FM Systems

This chapter draws heavily on the requirements of ISO 41001 and suggests practices that should be followed if improved organizational and operational efficiency is to be achieved and conformity is to be claimed by the FM organization.

The management system should be seen as a key tool to help an organization succeed. It should not be regarded as administration to satisfy the needs of an assessment or certification body.

The following points, among many others, are covered in the chapter.

• A management system describes the way in which an organization manages the interrelated parts of its business processes and activities to achieve its objectives.
• A management system standard specifies requirements that an organization must follow to improve its organizational and operational efficiency and to claim compliance with the said standard.
• The International Standards Organization (ISO) has published numerous management system standards – many are applicable across sectors but others are sector specific.
• ISO 41001 Facility Management – Management Systems is a sector-specific management system standard that specifies repeatable steps for an FM organization to follow to improve its organizational and operational efficiency through heightened personnel awareness, leadership and commitment, among other means.
• The standard assists in creating a workplace environment where it is normal to plan and check facility management processes and activities, making adjustments and corrections where necessary to improve performance and effectiveness.
• The facility owner or operator – the demand organization – benefits from more efficient use of resources and improved financial performance by the FM organization on its behalf.
• The implementation of a management system for facility management – FM system for short – has to be carefully planned.
• A realistic time-plan or schedule should be prepared for implementing the FM system, including contingency to cover unforeseen events; it is easy to allow too little time but harder to explain later why sufficient time was not allowed in the first place.
• Organizations wishing to establish an FM system can develop their own in-house using the ISO 41001 standard, employ a consultant to do much the same or appoint an assessment, auditing and certification body.