What a Facility Manager Does — and Why You Should Consider Outsourcing Daily Operations
Plenty of careers, positions, and job descriptions include a very narrow and targeted scope of work. The role of facility manager is not one of them.
Each day, facility managers at organizations, facilities, campuses, and businesses handle a huge range of tasks. Most of these duties are not one-off responsibilities, but rather they’re jobs that must be completed consistently every day in order to keep the facility safe, productive, effective, and compliant.
With that in mind, here’s a list of some of the most common duties associated with facility managers, followed by our list of the top reasons why you should consider outsourcing your facility management to a dedicated provider.
Common Daily Operations for Facility Managers
It’s almost impossible to pin down every task a facility manager must take on every day, every week, every month, or sporadically over the course of a facility’s lifetime of use. But a facility manager can expect to spend a great deal of time and energy on several categories of tasks.
Perform Upkeep on Equipment and Systems
Everything from the structures themselves to the security systems, utilities, amenities, equipment, workstations, and technology will experience wear and tear, damage, and occasional malfunctions. A facility manager must inspect these assets regularly, make sure they’re functioning properly, and make repairs whenever necessary.
Supervise Facility Staff and Contractors
Medium or large facilities will often have staff on-site for helping manage the facility, but that staff must be managed themselves. This includes external contractors, as well. Schedules must be coordinated, duties and roles assigned, and security clearances handled.
Oversee Projects
Waste disposal, building security, moving and relocation management, and even who gets which parking space can all fall under the responsibilities of the facility manager.
Allocate Offices and Other Facility Space
Facility managers are often tasked with optimizing the use of space within a facility for its specific needs and workforce. This includes frequent adaptations to current best practices and strategies, as well as responses to changes in foot traffic or functionality of the space.
Keep Financial and Other Records
Detailed record keeping is an essential part of the facility manager’s role. This includes financial records associated with the facility, as well as records of facility-related items such as building capacity, usage, peak usage times, cost per individual, and energy use.
Minimize Costs
One thing that every business will always want their facility manager to do is keep costs as low as possible. This can be challenging when also balancing the very real needs of a thriving, operational, and safe facility.
5 Reasons to Outsource Facility Management Tasks
As if the numerous responsibilities outlined above weren’t enough, here are the top five reasons why you could be better off outsourcing your facility management to a dedicated provider with the expertise and equipment you need.
Cost Savings
Everything about a third-party facility management company is designed to streamline costs, from their specific area of focus and expertise to their industry resources and relationships. The most established companies in this field have been operating for years or even decades, and they have optimized their processes for maximum cost effectiveness without sacrificing quality.
Time Savings
Not only will you save money in the literal sense, you’ll also save significant hours that your own employees won’t need to spend managing your facility. This leads directly to reduced costs and freed-up time for them to focus on other important tasks.
Reduced Risk
Facility management experts are unmatched when it comes to risk reduction — both the vital protection of human beings from injury or unsafe conditions and the protection of assets against devastating events such as fires that can damage your facility, sometimes irreparably.
When you trust a dedicated facility management provider, you know that all maintenance and repairs will be completed to the highest standards and according to all industry regulations.
Faster Response Time
When the organization in charge of your facility management is dedicated only to facility management, their response time for repairs, tickets, and requests will be much faster than your own staff, whose time must be balanced across multiple responsibilities and the day-to-day tasks of running your business.
Boosted Creative Energy
While it may be difficult to measure, the increased creative focus your business will enjoy after removing the need for in-house facility management is very real. You and your team will be able to focus on running your business, coming up with creative solutions to difficult problems, and delivering great products or services, not ordering office supplies, meeting compliance standards, or fixing broken computers.
Streamlining your operations by moving to a third-party facility management provider saves costs and time while improving the operations and safety of your business. To find out more, contact Encompass today!
But Wait There's More!
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