it should be noted that the UK has cut emissions by 44% since 1990. That kind of positive message is easy to ignore – and now, as we enter 2023, we should also not be ignoring the many ways in which the FM function can make a genuine contribution to corporate sustainability goals.

For many, however, it’s a question of where to start and what tools to use. In November 2022, IWFM hosted a workshop event – in association with its partner Inenco – which served as part of an exercise to deliver an accountable holistic carbon net zero strategy toolkit for FM decision-makers. The aim of such a tool is to help FMs build holistic strategies, providing tools and insight on how to accelerate of commence their net zero journeys. It’s an initiative that recognises the extent to which FM plays a unique role within organisations, making the function pivotal in developing a bold, yet pragmatic approach.

The catalyst for this initiative was the publication of IWFM’s two most recent sustainability surveys. In 2021, survey findings suggested a gap between intent and action in the tackling of net zero; a lack of targets, of necessary skills, insufficient data and of practical,

accountable sustainability strategies for FM decision-makers. In 2022, the focus was on setting targets, and there is a clear issue emerging of organisations needing to underpin their own commitments with proper roadmap targets and strategies to actually achieve them.

This is slow progress given that the UK was the first major economy to commit to a legally binding target for net zero carbon emissions by 2050. There are both regional variations (some cities such as London, Edinburgh and Birmingham are pledging to get ahead of that 2050 target) as well as sectoral ones (see box, ‘Education’s Net Zero failings’) that will affect the speed at which these challenges are addressed.

Other reports illustrate a sluggish response to the problem, at odds with the general tenet of the rhetoric. In its 2022 Sustainability Report, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors collated sentiment from almost 4,000 surveyors across commercial and construction sectors globally (with 1,200 from the UK); this showed some improvement in the push for sustainability over the past year, with demand for green buildings continuing to rise – but also that there had been “little or no change in some important areas in the past 12 months”.

‘Retrofit revolution’

One theme to emerge in 2022 was the growing potential for retrofit in the light of greater awareness about the cost of embodied carbon through construction.

Deloitte recently claimed that it expects refurbishment of building stock to continue rising up the corporate agenda while developers wait on greater clarity concerning net zero targets and the legislation to support the commercial case for net zero development. Tenants, suggest Deloitte, are increasingly seeking better-quality accommodation with more demonstrable ESG credentials, and that means developers are focusing increasingly on the refurbishment of existing stock as a means of addressing “stranding risk” (ie, those assets suffering unanticipated or premature writedowns, devaluation or conversion to liabilities – increasingly the cost of poor environmental performance).

Real estate consultant JLL has also projected that the pace of redevelopment and repurposing of office stock will need to double to ensure 2050 emission targets are achieved. “We will require”, said

NET ZERO LESSONS TO LEARN

One sector where there is a clear connection in the sustainability messaging from facility to end-user is higher education, where research from law firm Shakespeare Martineau and supported by planning consultancy Marrons was recently published. This bracketed 42% of universities and higher education organisations as either not confident or unsure about whether they will meet the government’s goal of a 78% reduction in emissions by 2035 compared with 1990 levels.

As part of the Building a Green Campus – what’s stopping institutions report, the firm surveyed more than 130 FE and HE representatives and 1,000 of those aged 16 to 19 planning to apply to college or university. Interestingly, researchers accepted that there was “no sector-accepted definition of what a green campus is”, and sought to provide a standardised definition of what one might be. Three pillars were established: the importance of measuring and reporting on energy consumption;

KEY CHALLENGES

THREATS

Multi-tenanted buildings

Any variety in tenant attitudes to Net Zero could stymie (for example) carbon reduction projects (however, see ‘Reputational Risk’, below).

Benchmarking

The lack of a consistent or uniform measurement framework makes sector benchmarking difficult; it also makes it difficult to hold people to account for any statements they make.

Competing technologies

There may be too many proprietary technologies or indeed proprietary standards,

again making it difficult for the creation of a widely accepted form of benchmark.

Scope 3 reporting

The complexity inherent in calculating Scope 3 emissions, and a potentially disproportionate impact on smaller suppliers, is seen as a particularly important challenge to overcome.

Shortened leases

Reductions in lease length mean tenants have less incentive to invest in a building that may require a great deal of investment to become Net Zero ready; many building owners still only invest with money raised through service charges.

OPPORTUNITIES

FM’s organisational ‘reach’ Facilities managers’ connection to the operational front line puts them in a unique position to report and influence building user behaviour, reducing carbon usage in the first place.

‘Gamifying’ the net zero frontline

Retrofit realities

Increasingly, organisations will be asked “what’s wrong with the building you have now?” as the true cost of embodied carbon in the construction process becomes apparent. FM’s role in retrofits could be crucial.

Reputational risk

As new standards take hold and customers put firmer rules in place about the minimum environmental standards they expect from their supply

der

Another key role for facilities managers can be in the creation of competition between building users in order to reduce energy demand, with behavioural change amongst building users still seen as one of the biggest challenges to overcome.

chain, the potential for firms to be isolated for insufficient attention to Net Zero detail is likely to grow.

SECTOR IN FOCUS

working with the community; and including sustainability

within the course curriculum.

Smita Jamdar, head of education at Shakespeare Martineau, said: “Given how important sustainability is on the ESG agenda, it’s worrying to see that so many institutions are predicting to fall short in meeting their decarbonisation targets and that there are several common issues they’re facing.”

Key aspects holding institutions back from becoming a green campus were detailed as follows:

● Funding or investment (77%)

● Delivery of campus-wide renewable energy (42%);

● Resistance to change within the institution (31%);

● Expertise or knowledge within the institution and its partners (28%); and

● Lack of collaboration between parties across the institution (25%)

● Leadership buy-in

● Age of current buildings

Sustainability is also important to prospective students. Around threequarters said they’d be influenced by:

● Use of green energy to power campus buildings;

● Sustainability being an important part of learning, teaching and

research; and

● The institution factoring in climate change in all decisions.

Seven in 10 (69%) prospective students are worried about climate change and 79% want institutions to have clear strategies to address it. There are calls in the sector for the standardised carbon emissions reporting framework devised by the Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education (EAUC) to be mandated. The report also recommends that sustainability be at the forefront of governance and vice-chancellor (VC) priorities, becoming core to VC reporting and strategy, as well as increased transparency and collaboration between institutions and partners such as lenders, lawyers and consultants.

“The solutions to becoming a green campus lie in cross-institutional activities, such as leadership and management, teaching and learning, research and innovation, and services and facilities,” said Jamdar. “These will be challenging to coordinate and implement,” he accepted, but would “offer a common, cohesive goal for the whole institution to work towards. Collaboration between departments and teams is always going to be more impactful than siloed approaches to change implementation.”

Emma Hoskyn, head of sustainability at JLL UK, “a retrofitting revolution if we are to achieve our targets and reduce emissions. The UK needs to exceed a retrofit rate of 3% of current stock per year to meet the 2050 target. We also need to be aware of the quick wins we can make; upgrades to fittings and more sophisticated controls can cut electricity bills by a quarter.”

Developing the Toolkit

With so many indicators suggesting significant change in the attitude of investors, owners and operators to the Net Zero landscape, there is value in the development and use of an accountable strategic sustainability plan.

“Our role as an institute is to support our members with driving the change,” says IWFM policy director Sofie Hooper. “We are doing a range of things, including the development of guidance on dedicated topic areas. And now, following on

from our sustainability surveys, we are partnering with Inenco to develop the kind of toolkit – highlighted as a knowledge gap by our members – to develop those holistic strategies that support our members to realise their full potential.”

In support of this aim an IWFM event involving representatives of client organisations, service suppliers and managing agencies, sought to tease out the type of support FMs will need to develop holistic strategies in which they can realise organisational sustainability objectives.

Scientifically speaking

Quick to emerge from the discussion was the value of using science-based targets within the service supply chain. This way of working means Scope 1 and 2 emissions are built in, but routinely mentioned at the IWFM event was the complexity inherent in calculating Scope 3 emissions, something recognised as one of the most important yet

NUMBERS

PIVOTAL PERCENTAGES 39%

The amount of carbon dioxide emissions that the built environment accounts for – a figure that rises to nearly 80% in major cities such as London

3%

The minimum retrofit rate of current building stock necessary per year to meet the UK’s Net Zero 2050 target, according to JLL

25%

Cuts in electricity bills that upgrades to fittings and deployment of more sophisticated building controls are set to achieve 45%

RICS survey contributors in the UK reporting a ‘modest’ increase in investor appetite for green/sustainable buildings over the past 12 months – 5% higher than the global average 27%

9%

Operational

emissions within the built environment, seen as where facilities management can have a really significant impact

The UK government is the largest landowner in the UK, with the public sector estate accounting for approximately 9% of building emissions

LOW-COST STARTING POINTS

A report produced by University College London for the British Council for Offices, informed by more than 100 office occupiers and building professionals, outlined several measures –described as ‘relatively low-cost’ – to reduce their workplace carbon footprint.

● Greener and longer leases, with office occupiers having more say over refurbishments;

● Greater collaboration and data sharing between building owners and occupiers;

● Sub-metering and the use of sensors to measure exactly where energy is used; and

● The use of prefabricated, reused and recycled materials and furniture.

difficult challenges to overcome. Growing insistence from larger organisations that their supply chains report on Scope 3 emissions is putting pressure in particular on SME suppliers; both the need for a commonly accepted measurement methodology as well as a sensitive attitude to the difficulties SMEs will face in complying with Scope 3 demands were seen as important issues.

It should be noted here that several FM providers are aligning themselves with the methodology for calculating Scope 3 carbon emissions in the FM sector that is currently under development by the consultancy Acclaro through its Sustainable Facilities Management Index (SFMI). The ambition is for this methodology to become an industry standard; RICS and the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment have joined IWFM as part of the project, acknowledging that a sector-wide solution is needed.

BAM FM, Bouygues and Skanska are already partners in the project; Arcus FM recently became the latest provider associated with it.

At the IWFM/Inenco event there was much talk about the time it will take to calculate specific usage in terms of energy used operationally and through fit-outs, and that the

problem is compounded by the different methodologies likely to be needed across different sectors of industry. It may yet take years for a settled view to emerge. Yet where to start? Low-hanging fruit, for sure; prioritise the worst-performing buildings and assess building management system data was seen as the obvious first step.

Occupiers will ultimately drive demand for better-performing buildings, and many have committed to doing so; demand from smaller occupiers to commit to the cause and put pressure on landlords will also be key. There is also a need to move beyond the perennial problem of a single individual within an organisation having the commitment to drive the sustainability agenda without broader organisation-wide support – crucial given the importance of managing behavioural change.

What we saw in 2022 was a series of ambitious statements across service providers and clients. We also saw more organisations aligning themselves to the aims of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, in whole or in part. There is a sense of a tide turning..

An IWFM report detailing the workshop conversation and the next stages in toolkit development will arrive during 2023. No doubt a more standardised if flexible methodology for measuring carbon performance is going to be needed. But make no mistake, developing it is going to take considerable effort.

G O VERNMENT S

GOVERNMENT SETS THE TONE

announcements in recent outline how the UK’s public

Government strategy recent months are helping to outline how the UK’s sector can lead the way, with decarbonising of the government estate and chan

adaptation to climate change goals set out in roadmaps for greening its buildings.

In November, the government published its Facilities Management Strategy, itself aligned to the overarching timeline of

the Government Property Strategy. And just a day after its FM strategy launch, the government publshed its Property Sustainability Strategy 2022-2030. Among this strategy’s four key themes is ‘decarbonising the estate’. Having committed to reaching net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) by 2050, the UK government also has an interim ambition to halve direct emissions from the public sector by 2032 and

reduce them by 75% by 2037. Meeting these targets, it says, “requires urgent, sustained action to decarbonise its buildings… it is essential we show leadership in this area and drive down our carbon emissions by utilising credible and consistent approaches to decarbonise the estate”.

Alex Chisholm, chief operating officer for the Civil Ser vice and Permanent Secretary (Cabinet Office) say creating a Net Zero UK is at

the top of the list of priorities.

“The built environment, and therefore the public estate, is fundamental in achieving that ambition. The UK government manages, by some margin, the biggest property portfolio in the country. We know that buildings account for a significant proportion of total emissions and so driving sustainability and reductions in energy consumption in our own estate could not be more important.”

S TR ATE G I C AN NOUN N C E M

When some businesses hear the phrase ‘social value’, they think about how their operations can, for example, support marginalised communities. Others, however, start fretting about the expense – despite it simply not being true that social value needs to cost more.

“Our biggest challenge is to break that bias and dispel that stigma,” says Amy Brogan, global ESG executive director at CBRE Global Workplace Solutions. “We must demonstrate that firms can deliver best-in-class services and products, whilst contributing to social value without a premium.”

Even with the 1% contract value donation that Corps Security asks from its clients, most of them consider the rate “comparable to or less than others in the bid process”, says executive director Mark Rogers. What this means is that organisations can add social value without additional investment. “With a mindset shift, this could easily be emulated across our sector.”

Bottom line concerns are one challenge, as is identifying the right supply partners. Many “talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk,” says Johnpaul Pearson, business support director at Anabas. Looking deeper than marketing messages is key “to really understand if these policies are being delivered”.

Assuming the right supply partners have been selected, what next? “The biggest challenge is articulating the level of social value created,” says Angela Halliday, social impact director at Sodexo UK and Ireland. “This is not only a challenge for large businesses but compounded by the failure of suppliers to communicate and report upstream.”

The solution, Halliday argues, is favouring partnerships with suppliers where services are

If, as they say, it takes a village to raise a child, then it should take the whole facilities services supply chain to deliver social value in a meaningful, relevant and impactful way. How, though, can this be best done?

Bradford Keen reports

COMMON CHALLENGES

THREE HURDLES TO OVERCOME

1

Data collection from small suppliers

EMCOR UK’s Ramrutton says: “Some are unaware of social value; others are aware but don’t know how to capture data or report on it.”

Emcor has developed a sustainability dashboard to integrate with the ABWAW Social Value Platform (from Social Value Portal) to make it easier for suppliers to upload data and for the company to record all social activity across supply chain, operations and central functions.

2

Culture setting

CBRE GWS’ Brogan says: “The leadership needs to work hand-in-glove with those who are delivering the core services… It’s about championing a joint purpose, a principle that isn’t financially led – a vision that everyone can work together to strive towards.”

3

Proper engagement

Anabas’ Pearson says careers talks, apprenticeship schemes, mentoring and wellbeing programmes are only effective social value principles if they are engaged with properly. IMAGE: ISTOCK

SOCIAL VALUE’S CHAIN

developed, designed and delivered with social value in mind for a better understanding of where “social value outcomes are achievable and the measures to ensure a collective approach to achieving, measuring, and publishing these”.

“FM providers,” she says, “have an excellent opportunity to inform and influence procurement specialists on the value of focusing on social impact and the return on investment for clients and communities, given procurement professionals are at varying levels of maturity in understanding the social value agenda.”

For social value to be realised in meaningful and impactful ways, the whole supply chain needs to be linked, sharing ideology and best practice. “Achieving social impact is beyond policy,” Rogers says. “It’s operational, which can take time to embed.

“Our primary aim is to avoid those who are social-washing – going beyond policy to practical applications and demonstrative solutions that add social value every day. Sadly, many businesses believe a written policy is enough. That is not the case now.”

Aligning values

Finding supply chain partners with aligned social value commitments is integral to success – and it’s also good marketing. As Pearson says: “Ensuring

CURRENT INITIATIVES

SOCIAL VALUE IN ACTION: WHO’S DOING WHAT?

Corps: Operates a Contract Value Donation Challenge requiring that during any negotiation, a proposed package will add 1% of the contract value for the duration of the contract as a donation to the provider’s chosen charity, ‘Combat Stress’.

CBRE GWS: Supports one client on a commitment to reallocate 50% of the budget on social enterprises by the second year of the contract; worked with a client to build a special needs school and hospital from donated goods and services from its suppliers.

Anabas: Works with Alcumus SafeContractor to track its suppliers’ social value

credentials, understand the extent of suppliers’ carbon trails, and how suppliers’ own social value promises align with Anabas.

EMCOR UK: Has a social value charter that is mapped against the UK Government’s own social value model (PPN06/20), encouraging all supply chain partners to sign up; has rolled out the ABWAW Social Value Platform to encourage people to report on jobs, growth, social, environment and innovation; aims to recruit 25 new apprentices a year from deprived areas (subject to the company meeting agreed turnover goals); provides two volunteering days per year for current employees.

that your supply chain is diverse and prioritises local businesses helps to boost social value credentials and demonstrates a tangible commitment.”

So where to find these ideal partners? Look for those with a clear social and / or environmental mission. “That involves an element of detective work to find out,” says Brogan. “For example, how a particular supplier is supporting typically underrepresented demographic groups, or whether they are actively ‘giving back’ to the communities they serve through donations, volunteering, or other philanthropic activities.”

CBRE, which has partnered with social enterprise Corps, says these types of organisations “devote 50% of their profits to social and environmental missions. So, it’s CBRE’s prerogative to partner with such businesses, or with purpose-driven organisations that are on a similar journey”.

For Rogers, there is also the question of demographics. He believes social value is increasingly in the hands of the purchaser. “Millennials and Gen-Z, with increased awareness and engagement with environmental and social issues since education, are now the decision-makers in the supply chain.

“The danger now is that the senior personnel in the supply chain are likely of a different generation. If the two can culturally and ethically align, the supplier could avoid facing the biggest selling challenge of their career.”

Cultivating values

An organisation with a strong social value ethos could also take it upon itself to develop supply partners’ in tandem through supply chain inclusion programmes and strategic planning sessions. While Halliday says that there are many commonalities between large and small suppliers that can be made use of, the amount of support given depends on factors such as available resources and the maturity and willingness of both organisations, argues Roy Ramrutton, who is head of social value at EMCOR UK.

“That said, FM providers are generally in a strong position to support SMEs and VCSEs (Voluntary Community and Social Enterprises) in elevating their social value programmes,” Ramrutton explains. “Offering training and sharing best practices is something all FM companies should be able to do.

“The danger now is that senior personnel in the supply chain are of a different generation. Millennials and Gen-Z are now the decision-makers”

Beyond that, it’s best to understand the challenges suppliers face and help with a solution.”

CBRE GWS, for example, supports one of its suppliers’ recruitment drive to reach people who are being rehabilitated back into mainstream society by sharing tools and capabilities. “That’s what a true partnership looks like,” Brogan says. “And that’s where good procurement’s potential lies.”

Know thine outcomes – a social value expert’s perspective

If there was ever to be a sacred commandment in matters related to social value, it would be: Know thine outcomes. Yet many fail to obey this fundamental tenet.

“There is an inherent risk of us focusing on what we as main contractors and suppliers want to do or find easier measuring, rather than the outcomes that are most material to the stakeholders and beneficiaries we’re affecting,” says Charlotte Österman, private sector lead at Social Value UK

SOCIAL

and partner & sustainable development director at Pax Tecum Global Consultancy.

Rather than (for example) just painting a community centre, Österman says to have “meaningful conversations” with stakeholders about what’s really affecting them.

“Bring these conversations to the supply chain too, and don’t come in with a top-down view of creating your own social value project and then telling them what to do.”

Rather than only focusing on creating additional social value (which is extra to what a business does), “explore negative and unintended outcomes of your operations to see if there are areas that you could be minimising or mitigating your negative effect”.

The new 2022 SDG Impact Standards explain and classify three impact goal levels: A = Act to avoid harm; B = Benefit stakeholders; and C = Contribute to solutions.

“A is a perfectly justifiable area of focus [as well as the other two], and shows maturity in approach,” Österman asserts. Maturity also means understanding the various challenges society faces.

Standards for social value management, such as the Social Value Management Certificate and SDG Impact Standards, can provide avenues for stakeholder experience, while tools focus on equity, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) specifically, says Österman, such as the new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) toolkit.

Share the knowledge

To improve DEI practice, supply chain partners can share their learnings to help others avoid unintentionally discriminating against underrepresented groups. These lessons, says Österman, “are of way higher value than marketing material with people of diverse backgrounds smiling.”

“I would not,” Österman warns, “recommend that bigger organisations ‘Machiavellianly’ impose their whole social value system onto their suppliers without considering their contexts and the diversity of their business types. It’s about learning together.”

According to the seventh of social value’s eight principles, verifying results is vital. “This is something we as an industry need to get better at to avoid impact washing and continuously improve,” Österman says.

The social value projects most likely to succeed, Österman says, are those that respond to stakeholders’ needs in a systematic way. Ideally these projects and organisations would also go the extra mile in seeking accredited external verification to, for example, the 2022 SDG Impact Standards, which “require a significant effort that evidences true commitment to managing the business’ impact.” The assurance framework is under development, so it’s “an opportunity for you to become that early success story”.

A pathway to sustainable business

Social value has been on the IWFM’s agenda officially since 2017, after its importance became apparent in an IWFM Sustainability Survey conducted that year.

However, as IWFM’s head of policy, Sofie Hooper, notes, a perceived barrier inhibiting the uptake of social value was a lack of standards across the industry.

“This is why we pulled together a number of people, including from the procurement team, to work with the National Social Value Task Force to put specific measures in place that were more suitable to FMs,” Hooper explains.

IWFM’s Procurement SIG has supported the creation of the NEC contract, with SIG chair Anne Kinder as one of the authors.

The contract continues to be supplemented with practice notes that show how to embed social value into a contract, which uses the FM plugin produced previously. It’s effective but newer metrics are needed, Hooper points out. She also wants to see social value evaluated against contract KPIs and outcomes, and be properly measured.

“Are they actually delivering on the basis of why they’re winning the contract? That is a challenge that still needs to be handled,” Hooper explains. “It needs to be embedded within the contracts and assessed at the end.”

Kinder, who is also a senior consultant at Nodus Solutions, says some providers might win a tender

having noted their social value commitments, but that these are often then forgotten. “It’s a formal commitment not just a tick-box exercise.”

Motivating factors

Some facilities services providers are working on social value because clients have asked for it, while others believe doing so is simply good for business.

“That makes a big difference,” says Sharon Slinger, owner of diversity and inclusion consultancy Constructing Rainbows, which is working with IWFM on matters related to EDI.

“But it doesn’t need to start with the client,” she adds – facilities services providers can lead the social value charge. “When you start to pass down to the supply chain, some partners will probably be more advanced than the main service provider but others won’t know anything at all. Working together will improve the whole industry.”

It’s important to think creatively and in terms of needs that are specific to the community affected by business operations, says Slinger. Many firms tend to choose similar initiatives such as apprenticeships, which is helpful, but she questions how many apprentices land a full-time job afterwards.

“Ultimately, that’s the point of an apprenticeship. It’s not just educational, they need to be converted into a job afterwards. It comes down to KPIs and clarifying what your outcomes and impacts look like? Because is it a success to offer an apprenticeship? Or is it a success to offer an apprenticeship that becomes a job?”

Social value shows a pathway to

responsible and sustainable business, and needs to be embedded throughout the organisation, from HR’s recruitment drives to procurement’s contracting activities, says Hooper.

Fortunately, the government has ramped up its social value model, which Hooper says has forced tier one suppliers to do more within their supply chain – with the knock-on effect of delivering benefits in the private sector as clients and organisations become more familiar with what social value is and why it is important.

THE EDI CONNECTION

Intimately linked to social value is equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI). This has risen in prominence in recent months, but it’s also an area in which FM lags behind, says Sharon Slinger, owner and director of diversity and inclusion consultancy Constructing Rainbows. “Construction is further ahead than FM and I don’t quite understand why,” she saysalthough one possible reason is that FM is “more deeply embedded in the client organisation”, Slinger adds. Undoubtedly, having a comprehensive social value and EDI strategy, led by an inclusive leadership team, is what Slinger sees as the starting point. Next, focus on a contract-bycontract basis, paying attention to the specific needs of the people in the area. Then, track data to see whether output matches the narrative. Is the community really benefiting? For example, are people from marginalised communities getting jobs?

IWFM head of policy Sofie Hooper says comparing local authority and central government contracts illustrates Slinger’s point. The former focuses on the needs of those in the area while

the central government is working within broader frameworks. “It’s getting much better, but that’s why they were initially lagging behind; they weren’t necessarily focusing on that very local need.”

FM companies need to understand their customers’ EDI objectives, map them with their own and share them with the supply chain, says EMCOR UK’s social value head Roy Ramrutton.

“One caveat is that local demographics should be considered before setting targets. If you set a target of 20% of new hires being non-white in an area where the population is 95% white, you’re setting yourself up to fail.”

EDI should be pursued according to the necessary legislation or demands of a contract. To take it further, suggests Angela Halliday, social impact director at Sodexo UK and Ireland, is to consider marginalised people unprotected by legislation; for instance, ex-offenders and long-term unemployed. “For those societal groups with limited opportunities to enter the workforce and advance, the FM sector is well-positioned to generate employment.”

“Some partners will be more advanced than the main service provider but others won’t know anything at all. Working together will improve the whole industry”

VIEW POINT

38-39

Perspectives: Chikere Igbokwe, Lee Chambers, Dave Khasebe, Toby Morgan

40

The opportunity is ripe for FMs to embed social value in their organisations, says Guy Battle

How do we get there?

41

Book your place at industry events and bump up your CPD points with IWFM Academy

44-45

Ravello and Jason Casey offer us insights into their jobs

From talk to walk

The UK Government has launched its Facilities Management Strategy, but is it cause for celebration or caution? Richard Harris opines

Where are we now?

The new UK Government Facilities Management Strategy is aspirational, but only time will tell if there is a clear path to its execution. Highlighted in the strategy is the worrying statement: “Due to long-term under investment along with inconsistent and varied approaches to the management of the government estate, the condition has over a number of years deteriorated to the point where functionality was becoming affected.”

Where do we need to get to next?

Even though the government property function is undertaking an improvement review, there is no obvious mention in the strategy of an approach to ensure the same situation doesn’t arise in the future.The government should keep Thomas Edison’s insights in mind – “vision without execution is hallucination” – and reveal how it will take the strategy from aspiration to execution.

The best way to prevent the past inconsistencies and varied approaches to the government’s estate management is, as a minimum, to adhere to the following:

● Learn from past failures to correct the future strategic direction. Sometimes there are contractual failures, for example, when service provider contractual terms are open to interpretation from both provider and client. This results in confusion and possible payment issues. Contractual terms that are less open to interpretation should be coveredi n service contracts.

● Rely on fewer metrics – over-reliance on metrics can result in an administrative burden with a detrimental effect on strategy execution. KPIs, for example, should be implemented wisely to avoid the measuring frenzy that can evolve over time as a result of managers adding KPIs to understand if a problem is being solved.

● Simplify FM operations –misconceptions and fear of simplicity is sometimes deeply ingrained in organisational behaviour. Leaders need

RICHARD HARRIS is an experienced facilities management professional

to accelerate simplicity at operational levels to achieve excellence in FM execution by, for example, reducing process steps in standard operating procedures. Escalation paths should lead to people with the capability and authority to make decisions quickly.

● FM provider contracts should offer financial bandwidth to undertake the requirements within the strategy, along with strong levels of authority to lead change.

By offering realistic pricing indicators, the FM provider doesn’t have to come in at an unrealistically low price. Parties should avoid pushing hard on savings at the procurement stage if low margins don’t allow for it. It should be determined at all levels who can make decisions. A decisionmaking framework denoting the level of importance of the decision and the extent to which the decision crosses over to another level of authority will aid authority to lead change faster.

As with any FM strategy it will only succeed if there is a proportionate level of resources, budget, capabilities and intent to deliver the strategy, otherwise it will just be a nice text to read with little substance and, possibly by default, a directional path to failure.

Ria

THE POWER OF ALLYSHIP

2020 changed the way we spoke about diversity. In the midst of the pandemic and George Floyd’s murder, the world woke up to the injustices faced by people with marginalised identities.

We are now having braver and bold conversations: listening, asking questions, feeling uncomfortable but, most importantly, we are learning. It got me thinking about the importance and power of Allies. It’s not enough saying, ‘I am an Ally.’ What are you doing to be an Active Ally and create positive change?

Allies need Allies. So I created the Allyship Community – a safe space for Allies to come together, have difficult conversations, ask questions, make mistakes and learn.

So, what is Allyship? Allyship is a lifelong journey of building relationships with people with marginalised identities. It is actively speaking up, standing up and joining the fight for others where there is inequity, injustice and bias. An Ally is not part of a marginalised community but wants to support and take action. An Ally’s role is to create positive and sustainable change.

It’s not easy being an Ally. It requires ongoing action with a focus on other people, not on yourself.

The key is to equip yourself with information; self-educate and put the work in. Know your WHY, why is this important, what do you want to achieve? Understand what privilege is, your own privilege and how you can use it to create change.

Create safe spaces within your organisation to have conversations and listen to the lived experiences of your colleagues with marginalised identities. Make engagement a lifelong experience.

Lastly, don’t feel afraid to make a mistake. You will make mistakes –pick yourself up, dust yourself off and keep going. We need more people like you who are intentional about making positive change.

CHAMBERS

IT’S NOT MEN VS WOMEN

Advancing gender equity and advancing positive masculinity can feel like opposing goals, but they are not in competition. They can evolve together –creating better workplaces for everyone.

Consider the stereotypes that women are emotional, hysterical and overshare – these are often seen as weakness, especially in the workplace. Our society reinforces stereotypes from a young age, so we often discriminate without being aware. Advancing gender equity includes building awareness of how these stereotypes affect women. By breaking these stereotypes, men are also less likely to see being emotional and expressing emotion as a negative trait. With poor male mental health and high suicide rates, breaking stereotypes for women will also give men more space to share their emotions without stigma, thereby creating a cycle of positive masculinity and open expression rather than suppression of feelings.

Society often directs caring responsibilities at women, which has an impact on maternity discrimination – it’s a massive issue. But these same issues impact men too, both in terms

of judgement around paternity and parental leave, and custody assumptions that affect fatherhood opportunities.

If caring responsibilities were seen more equitably, women would face less discrimination overall, which is much needed. And men would face fewer challenges taking paternity leave, being a parent, and role modelling positive masculinity in caring-based roles such as nursing or teaching.

Alleviating the pressure on women to sacrifice their careers for a family would reduce the pressure on men to be a patriarchal provider, a cause of overwork, isolation and not opening up about life’s realities.

Creating a fairer society doesn’t involve taking from one and giving to the other. It’s not men versus women. Gender equity is in everyone’s interests, and healthy masculinity needs a partner for the journey.

CHIKERE IGBOKWE is founder of both Inclucive DEI Consultancy and Allyship

LEE CHAMBERS is founder of Essentialise Workplace Wellbeing

Breaking stereotypes for women will also give men more space

It is actively speaking up, standing up and joining the fight for others where there is inequity, injustice and bias

LEE

CHIKERE IGBOKWE

Y2K represented a high growth and positioning opportunity for the IT industry. The Golden Age of 1990 to 2000 delivered on all fronts; investment, employment, wages and start-ups. Today it’s the norm to have IT expertise at board level of non-IT companies and a chief information officer as part of top management.

The way the IT industry exploited an opportunity and excelled at navigating organisations remains an impressive feat, even if it was initially slow to respond – Y2K first identified by Bob Weller in 1953.

Our opportunity is the #WFH bug that has been with us since the turn of the century. Futurist Arthur C. Clarke identified it in the 1974 ABC broadcast. While the prediction was just viewed as an evolution of IT, it also had a workplace element for us.

Now is the time for our industry to lead, grow and outshine. However, we still have a lot to learn from IT about business

alignment. The industry has devised several models over the years. However, I find the 2007 Saunders Business-IT Maturity Model particularly useful considering its architectural simplicity and the obvious lessons it teaches us.

The first lesson that we glean from this model is two-dimensional demand and delivery. This is significant for FM because we have sometimes misunderstood outsourcing to mean wholesale assignment. This at the expense of the demand dimension. Devastatingly, this has positioned FM from insider to outsider, where it makes even less of a strategic contribution.

It is in this context that we are ready to learn our next lesson: we can pivot from our current support mindset to a transformative agenda.

Lastly, the model teaches us that there is maximum value to our demand organisations.

Let us get ready to trigger the boom without a bust.

TOBY MORGAN

INVEST IN ENERGY EFFICIENCY

With the severe effects of the energy crisis on businesses and households, there has never been a better time to invest in energy efficiency to improve energy resilience sustainably.

Companies are setting net zero or carbon neutrality goals to address climate change, but they must take a ‘reduction first’ approach, prioritising energy efficiency as a key pillar in decarbonisation strategies.

Luckily for companies, investing in their buildings – offices, retail, warehouses or factories – has many benefits besides reducing bills. For example, having efficient, sustainable and productive buildings optimises your business performance. Improved efficiency leads to better indoor environments, which a growing body of evidence says helps to maintain employees’ health and wellbeing, and can boost performance and productivity.

The first part of any energy strategy should be understanding where energy is used, which can then facilitate hitting ambitious energy reduction targets. For example, implementing a modern energy management system (EnMS) that complies with ISO 50001 can enable

effective measurement and management of energy use.

The IEA estimates that energy efficiency can deliver over 40% of the global reduction in energyrelated emissions required over the next two decades. Yet progress is not where we need it to be.

Through Climate Group’s EP100 initiative, over 120 energy smart businesses are collaborating to drive progress and take energy efficiency from the boiler room to the boardroom. Meanwhile, workplace and facilities managers must play a vital role in decarbonising their buildings, making their businesses more competitive, and protecting them against future risk. This begins with harnessing a smart energy approach to business.

DAVE KHASEBE is an FM strategy consultant and The Fourth Place author

TOBY MORGAN is senior manager, built environment at Climate Group; IWFM Sustainability SIG

There has never been a better time to invest in energy efficiency to improve energy resilience

Now is the time for our industry to lead, grow and outshine. However, we still have a lot to learn from IT

DAVE KHASEBE

#WFH IS OUR #Y2K MOMENT!

Judged an outstanding success

The IWFM Impact Awards 2022 saw the best of the sector’s people and projects recognised. But who judges the awards - and how do you go about becoming a judge? Facilitate is talking to existing and past judges about their experiences in a series of comment pieces in print and online. If you’d like to become an awards judge, or find out more about the process, contact editorial@facilitatemagazine.com

For more on the IWFM Awards, visit iwfmawards. org/news

VOLUNTEER VIEWPOINT

VIPS OF SOCIAL VALUE

Facilities management has progressed enormously in recent years as it homes in on three key areas: people, place, and planet. The social value movement has played a large role in this transformation by encouraging organisations to implement initiatives that improve the communities in which they operate.

Altruistic as this sounds, it also makes business sense. The Public Services (Social Value) Act was enacted a decade ago; with the public sector leading the charge, most organisations acknowledge that having a solid social value strategy that can be measured, evaluated and reported in meaningful terms is the way to win new contracts.

FMs are in a unique position to improve standards and conditions by actively promoting community engagement so the occupier and their community can flourish. A flourishing community increases land prices and asset value, meaning FMs fulfil their fiduciary duty to

the investor and deliver on social value.

Our net zero deadline is creeping closer but we’re not on track. As part of a wider social value strategy, FMs can play a role in lowering carbon emissions by reducing waste, procuring from local suppliers, choosing lowcarbon technologies and sourcing renewable energy.

We are also seeing the emergence of ‘social leases’, requiring occupiers to commit to social value reporting as a condition.

FMs, therefore, have VIP status in our collective mission to improve society, which they should not take lightly. FMs have a duty to uncover local community needs, such as identifying the most deprived areas, what is understood about the issues faced and how needs can be met. A stronger community is in a stronger position to fight climate change.

Extend your scope, reimagine your role, reduce emissions, and support the vulnerable – or run the risk of losing work.

Extend your scope, reimagine your role, reduce emissions, and support the vulnerable –or run the risk of losing work

GUY BATTLE is CEO atSocial Value Portal

Events, activities and publications for your attention

3 MAY – 12PM

Market trends: the challenges and opportunities

IWFM FACE-TO-FACE TRAINING

1-2 MARCH – LONDON

Contract management: commercial models - 2 days Got a failing contract? Learn how to put it back on track. tinyurl.com/Fac22020

INDUSTRY-WIDE

23-24 JANUARY 2023 – LONDON

FM Forum Meet senior facilities professionals and industry solution providers for an event packed with business meetings, interactive seminars and valuable networking opportunities. tinyurl.com/Fac22067

7 FEBRUARY 2023 – LONDON

NHS Estates 2023: Effectively Transforming the Healthcare Estate Best practice case studies covering estate sustainability, partnership working, preventative maintenance and flexible solutions. tinyurl.com/Fac22069

21 FEBRUARY 2023 – LONDON

Workplace Futures

‘Technology in the workplace: beyond the information age’ –where creativity adds value. tinyurl.com/Fac22043

14-16 MARCH 2023 – LONDON

The Cleaning Show

Meet manufacturers and suppliers of cleaning and hygiene products, and those sourcing new solutions. tinyurl.com/Fac22068

25-27 APRIL 2023 – BIRMINGHAM

The Workplace Event

Employee experience and workplace performance. tinyurl.com/Fac22041

16-18 MAY 2023 – LONDON

Facilities Show

Fuelling the FM supply chain to shape a smarter, more agile and sustainable future workplace. tinyurl.com/Fac22078

IWFM EVENTS

18 JANUARY– ABU DHABI

Net zero-focused facilities management: the future of FM

Join IWFM UAE Region to hear Nadia Ibrahim of UN Global Compact present on FM's future. tinyurl.com/Fac2313

25 JANUARY– SURREY

Walk and talk tour of the School of Veterinary Medicine Join the IWFM South Region for a tour of the University of Surrey’s state-of-the-art vet school. tinyurl.com/Fac2315

IWFM WEBINAR SERIES

IWFM’s webinar series covers a variety of topics with expert guests. Listings may be subject to change. Visit tinyurl.com/IWFM-webinars

19 JANUARY– 12PM

'Taking the long view with building design' with IWFM SW Region

25 JANUARY– 12PM

'Digitisation in the workplace' with Planon

22 FEBRUARY – 12PM

'Renewable energy' with Bryt Energy

8 MARCH – 12PM

FM's sustainability landscape

22 MARCH – 12PM

The 4-day working week

19 APRIL – 12PM

‘New FM Scope 3 emissions tool' with SFMI

14 MARCH – LONDON

Introduction to FM - 3 days Workplace and facilities management as a new career. tinyurl.com/Fac22028

22 MARCH – LONDON

Effective property management - 2 days

Manage and maintain your property portfolio with an effective property strategy. tinyurl.com/Fac22017

17 APRIL – LONDON

FM strategy - 2 days Evaluate and improve your business strategy's impact. tinyurl.com/Fac22015

19 APRIL – LONDON

Managing building services - 2 days

Reduce risk and better manage your building services. tinyurl.com/Fac22023

22 MAY – LONDON

Operational space planning - 2 days Design your space to improve the customer experience. tinyurl.com/Fac22018

22 MAY – LONDON

FM strategic sourcing: ISO 41012 - 2 days

Use strategic sourcing to reduce costs and improve outcomes. tinyurl.com/Fac22025

24 MAY – LONDON

Managing building services - 2 days

Reduce risk and better manage your building services. tinyurl.com/Fac22023

IWFM LIVE VIRTUAL TRAINING

14 MARCH

IOSH managing safely - 3 days Practical guidance to ensure your team's working safely. tinyurl.com/Fac22032

20 MARCH

Contract management: commercial models - 2 days Got a failing contract? Learn how to put it back on track. tinyurl.com/Fac22020

24 APRIL

Effective property management - 2 days Manage and maintain your property portfolio with an effective property strategy. tinyurl.com/Fac22017

8 MAY

Contract management: commercial models - 2 days Got a failing contract? Learn how to put it back on track. tinyurl.com/Fac22020

10 MAY

Managing building services - 2 days

Reduce risk and improve how you manage your building services. tinyurl.com/Fac22023

16 MAY

Introduction to FM - 3 days

Everything you need to know about workplace and facilities management as a new career. tinyurl.com/Fac22028

IWFM ONLINE TRAINING

ONLINE

Introduction to FM Everything you need to know about workplace and facilities management as a new career. tinyurl.com/Fac22028

ONLINE

Effective FM professional Are you a junior facilities manager? Find out how to create and sustain effective operations. tinyurl.com/Fac22014

What do you do? I am a workplace services manager for several sites based in Central London.

What attracted you to FM, and how did you get into the industry?

I have always worked in customer servicetype roles – from receptionist to room bookings. Working in FM was the natural next step for me.

How long have you been in your current role? For the last 2.5 years (not that I’m counting).

Do you see yourself predominantly as a task or a people manager?

Neither. I would like to think that I am a conduit between my internal clients and the people behind the scenes making things happen.

Would you describe your role as predominantly operational or strategic? My role is predominantly operational with elements of strategic thinking thrown in from time to time.

How many people are there in your FM team, and to whom does the FM team ultimately report? We are a team of 10, and growing, within the Whitehall Campus. Ultimately, we

report into the workplace services director.

My top perk at work is… The privilege of working in some of the most historic, listed buildings in the country.

What has been your biggest career challenge to date?

With the exception of everything Covidrelated, I would have to say the biggest career challenge would be the work I did to build a switchboard and helpdesk team from scratch under very demanding conditions.

If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be? I would like to see a higher number of women within all areas of FM.

Any interesting tales to tell? I have

Ria

Ravello

participated in carnival activities in seven different countries to date.

If I wasn’t in FM, I’d probably be… An English teacher. I love reading and imparting knowledge.

Which “FM/Workplace myth” would you most like to put an end to? One of my biggest bugbears – that leaving windows open whilst having your air-conditioning running will make your space cooler, quicker.

What piece of advice would you give to a young facilities/ workplace manager starting out? If you don’t ask, you don’t get!

What was the weirdest day you’ve had in the office? Lots, but the Official Secrets Act prohibits me from divulging any.

Early bird or night owl? Early bird, definitely. It is when I do my best thinking and planning for the day ahead.

What FM job in the world would you love more than anything? I imagine doing the FM for 10 Downing Street would be challenging and interesting in equal measure.

And where would FM be an absolute nightmare? Disney World or any other large amusement park.

Your life outside FM mostly involves… Keeping Mike and Reiner fed and entertained (husband and foster cat in that order), interspersed with bouts of reading, long walks and shopping.

RIA RAVELLO is a workplace manager with the Government Property Agency in Central London

The biggest career challenge would be the work I did to build a switchboard and helpdesk team from scratch

Jason Casey

What do you do? I am the facilities coordinator at the St Bride Foundation.

What attracted you to FM, and how did you get into the industry?

I like the variety of FM and I fell into it having been the post room manager at an advertising company in the early ’90s.

How long have you been in your current role? Just over a year.

Do you see yourself as predominantly a task or a people manager? A task manager.

Would you describe your role as predominantly operational or strategic? It’s operational.

How many people are there in your FM/workplace team, and to whom does the FM team ultimately report? am the sole FM, although our events team provides front-of-house and housekeeping.

My top perk at work is… The great variety the site has, the people and the free food we have after some events.

What has been your biggest career challenge to date? Coping with the pandemic while working at a homeless charity was hard.

If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be? Give up on trying to be on the top desk (board level). You aren’t. Be proud of catching those who are when they stumble. Don’t forget our roots.

Any interesting tales to tell? While working in the permit office at the BBC, we had a request to ‘permit’ a Halloween activity for The One Show by the water feature outside. The chemical they wanted to use reacted with water so I advised them to do the experiment (exploding pumpkins) at least two metres from the feature – not on the edge as pro posed. In the rehearsal, the pumpkin exploded and chunks flew two metres in all directions. If it hadn’t been moved, there might have been a huge explosion.

range of industries where possible, and do all courses offered to you.

JASON CASEY CIWFM is facilities coordinator at the St Bride Foundation in the City of London

What was the weirdest day you’ve had in the office? In my current role I was teaching fire safety and the benefit of fire doors. The organisation’s historian put his hand up and said that fire doors can be fatal. He then proceeded to explain a death to a visitor to the site in 1928 caused by the spring-loaded fire door that whacked him on the head. He has newspaper cuttings to prove it, too.

Early bird or night owl? Early bird. I don’t understand FMs who stroll into a job after 9am so others can be first to find the issues.

If I wasn’t in FM, I’d probably be… A sports journalist or political cartoonist.

Which FM/workplace ‘myth’ would you most like to put an end to? That the industry is mainly male. I have worked with many females in FM, and most have been in roles senior to me.

What advice would you give to a young facilities/workplace manager starting out? Get experience within a

What FM job in the world would you love more than anything?

I was interviewed a few years ago for a London Zoo H&S role, and the place was amazing. I didn’t get the job and a week later an aardvark died in a fire. One of my mates rang up and said: “I saw you got the job, then!”

And where would FM be an absolute nightmare? Anything too corporate, where the FM role is to sit at a desk playing with figures to bamboozle a client with numbers rather than get things done.

Your life outside FM mostly involves… I set up a women’s football team for my youngest child to have a team to play for. I spend most Sundays running the line, writing match reports and getting these reports into local newspapers.

BEHIND THE JOB

BEHINDTHEJOB

LATEST LEARNING AND BEST PRACTICE

KNOW HOW

It’s counterproductive if the rest of the business sees your risk assessment as a box ticked and any ‘successful’ compliance sampling and testing as an external seal of approval for business as usual.

Shared ownership of a risk assessment will prompt everyone involved to monitor risk continuously.

The healthcare sector is a useful example. It has set up water and ventilation safety groups that bring together stakeholders in the delivery of safe services from to surgeons to cleaners and caterers. Everyone’s needs are met, their responsibility for maintaining service quality is clear, and they’re aware of any changes to the way services are managed. Such an approach could and should feature in any organisation’s plans.

Make your assessment count

Shockingly we come across untested (and possibly faulty) fire dampers, which are critical safety equipment. They have been assigned to ‘routine’ backlog lists, possibly because compliance comes with cost. Unless your risk assessment specifically covers it, you might want to challenge the assessor?

Fire dampers are often too hard to get to and, in many cases, the only answer is capital to install inspection hatches – not a particularly onerous job, but outside normal maintenance budgets.

We’ve seen fire dampers that have been ‘out of sight, out of mind’ for over a decade,

Assess risk, simplify compliance

Ventilation duct and water hygiene surveyors can only advise on compliance. What you do with that information is up to you, but the law demands you take care of it, says Andrew Steel

Junior boards can bring greater diversity of thought to senior leadership

houses, with the plumbing origami of dead legs and redundant outlets. The control regime had been limited to the biennial risk assessment and minimum sampling and testing, despite the risk of localised infection. When infection hit, the business nearly shut down. A good risk assessment – not a tick-box exercise – would have prioritised and scheduled the inexpensive remedial work that would have avoided all of that.

Think ahead Hygiene and safety in the buildings we work in is governed by overarching H&S law and backed up by guidance and codes of practice. This legal framework is convoluted, regardless of the issue it’s meant to address – whether it’s about:

● Frequency of testing and inspections;

● The acceptable level of grease in a kitchen extract duct to the last micron; or

● How often to sample water, clean ducts or test the fire dampers.

with managers unaware of the legal position that puts them in – not to mention the risk to building users. Yet the guidance, effectively law under the HSE umbrella, unequivocally calls for annual testing and inspection.

Judging an assessment

We just don’t understand how people can be unaware of the seriousness of faulty fire dampers. No good risk assessment will be passed if there isn’t access to inspect and

clean fire dampers. No good risk assessor will leave you in any doubt about the priority of the task and how to remedy it, or the unlawfulness of not acting.

Water sampling, however, is very easy to do, but provides only a snapshot of the day it was done. We were called out to a West London hotel – an establishment that has grown organically out of rows of mansion

It’s no wonder a whole industry of contractors and service providers has evolved, competing for surveys and assessments and follow up testing and cleaning work on price alone. Market forces or a false economy?

The danger is that too much emphasis is placed on occasional snapshots of the business rather than active management of risk.

ANDREW STEEL is managing director of Airmec Essential Services

The popularity of takeaway food provides an untapped opportunity for facilities managers to increase revenue by repurposing unused spaces into ‘satellite kitchens’ and leasing them to operators under longer contracts to optimise their sites.

Here are key considerations to ensure underused space is fit for purpose.

1 Technical and legal feasibility

Satellite kitchens often work in places that might appear useless. Many are located in industrial estates or obscure parking lots and, contrary to popular belief, they can easily operate in urban areas closer to the demand location. Unused spaces in commercial properties such as hotels, shopping malls, office buildings, and high streets provide ample room.

Facilities owners considering the transformation into a satellite kitchen must first consider whether their sites are suitable though. Electricity and water supply, and an extraction and ventilation

system are essential, and the space must have multiple entrances and access for kitchen staff, suppliers, and delivery riders. One passage must also be reserved as a fire exit to comply with industry regulation.

2

Planning situation and risk

GATZ isco-founder of Growth Kitchen

Satellite kitchens mostly operate under a B1/ B2/ B8 use class, suis generis, or under a food sale use class (A3/ A5). A use class change may or may not be required, which is a matter to be sorted with the right partner.

Consider the impact of changes made to the design of the building (e.g. installation of a ventilation system), and potential nuisances caused by noise from the flow of riders using mopeds and from the ventilation system.

A premise licence will also be required to determine trading hours and to validate the operational management plan. The delivery kitchen model is evolving, from traditionally “delivery-only” to “delivery-

optimised”, with takeaway and potentially dine-in options available to consumers. Such models, yet to be tested and scaled, indicate a more flexible approach to planning.

3 Postcode suitability

Satellite kitchens have emerged because of the rising demand for high-quality restaurant-standard delivered food and the high cost of rent for traditional restaurants. Facilities managers can set up kitchens outside expensive city centres or closer to areas of high demand. This benefits the customer by reducing food delivery times, the restaurant by reducing cost, and the facility’s owner by increasing the value of unused spaces outside prime locations.

The most successful sites will be in areas where there’s a steep supply-todemand gap – locations where people want delivered food but have few options to choose from. To have this level of insight on the area, facilities managers have to find a partner with the appropriate technology to understand what kinds of customers are under-served in the area and what types of brands can answer their unmet needs.

4 Partner relationships

Setting a satellite kitchen up is one thing, but you’ll need to develop a robust business model and attractive commercial proposition. Food delivery is a difficult industry to enter without the right partners. Your satellite kitchen will only succeed if it offers the kinds of food and restaurant brands that people in the local area want. You need high-level insight into the area surrounding your premise, and continuously manage those restaurants within your space.

It’s crucial to find a reliable partner to work with to navigate this transition. An experienced partner will be able to lend guidance about the set-up and management of your new facility.

They will also bring a network of industry contacts and top brands to give you an ‘in’ without you having to spend years developing new relationships. Ultimately, your partnership can help transform your facility into a revenuegenerating powerhouse.

TOM

Shopping for ideas

The commercial office sector has lacked any significant innovation beyond automation of manual processes, and it still relies on long-term lease commitments to underpin asset values, despite occupiers’ business cycles being shorter than ever before.

However, the pandemic has finally unshackled ‘work’ from ‘place’ and many landlords, fearing a collapse in asset values due to weakened demand and increased vacancies, are calling for everyone to ‘return to the office’. But there has been a fundamental shift in how knowledge workers operate, and the majority are never going back to the ways of the past.

Finding inspiration

Those involved in the development, ownership and management of commercial office assets should look to the hotel and retail sectors for inspiration: elevating the ‘customer experience’ and basing all decisions

regarding service, amenities and flexibility on the creation of a great experience.

The end user of commercial assets must be the most significant consideration. This requires elevating hospitalityled services above purely functional factors such as quality air conditioning and lifts, sustainability and great end-of-trip facilities.

Creating the ‘customer experience’ ecosystem

Retail centre owners worked out decades ago that customer experience is the key to success, and creating an environment that attracts people to do more than shopping is critical. These ecosystems include leisure, dining, fitness, wellness, cinemas, government services, mall quality and ambience, amongst others.

By creating a genuine customer

experience, these property owners can attract great retail operators who will pay a premium to have their own brand represented in a quality retail centre.

Retail centre owners and retail operators have a mutually beneficial, co-dependent, relationship – rarely captured in a traditional landlord/tenant lease. Turnover rents and revenue-sharing provisions allow the owner to benefit from the operator’s strong performance and share a proportion of the downside risk when times are tough.

The retail ecosystem creates a great customer experience, from the moment a customer drives into the car park or steps into the building. For retail operators, stores are spaces for a brand immersion experience: a separate and bespoke offering within the centre owner’s creation.

Offering a new proposition

Contrasting this with commercial office assets, property owners are largely ‘hands off’, providing a financial incentive to the tenant through the commercial leasing transaction, and taking a step back to rent collection for the term of the lease. This proposition no longer meets the needs of most organisations or their employees.

The future ‘office’ is an HQ venue. A brand immersion and experiential venue for employees of an organisation to meet and collaborate with colleagues, bring clients, and entice recruits. Like the stores in a successful retail centre, these HQ venues will succeed in buildings where they can leverage a great customer experience, amenity, service and flexibility curated by the property owner.

But, how many office landlords have realigned their thinking?

Commercial office landlords can learn a lot from the hotel sector regarding service standards. They can learn even more from the overall approach of great retail centres in the creation of an ecosystem of spaces and amenities supported by great service standards that genuinely add to the success of individual organisations that create their HQ venue within those assets.

Further, the landlord / tenant relationship needs to recognise that landlords have a more significant influence on the success of the HQ venue than before, which necessitates a different commercial relationship. The long-term ‘set and forget’ lease of the past is just that –a thing of the past.

JOHN PREECE is Chief Property Officer at Hub Australia

LESSONS FROM RETAIL

Retail centres have shown innovation in their offering to end users; offices should apply these same principles, argues John Preece

Finding the solution

The solution is to:

1 Plan ahead;

2 Monitor or calculate the desk utilisation;

3 Implement agile working;

4 Balance occupancy levels across the whole week; and

5 Size the office accordingly.

There is resistance to desksharing and some of it is genuine.

For example:

● Certain personality profiles do not cope well with it;

● Some roles require the employees to be in the office daily; and

An inconvenient truth

Iused to work for an architecture practice and in 2006 we hired a cinema theatre for our own private viewing of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth. At the time my workplace consulting colleagues and I were implementing flexible working, now termed agile or activity-based working, across large corporates throughout Europe.

We promoted the various benefits of implementing desk sharing (aka unallocated desks or hot-desking) including:

● Space efficiency;

● Cost savings;

● Enhanced productivity;

● Better work-life balance;

● Business continuity;

● Attractiveness; and

● Sustainability.

At the time our utilisation studies showed that typically only 50% of office desks were used at the same time across the working week. Increasing the utilisation by implementing desk sharing would release space in an existing office, which could be used to accommodate more people, or mean that less space is required if moving to a new office.

Less space means less energy

Less space used by an organisation will result in less embodied energy when putting up and fitting out an office building and less operational energy for heating, cooling, lighting, servicing and maintenance. In some cases, the released desk space might be used to improve the working conditions, but space can usually be reduced by at least one-third.

In those days, knowledge workers not attending the office may have been travelling, visiting client sites or occasionally working from home. 15 years later and the workplace has changed. Post-pandemic use rates have dropped across the working week with reports showing it as low as 33%. More people are working from home, using their own increasingly more expensive energy.

Utilisation levels may bounce back to 50% over time but the current trend for coming into the office on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday potentially means that offices are empty for four days per week (including weekends) with the complication of mid-week peaks reaching 60% to 80%.

● Some feel a little insecure and believe desk ownership provides more sense of belonging and being more valued by their employer.

Nevertheless, the main barrier to unallocated desking that I repeatedly hear is inconvenience. From the management perspective it is the hassle of working out when teams are in the office – I suggest team days at least once a week including Mondays and Fridays. From the individual perspective it is the time and irritation of finding a desk and the aggravation of setting up each day.

A conspicuous analogy

It seems to me that this daily inconvenience is analogous to broader environmental issues. It’s just too inconvenient, for many, to be greener – and it doesn’t directly or immediately affect them.

However, it’s time now for us all to take responsibility and anticipate such minor inconveniences at work. In a world of agile working, employees should not expect an allocated (serviced, heated, cooled, lit) space in an office if they are only present half of the week.

The analogy to hotels, and to some extent travel, has been longstanding – no one expects a room or seat to be set aside and left vacant for them when they only use it occasionally. We all need to accept the inconvenience and do our bit in the way we plan, manage and use office space.

NIGEL OSELAND is a workplace strategist and environmental psychologist

FLEXIBLE WORKING

You don’t deserve a designated desk if you’re hardly in the office, says Nigel Oseland – consider your own environmental impact

CBRE set up its junior board in 2013 to give junior members a voice and ensure that business leaders consider different perspectives on important matters. The junior board typically represents those who are associate director and below level at CBRE.

The junior board is an effective means of hearing a range of opinions and perspectives by considering views of different levels and generations – a must for diversity and inclusion. Junior members of a company may often have a better grasp of a certain topic/issue than senior members.

For organisations wanting to leverage the power of a junior board, here’s what you should consider.

Board benefits

The junior board has been instrumental in shaping and developing CBRE’s culture and creates cohesion at a service line level. It also plays a key role in helping CBRE raise money for its charity partners. In the past year alone, CBRE’s junior boards have rolled out the following initiatives:

● Buddy scheme for new joiners to settle in;

● Skills school to upskill in key areas;

● Lunch & Learns or Research brunches to educate employees about relevant topics;

● Creating the Real Estate Finance Young Professional Forum, which invited clients in real estate finance to learn, develop and network;

● Work experience programme to create a standard template for new joiners;

● A Swap & Share programme to learn about other areas of the business; and

THE MAKE-UP OF THE JUNIOR BOARD

● Roughly 30 members from CBRE’s service lines and geographies;

● The UK junior board chair communicates business priorities and challenges to the junior population and provides different perspectives to senior leadership;

● Each member of the junior board is chair of

● Recognition awards for individuals that have gone above and beyond.

The organisation benefits from a junior board but so do board members through:

● Increased networking opportunities;

their departmental or regional junior board to be representative of all junior voices in the business;

● The board meets monthly to discuss priorities and initiatives, share ideas, brainstorm challenges and learn from one another;

● Board members apply to join the board, with tenure

Board challenges

ranging between one and two years;

● Each board decides on individual priorities, in the context of the UK board and CBRE’s strategic objectives, and each board has an executive sponsor for the department’s/region’s executive committee to support initiatives.

● Better insight of the business, leadership and management experience;

● Gaining confidence and public speaking skills; and

● Having the opportunity to action the change you want to see within the business and make a genuine difference.

Fresh insights

While the benefits are numerous, challenges with junior boards do arise, primarily with members juggling board responsibilities with workloads. Planning for initiatives can be demanding so time management is key.

Selecting applicants can be tricky, as boards are often oversubscribed. You want to select proactive members who will drive momentum throughout the year. They need to be responsive to changes, focused on objectives whilst remaining agile, and adapt strategies to reflect the current environment and any constraints.

How to set up a junior board

1 Make sure your board is representative of your population and members are clear on their role and expectations;

2 Set clear objectives and measurable KPIs so you can demonstrate the junior board’s value, and ensure regular communication so these objectives are publicised; and

3 Ensure genuine buy-in from senior leaders.

Junior boards can bring diversity of thought and communicate issues to senior leadership, says Ellie Kennedy

ELLIE KENNEDY is associate director, capital advisors, CBRE UK

WHEN FAILURE IS N OT T A N OPTION

PRESENTING OUR NEXT GROWTH PLAN PHASE

In 2022, Stephen Peal (above) became group managing director of YorPower, PPSPower and Glenace, his ‘one family’ approach proving an efficient way of capitalising on the individual strengths and growth of each company.

PPSPower (now a trading division of YorPower Ltd) is best known for providing reliable maintenance solutions for both generators and UPS units.

YorPower manufacture, installs and commissions generators to provide back-up and prime power solutions for its wide-ranging customers.

All areas of the business now work together from the company headquarters in West Yorkshire. However, to ensure the entire

workforce of YorPower Ltd is fully embracing the new business structure, group MD Steve has consulted throughout the company, presenting a shared vision, and discussing this with employees one to one and through small groups.

As a qualified mental health first aider, Steve has a highly developed understanding of how his staff are performing, what motivates them and any factors that may be inhibiting them from delivering optimum performance. The aim is to engage everyone in the new way of working under a single brand – rather than a collection of independent companies. Supplementing the consultations will be a company-wide survey to find out what people think are the company’s strengths and weaknesses.

Sharing the vision

As ever, Steve is ensuring the consultations are a two-way dialogue so that his staff also know what makes him feel valued – such as people popping in to see him and seek his opinion. “People should never say, ‘Sorry to bother you.’ I want my staff to have their say in the direction our company is taking. We are a family, and we should be able to thrash out our differences and come through the other side stronger. We don’t have problems; we have opportunities for improvement!

“I am a people person and I have always treated my colleagues as our greatest asset. It is essential that everyone shares the same vision and is part of defining that. I very rarely feel the need to tell anyone what to do, I include them in where I feel we need to go and agree together on the actions required to achieve our aims. I want to be the back-up power company everyone wants to work for.”

Achieving net zero

YorPower Ltd is also taking a proactive approach to its carbon footprint. In 2022, Steve entered discussions with Neutral Carbon Zone, which helps organisations take an expert look at their sustainability agendas to see how they can slash their carbon footprint in ways they may not have expected. Increasingly, customers and employees want to work with companies that demonstrate a commitment to becoming carbon neutral. It’s early days in this project but YorPower will aim to move from Bronze, up to Silver and Gold and finally Platinum – at which point it will be among the select few organisations leading the way on sustainable working practices.

As 2023 begins, YorPower Ltd can look back upon a productive 2022 in which the group of companies were restructured into one limited entity, under which all individuals and brands now work efficiently to offer a full back-up power solution. The next few months will build on this progress, and we look forward to keeping Facilitate readers informed.

Improving indoor air quality (IAQ) helps to reduce the risk of airborne spread of viruses and other contaminants. Covid-19 and other infectious diseases can spread through the inhalation of airborne particles and aerosols.

Better IAQ also reduces the risk of exposure to particles, aerosols, and other contaminants, which is positive for the health of building users. While the best course of action for IAQ will depend on the building’s space and location, there are some fundamental actions to take.

1

Start with an IAQ action plan

Firstly, your action plan should assess IAQ. Then, it should:

● Set out plans for upgrades and improvements – including HVAC inspections and maintenance;

● Document how HVAC systems work for your building;

● Work with an HVAC expert to assess and inspect systems for ventilation, filtration, and air cleaning;

● Determine how clean outdoor air is brought into and distributed throughout the building;

● Commission, test, and balance building systems so they are functioning as designed;

● Implement carbon dioxide (CO2) monitors;

● Determine how much clean air (outdoor air + filtered HVAC recirculation air) is needed and verify or measure air delivery for each room or space;

● Manage the direction of air flows in higher risk areas of your building such as a school nurse’s office);

● Schedule regular inspections and maintenance, including filter replacements, and HVAC system upgrades or improvements; and

● Provide training and education to the people who operate or help to operate your building and air distribution systems.

2 Enhance ventilation

Bring clean air from the outdoors into the building and circulate throughout for improved IAQ.

Up in the air

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air in Buildings checklist suggests good IAQ policy should start with the following three-point strategy

● Be sure that the air from outside is clean or filtered when brought inside;

● Use ‘economisers’ – devices to supplement mechanical cooling with fresh air;

● Run HVAC systems during all occupied hours to ensure clean air enters and is distributed throughout the building;

● Make sure washroom exhaust fans are functioning, with fans running during occupied hours;

● Increase clean, outdoor air at times of higher risk;

● Consider running the HVAC system to refresh air before arrival and/or remove remaining particles at the end of the day (e.g., 1-2 hours before/after the building is occupied);

● Consult an HVAC expert about the maximum outdoor air your system can support;

● Open windows, as weather, outdoor air quality, occupant safety, and HVAC systems permit and

enable cross ventilation by opening windows and doors at opposite sides of the room or building.

(Note: Opening windows while running HVAC systems may increase energy costs or introduce other air contaminants.)

3 Improve air filtration and cleaning

Make your central HVAC system and in-room air cleaning devices count to clean and filter air.

● Install the highest rated MERV filters the HVAC system can accommodate;

● Close off gaps around air filters to minimise air moving around them instead of through them;

● Use portable air cleaners to increase air cleaning rates in areas where air flow and filtration are insufficient;

● As a temporary measure, do-ityourself air cleaners can also be built from HVAC filters and box fans;

● Increase ventilation and/or filtration in areas with higher emission of airborne particles and aerosols by upping the volume of clean, outdoor air delivery; using portable air cleaners; and setting up extra exhaust ventilation to move air directly to the outside.

The recommendations come from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air in Buildings Checklist.

INDOOR AIR QUALITY

Fixing the broken rung

In 1979, my mother opened her first serviced office – then called a business centre – in a time where women made up less than 5% of the property workforce.

Our serviced office business has since grown and evolved, as has female representation in the industry.

Women now occupy 18% of the roles in this industry, demonstrating progress, although there remains room for improvement, particularly within the top brass.

Women in the workplace

Data consistently demonstrates that better gender representation is not just good for a company’s public image, but also for its bottom line, with benefits compounding as a woman climbs up the corporate ladder.

A McKinsey report showed that companies in the top quartiles of gender diversity were 25% more likely to experience above-average profitability compared with counterparts in the bottom quartile.

Beyond the bottom line, these companies:

● Had stronger management; and

● Were less prone to issues such as bribery or corruption.

● While better performance can be linked to many other factors, research into organisational structures has attributed it to women

facilitating better collaboration and more representative decision-making.

Building a strong foundation

Although women are increasingly choosing to enter the property industry, it is a male-dominated sphere. Diversity and equality should remain at the top of the agenda for property leaders in order to set a strong foundation for inclusion.

At present, only 30% of executive

positions are occupied by females with this number being lower in leadership positions. Gender disparity at lower leadership positions presents a stumbling block for C-suite progression, creating a cycle where women are unable to break through the glass ceiling. Gender representation at executive levels has to be matched at junior levels to boost women taking up more senior roles.

But, even before more women can be considered for leadership roles, the industry must attract new female talent. At the recruitment stage, steps can be taken to reduce bias through:

● Blind resumés;

● Standardised interview questions; and

● A diverse hiring panel. Prioritising these practices above will ensure that more women

walk through the door.

Companies should also have clear progression pathways and a strong employee value proposition (EVP) that goes beyond remuneration to include HR support, training, and flexible working models to achieve equality in opportunities. These steps are by no means a foolproof way to increase representation but they can go a long way in fixing the ‘broken rung’ on the corporate ladder.

Leveraging our strengths

Many in the property sector are implementing strategies to increase diversity on all fronts. OSiT has a 90% female workforce driving our business. This may look to run to the opposite extreme but it has taught us valuable lessons in supporting women.

An example is the development of our Menopause Guidance policy, which better supports employees as they reach perimenopause and menopause. Efforts like this can help destigmatise the concept and make the working environment more comfortable for women.

Aside from training and support being crucial, we have also found that a flexible office model has been very beneficial in supporting gender equality. Having facilities on-site such as gyms and even sleep spaces means less time is wasted during the day, allowing our employees more free time in their personal lives. If implemented correctly, they will not only find a better worklife balance for all, but present a new ‘how to’ in rectifying the gender imbalance.

NIKI FUCHS is co-founder and CEO of Office Space in Town (OSiT)

GENDER DISPARITY

Facilities

Make a difference every day at HMP Fosse Way

Working in a Serco prison might not have been something that you considered before, but if you are a person who believes in rehabilitative justice and wants to help offenders address the factors influencing their criminal behaviour, then we may have the job for you.

We aim to help rebuild lives and reduce reoffending whilst helping governments safeguard society and manage the wider impact of crime more efficiently and effectively.

Dedicated to supporting people, and ensuring the functionality, comfort, safety, sustainability and efficiency of the built environment; our Facilities Management team are a key supporting function in the challenging environment of a secure establishment. Every one of our team has an important part to play in the effective operation of the prison.

What we can offer you

Whatever prison you join us at you’ll find a well-defined, close knit and supportive team – with roles that you can make your own and that play to your strengths. When you’re ready to move up or specialise, you’ll be wholeheartedly supported on career development, with internal progression strongly encouraged.

Working within the Facilities team for Serco will allow you to grow and develop your career, supported and funded by Serco, from maintaining your current qualifications – Electrical Testing and Inspection, HV approved, GasSafe to learning a new skill. The ongoing development of the individuals and the whole Facilities Management Team is paramount to the success of HMP Fosse Way.

We are holding a Job Fair on 18th January 2023 at the Leicester Hilton. Visit us between 8am - 10pm and meet the Facilities Management team.

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ENGIE releases ninemonth financial results

by Prithvi Pandya

ENGIE has unveiled continued progress on its strategic plan with the completion of the sale of EQUANS.

The service provider has reported that it:

● Has nearly achieved its disposal plan target of at least €11 billion by the end of 2023;

● Is on track with its three-year performance plan target;

● Has a strong balance sheet; and

● Has maintained its liquidity with improvement in credit ratios.

There has been a €2.2 billion rise in its net financial debt, which is currently at €27.6 billion.

Catherine MacGregor, CEO of ENGIE, said: “ENGIE has delivered in unprecedented market conditions and we are continuing to play a leading role in supporting security of supply. With the benefit of our financial position and the relentless efforts of our teams, we are able to contribute through working capital support, government profit-sharing mechanisms, dedicated customer initiatives, as

well as an exceptional recognition measure targeting our employees.

“ENGIE has continued to progress on the strategic plan and the completion of the sale of EQUANS is a major milestone. We are investing significantly in the development of renewables and decarbonisation solutions for our customers. Our strategy is more relevant than ever: ENGIE is firmly committed to accelerating a fair energy transition, leveraging its strong financial performance to invest in growth.”

ISS ACQUIRES LIVIT FM IN SWITZERLAND

ISS has acquired Livit FM Services AG in Switzerland from its parent company Livit AG for an undisclosed fee.

Livit FM Services AG will be fully integrated into ISS’s Swiss entity in the first quarter of 2023 and will operate under the brand ISS Facility Services AG.

ISS says the takeover of Livit FM Services AG is a strategic acquisition that strengthens its market position in Switzerland. The transaction will enable ISS to expand and develop its service delivery to the real estate industry segment, as Livit FM Services AG looks after a large proportion of Swiss Life properties.

ISS Switzerland will take more than 670 employees and key account contracts within cleaning and technical services as part of the deal.

André Nauer, CEO of ISS Switzerland, said: “With the acquisition, we strengthen our position with a service enterprise of outstanding high quality, offering ISS Switzerland an opportunity to enhance our market position in the long term.”

Nick Fox, of FM consultancy Capitec, considers the 2023 FM contract landscape

Compass Group sees 2022 revenue boosted by new business

Mitie reports a strong half-year financial performance

for daily outsourcing news

What next for the FM contract landscape?

How has the outsourced FM market evolved over the past few years and what challenges does the new year hold? Nick Fox , associate director at FM consultancy Capitec, considers what the deals done in 2022 can tell us about how 2023 contract activity might evolve

As always, it’s a bit of a mixed picture, which makes it difficult to draw definitive conclusions. However, here are some case studies and a review of 2022 contract awards that may help us with our thinking.

In 2016 NHS Property Services (NHSPS) outsourced its hard FM provision to Mitie. But then, in 2019/2020, it took the decision to bring certain services back in house, claiming that doing so allowed them to make £4 million of savings. The rationale for making this decision was to:

● Deliver a more consistent and highquality FM service;

● Have direct control over service management, training, and auditing; and

● Drive cost efficiencies that can be reinvested into the NHS;

If the £4 million savings are accurate, who would imagine that bringing services back in house would be cheaper? Surely one of the main perceived benefits to outsourcing is due to the belief that it saves money.

Aspiring to better service

In 2022, Hastings Council decided to bring grounds and cleaning back in house to enable it to exercise more control and deliver a better service. This sounds familiar to the rationale of NHSPS – albeit there was no mention of potential savings.

What can be concluded from the above case studies? Well, the drive for better service, greater flexibility and control certainly rings loud and clear for both organisations. As does, perhaps, the ability to react to internal and external change factors quickly. The experience of Covid-19 on FM provision – with the need to respond

quickly – will mean that organisations that are not getting the desired service may well consider changing their models in the future, opting for smaller, more nimble contract models.

Elsewhere in 2022, we saw the award of new integrated facilities management (IFM) contracts for large organisations such as BAE, which appointed Mitie to look after 26 sites across the country, and the renewal of existing IFM contracts such as ISS at Edinburgh College – a deal that covers four main and two satellite campuses.

TFM contracts will likely remain popular where client property portfolios are vast and spread over large geographical areas, but will TFM remain popular for smaller portfolios?

In the last three years, Pareto FM has been successful in many TFM and IFM deals, in some cases partnering with specialist providers to deliver aspects of the contract such as with Churchill Services for the delivery of soft FM. Is this a model that we will see more of in the future?

It certainly seems sensible to partner with sector experts, ensuring that the relevant companies bring their core offering and expertise to an organisation.

As for what happened in the wider industry during 2022, the table on the next page is a summary of contract data from stories reported on the Facilitate website as extracted 8th December 2022.

Are we seeing or about to see an evolution in FM contracting – or will it be business as usual as we enter 2023? Visit facilitatemagazine.com for an extended version of this feature.

MARKET

2022 CONTRACT AWARDS SUMMARY

● More new contract awards than contract extensions

● Limited number of new TFM and IFM contract awards

● Large amount of single-service contracts awarded

● Large amount of bundled service contracts awarded

● Large amount of contract awards being of more than three years in duration

● Housing repair contracts more prevalent in the public sector

● FM contracting activity in the public sector breaks down as follows: 27% in Bundled Service contract awards, hard or soft FM; 25% in soft FM single-service contract awards; 23% in housing repair single-service contract awards; 10% being IFM or TFM contract awards; the remaining 15% in relation to single-service contract awards for M&E and energy services.

● FM contracting activity in the private sector breaks down as below: 23% in bundled service contract awards, hard or soft FM; 41% in soft FM single-service contract awards; 18% in M&E contract awards; 14% in IFM or TFM contract awards; the remaining 4% in single-service contract awards for M&E and energy services

Note: bundled service contract awards topped the table in both sectors, with soft FM single service contract awards coming in second. IFM and TFM awards were limited in both sectors.

If the £4 million savings are accurate, who would imagine that bringing services back in house would be cheaper?

KEY FACTORS

QUESTIONS WE CAN EXPECT TO BE POSED DURING

2023:

● Will we see a decline in TFM and IFM contracts as we know them?

● Will we see TFM deals consisting of separate specialist companies, coming together to deliver the contract?

● Will clients want to de-risk their service by moving away from IFM and TFM contracts?

● Will we begin to see a more thorough approach to decisionmaking, with more comprehensive reviews of the risks and potential service impacts associated with the chosen option – not just lowest cost?

● Will the economic climate oblige organisations to review their provision with a remit to make efficiencies and cost savings regardless of the potential impact on service?

● Will bundled and single-service contracts continue to be used more in both the private and public sectors?

● Are SMEs set to come marching over the hill to ensure procurement drivers of using local supply chain are realised?

● Will we continue to see recruitment challenges and a fight for talent, and will this alone drive organisations to change their delivery model?

● Will inflation rise further in 2023?

● Will contract models become more output-based rather than input-based?

● Will we see continued pressure from unions to reduce outsource activity, especially in the public sector?

Compass Group revenue boosted by new business

by Facilitate team

Compass Group saw an encouraging year-end to 2022 as revenue and new business surged with strong performances in Europe and North America.

A statement outlining its fullyear financial results for the year ended 30 September shows Compass Group’s revenue grew by 37.5% to £25.8 billion during the year – and its sales in the fourth quarter were 116% of prepandemic 2019 levels.

Operating profit was £1,590 million (2021: £848 million) – an 87.5% rise. Strong organic revenue growth of 37.5% was recorded. In Q4 2022, the group was at 116% of 2019 revenues with Business & Industry at 106%.

Underlying operating margin improved by 170 basis points year-on-year to 6.2%, with the second half of 2022 at 6.5% – and it also saw net new business of 7.5% (5.7% rebased to 2019, above a historical rate of 3%).

Client retention was up by 100 basis points year-on-year to a new record

IN BRIEF

G4S launches supplier diversity drive

The company is to monitor its use of diverse suppliers through sustainability technology platform

Integrity Next, tracking spend with diverse suppliers and setting targets for the future; it will also use of a B2B marketplace for tenders connecting buyers to diverse suppliers and will train staff to its procurement teams and wider business.

of 96.4%, with new business wins of up to £2.5 billion in value. The food service group saw North American sales rise 53.4% on a reported basis and this now accounts for 66.5% of group revenue. Europe’s contribution was marginally down at 23% from 25% in 2021. The group says its first-time outsourcing market remains buoyant, accounting for about 45% of new business wins. Capex was 2.7% of underlying revenue and net mergers and acquisition expenditure was £268 million.

Dominic Blakemore, group CEO, said: “The group’s performance surpassed our expectations both in terms of net new business growth and base volume recovery, with Business & Industry now operating above its pre-pandemic revenues. The strong growth trends seen in the first half have continued, with net new business accelerating through the year in all our regions.”

TC Bibby becomes part of Cleanology Cleaning contractor Cleanology has acquired one of the largest cleaning contractors in northwest England, Wiganbased TC Bibby & Sons. Managing director Geoff Bibby, who is the third

generation of Bibby family members to run the company, will remain with the company alongside all staff.

Atalian Servest reaffirms its Armed Forces Covenant pledge As a signatory of the Covenant, the

CIC APPOINTS NEW LEADERS ON HEALTH AND SAFETY

The Construction Industry Council (CIC) has elected Paul Bussey and Philip Baker chair and deputy chair of its Health & Safety Committee, which provides a forum for H&S representatives of CIC member institutions to shape policy, discuss initiatives and develop responses on behalf of the CIC and built environment professions.

Bussey, formerly the committee’s deputy chair, is an architect and senior technical consultant at AHMM Architects and has worked in architectural and construction roles for over 40 years. He takes over as chair from Gary Mees.

Baker, the new deputy chair, represents the Institution of Structural Engineers on the committee. He is a senior industry practitioner and trainer.

Bussey, a visiting lecturer at 10 UK university schools of architecture, is leading the way for Royal Institute of British Architects to embed the new Building Safety Act 2022 extended role of principal designers into architectural practice through his book on CDM 2015.

service provider recognises the skills and experiences that reservists and ex-service personnel bring to its security, cleaning, catering, engineering, projects, integrated solutions and central support teams. The covenant is a promise that those who serve and

have served in the Armed Forces, and their families, will be treated fairly in society.

Compass begins offering free meals to workers Compass Group UK & Ireland is offering a support package to its employees to

Ex-offenders helped into hospitality

by Facilitate team

Umbrella Training has joined with social business and charity

The Forward Trust to start the industry’s first apprenticeship route for ex-offenders.

The Forward Trust has developed a pilot scheme called the Prison Apprentice Pathway (or PAP), funded by charitable trust Porticus UK. It will create an apprenticeship pathway to introduce more people to the hospitality sector.

The scheme identifies those who are within three months of release and might be suitable for an apprenticeship once out. The PAP is being delivered in three prisons over the next two years: HMP Isis in London, and HMPs Hollesley Bay and Highpoint, both in Suffolk. It will support 100 people with at least 50% starting an apprenticeship standard in the hospitality sector.

Participants will be offered a range of development opportunities while in prison including:

● Masterclasses with trainers and employers on a range of hospitality topics;

● Support to access prison jobs or Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) in hospitality;

● Help to prepare and submit apprenticeship/job applications;

● Meetings with employers to find out more about hospitality apprenticeships

help them during the cost-of-living crisis.

It is providing a free meal during their shift at locations where it serves food. Compass said this would be around 200,000 meals a week. It is also extending its community food donation scheme to include hot meals.

ISS eyes growth after turnaround

ISS is targeting organic growth of between 4% and 6% annually from 2024, as well as growth through acquisitions.

This forms part of a raft of new targets for the company and the latest phase of its OneISS strategy

and setting up initial interviews;

● Support in the community to attend interviews and start apprenticeships, as well as wider pastoral and holistic support; and

● Opportunities to join Forward’s peer support network, Forward Connect.

The programme will also prepare people for the practical elements of what an apprenticeship will involve so that by the time they are due for release they are ready to start an apprenticeship. These include food production skills, effective communication and supervision skills.

Umbrella will work with Forward’s Employment Coaches to connect people with suitable apprenticeships on release.

announced in 2020.

ISS said that following the delivery of financial turnaround targets, it had re-established a healthy financial platform and had set new financial targets and a new capital allocation strategy.

The group added that it was now

focusing on investing in operational efficiency, technology and sustainability. It also expects to see its operating margin rise sustainably above 5% from 2024 with annual revenue growth creating further margin improvement potential over time.

LEVY TO PAY EMPLOYEES REAL LIVING WAGE

Sports and leisure hospitality business Levy UK has announced that it will be paying all its UK employees – including variable hours workers – the Real Living Wage or above from 1 January 2023.

The provider, part of Compass Group, employs more than 1,000 full-time workers and has a 14,500 variable-hours workforce to support clients from sports stadia, arenas, and conference centres.

The Real Living Wage Foundation announced in September that the new Living Wage rates would increase by a 10.1% rise to the UK rate and an 8.1% rise to reflect inflation. The new Real Living Wage rate is £10.90, and the London Living Wage rate will rise to £11.95.

Jon Davies, managing director at Levy UK, said: “Our people are the lifeblood of our business, so paying a fair wage, especially in light of the cost-of-living crisis, is absolutely the right thing to do. We have been working in partnership with our clients over the past two years to move to the position of paying 100% of our workers in the UK the Real Living Wage. We value and care for our people and know that paying the Real Living Wage can make a big difference, allowing them to enjoy a more balanced life.”

Katherine Chapman, director of the Living Wage Foundation, said: “As the cost of living continues to rise, it’s fantastic to see Levy’s leadership and hard work over the past two years in moving to pay all employees a real Living Wage.”

Thermatic Technical FM names Brady as MD

The hard FM services provider has appointed Jack Prady as it pursues its growth plan in the field of technical and energy services. The Salford-based firm provides electrical, mechanical, HVAC,

and drainage at more than 10,000 sites across the UK in industries ranging from manufacturing, retail, construction, and healthcare.

Prady was previously operations director at Vinci Facilities, and before that he was account director at Shell Retail UK

EMPLOYEE

Mitie reports strong half-year financial performance figures

by Facilitate team

Mitie reported strong half-year results for the six-month period ending 30 September 2022.

Contract wins and acquisitions played a part in “more than replacing the short-term revenue boost from Covid-related contracts in the first half of last year”, Mitie said.

Guidance for the full year has been increased with operating profit before other items expected to be at least £145 million. Mitie said it returned £70 million to shareholders with the completion of £50 million share buyback and £19.5 million of dividend payments. It also increased the interim dividend by 75% to 0.7p per share and announced a £10 million Winter Support package for H2 to help its colleagues manage the rising cost of living. Key points include:

● Revenue was £1,923 million as contract wins, acquisitions and price inflation offset the boost in the same period last year (H1 FY22: £1,912 million);

● Total contract value of £1.5 billion added during H1, with renewal rates over 90%. Book to bill ratio of 107%;

● Operating profit before other items was £68 million, down 20% (H1 FY22: £85.3 million), and operating profit margin before other items 1.0ppts lower at 3.5% (H1 FY22:

IN BRIEF

GSH Group reports 2022 revenue growth of 35% A combination of new contract wins and the amalgamation of Team Q Maintenance into the GSH Group are the reasons for a

35% boost in revenues, the company has reported.

Having acquired Team Q in February, GSH has also announced that from this month the combined business will operate as a single entity in the UK, GSH Facilities Management Ltd.

4.5% was boosted by higher margin shortterm Covid-related contracts);

● Excluding short-term Covid-related contracts, revenue grew 16%, reflecting good momentum across all divisions and effective management of inflationary pressures;

● Operating profit before other items of £65.4 million was 45% up (H1 FY22: £45 million) with margin of 3.4% (H1 FY22: 2.7%);

● Operating profit after other items was £50.5 million (H1 FY22: £59.2 million), as reduced other items (£17.5 million of other items in H1 FY23 versus £26.1 million in H1 FY22) partially offset the reduction in Covidrelated contracts; and

● Average daily net debt for six months to 30 September 2022 was £62 million (FY22: £25 million), following the unwind of the £45 million customer invoice discounting, the £50 million share buyback and £20 million FY22 final dividend, with leverage remaining below its long-term target of less than 1.0x average net debt/EBITDA.

Phil Bentley, group CEO, said: “In the first six months of the year we have invested £19 million in three fast-growing, high-margin businesses and, looking forward, we continue to see opportunities to invest in future growth through ‘bolt-on’ acquisitions.”

Inviron retains £1.2m M&E deal with Herts Police Inviron has secured a £1.2 million, three-year deal with Hertfordshire Constabulary to provide full mechanical and electrical services across the force’s 45-site portfolio.

This contract renewal sees the continuation of Inviron’s partnership with the constabulary, assisting with its critical daily duties by ensuring the maintenance and safety of mechanical and electrical equipment and systems for

ACQUISITION

ATLAS FM BUYS CLEANING FIRM

Atlas FM has acquired cleaning and support services firm Lewis & Graves Partnership (L&G) as part of its strategy to broaden its total FM offering. The deal enables Atlas to offer increased expertise and service delivery to education clients.

The Atlas group employs about 10,000 FM personnel and operates across the UK, while L&G employs 1,300 people at 200 sites in London and the Home Counties. It specialises in the education sector with clients in the City of London and local government, including Wandsworth Borough Council, South Thames Colleges Group and the Partnership Learning Trust.

Chris Wisely, Atlas FM group’s managing director, said: “L&G is a business that has consistently grown to have a leading presence in South East England. This strengthens our total FM and educational sector offering, whilst giving our colleagues in L&G the opportunity to grow as part of a truly national company.”

James Abbott, operations director of L&G, said: “We are highly aligned in terms of strategy and values, and Atlas shares our passion for quality, innovation and sustainability.”

its workforce and visitors. The contract also includes the introduction of new Net Zero initiatives, such as their fleet transitioning to electric by 2025.

ISS extends FM deal with Warwick Hospital ISS UK and Ireland

has renewed its facilities management contract at Warwick Hospital with a £7.8 million, two-year service agreement. The extension continues a fiveyear collaboration between ISS and the hospital, which is managed by the

BIDVEST NOONAN ANNOUNCES NORTHERN IRELAND MD

Bidvest Noonan has appointed Jim O’Hagan as managing director of its business in Northern Ireland.

O’Hagan has more than 20 years of senior leadership experience and has brought success to many brands. He replaces Scott Brannigan, who has retired.

O’Hagan said: “I want to wish Scott the very best in his retirement and thank him for the work he has done to ensure my smooth

APPOINTMENT

transition into the role. I look forward to working with my new team to build on our success to date and continue to deliver outstanding support to customers.”

Bidvest Noonan provides services ranging from cleaning and security to facilities management in Northern Ireland and supports many brands operating across the UK and Ireland.

BESA’S TECHNICAL DIRECTOR LANDS PRESIDENCY AT INSTITUTE OF REFRIGERATION

The Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) has congratulated its technical director Graeme Fox on becoming the president of the Institute of Refrigeration (IoR).

Fox was announced as the winner of a members’ vote at the Institute’s AGM last year and took over from Mike Creamer at the IOR AGM.

A chartered engineer with more than 30 years of experience in the sector, Fox ran his own air conditioning contracting business for 25 years before joining BESA as head of technical at the

UK’s main F-Gas register REFCOM in 2016. He became head of technical for the whole BESA group in 2020 and was promoted to technical director last month.

He is a fellow of the IoR and was president of AREA, the European contractors’ body, from 2010 to 2014. He has been working with the United Nations to develop a ‘Refrigerant Drivers’ Licence’ scheme to help developing nations establish safety and competency criteria for refrigerant handling, which will be launched next year.

South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust.

Comprising cleaning, catering, workplace and technology, portering and security services, this latest agreement supports the hospital’s innovation strategy, implementing

new solutions to future-proof its technologies.

Serco wins MoD Royal Navy contract

Serco will continue to provide marine services to the Royal Navy under a new contract awarded by the UK Ministry

of Defence. Valued at around £200 million, the contract was due to start in December and last 27 months. It follows on directly from a 15year private finance initiative (PFI) deal, ensuring continuity of support. The MoD has an option to extend the contract for

SPIE secures UKAS legionella accreditation

by Prithvi Pandya

SPIE UK has secured ISO/ IEC 17020 accreditation from the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) for the management of legionella risks.

UKAS is the national accreditation body for the UK appointed by the government to assess organisations that provide certification, testing, inspection and calibration service s. SPIE had previously achieved accreditation from the Legionella Control Association (LCA) and will now meet the higher ISO/IEC 17020 standard when carrying out legionella risk assessments.

The accreditation process, which lasted lasted two years, has been conducted to help

enable SPIE to compete more effectively for UK tenders.

To meet the international standard for organisations carrying out inspection activities, SPIE was required to overhaul its internal processes and policies to meet UKAS’s threshold for successful accreditation. This included digitising all of its written procedures and policies as well as revamping audit processes to meet accreditation standards.

Steve Austin, operation manager – Environmental Facilities, SPIE UK claimed that the firm was “ the only UK Facilities Management Services provider to secure this accreditation to date”.

up to six months. It follows the end of PFI arrangements for the provision of marine services, with the new agreement made with the Royal Navy directly.

In early December, Serco reported its financial results, which revealed that revenue for

the year 2022 was now forecast to be £4.5 billion, up slightly from its original prediction of between £4.3 billion and £4.4 billion.

Serco Group CEO Rupert Soames said: “2022 will turn out much better than we expected at the start of the year

as strong growth across the business largely replaced Covid contracts.

“Revenue is expected to be 8% higher and underlying trading profit around 20% better than we anticipated when we first gave guidance in December 2021.”

ACCREDITATION

EPH FM ERA

“Now is the time for businesses to start some soul-searching about what they want their organisation to look like, what behaviours defi ne it, and fi nally what the physical office means for them and their people... ideally before they commit to any kind of real estate re-shaping”

“The World Economic Forum’s 2021 Global Gender Gap Report estimates that it will take an average of 135.6 years for women and men to reach parity on a range of factors worldwide. This is an increase of 36 years from 2020 and marks the largest gain in one year since the report started in 2006.”

“This is why to me the office is no longer THE place, it’s A place and is becoming more about convenience, comfort and catering to the experience people want/need from that environment”

SOPHIE SCHULLER, PARTNER AT CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD NETHERLANDS, COMMENTS ON NEWS THAT ALL STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BARCELONA WILL TAKE A MANDATORY CLIMATE CRISIS MODULE

“I am privileged enough to have children, and to afford their care, so I can continue to work (helping women and men find opportunities for career growth). Another woman who isn’t as privileged has to make a choice whether she or her partner (if she has one) can afford to work. And it is usually the mother who pays for it with her career and future earning potential (read Joeli Brearley book The Motherhood Penalty).”

“Navigating the CMMS – It’s more than software. The CMMS is a critical element of an asset management system. Best-in-class organisations understand the potential…”

“I’m confident many people can do their jobs very well at home, but how will they learn to move to the next level, and next? And in particular, to develop those people skills that require regular interaction with others, as well as good modelling from others… I feel this won’t happen spontaneously in the way it has in the past. It will need to be designed and curated consciously.”

BUSINESS COACH TAMSIN TWEDDELL OPINES ON THE POTENTIAL CHALLENGES OF REMOTE AND HYBRID WORKING

DAVE CAIRNS, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT. OFFICE LEASING AT CBRE CANADA, PAINTS A NEW FUTURE FOR THE WORKPLACE

WORKPLACE STRATEGY CONSULTANT DAN PILLING URGES ORGANISATIONS TO CHANGE FOR THE BETTER

US-BASED CRL, CMM AND CMMS EXPERT JOHN REEVE ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CMMS

“UK GOVERNMENT FACILITIES MANAGEMENT STRATEGY – LOOKS GOOD, BUT AN FM STRATEGY WILL ONLY SUCCEED IF THERE IS A PROPORTIONATE LEVEL OF RESOURCES, BUDGET, CAPABILITIES AND INTENT TO DELIVER THE STRATEGY, OR IT WILL BECOME JUST A NICE TEXT TO READ WITH LITTLE SUBSTANCE AND POSSIBLY BY DEFAULT A DIRECTIONAL PATH TO FAILURE”

FM PROFESSIONAL RICHARD HARRIS SHARES HIS THOUGHTS ON THE GOVERNMENT’S NEW FM STRATEGY

HVO SEARCH CEO MARIA HVOROSTOVSKY SAYS HIGH CHILDCARE COSTS INHIBIT MOTHERS FROM FINDING WORK, MAKING IT A GENDERED ISSUE AND EVERYONE’S RESPONSIBILITY.

REBECCA BURGESS,

CEO

AT THE HUNGER PROJECT UK, REMINDS READERS OF THE GENDERED INJUSTICE OF THE WORKING WORLD

“EVERY. THING. IS. AT. RISK. THERE IS NO SINGLE CONCEPT, PROCESS OR ORGANISATION THAT IS NOT IMPACTED”

“For men, there is just as pressing a need to know about it, be comfortable talking about it and be able to actively support menopausal women in their life. When I mention it to men even today I still get hands stuffed in pockets, shoulders hunched, smirks – “nothing to do with me”. To which I respond – it’s got everything to do with you.”