Facilities management

Facilities management (FM) involves ensuring that a building functions smoothly throughout its operational life. This covers both technical and general aspects: for example, maintaining building systems such as heating at the same time as making sure that the building is kept clean and that post is sorted. Facilities managers are now frequently involved at the design stage of a project to help avoid future maintenance problems.

Graduates often work for specialist FM companies or large construction organisations that provide FM services. Organisations such as universities and hospitals sometimes employ in-house facilities managers.

Areas of specialisation

Facilities managers usually oversee a broad range of services. However, on larger projects it is possible to specialise in a particular aspect of FM such as electronic, mechanical or fabric maintenance; security; or catering and cleaning. Alternatively you could gain expertise in a specific industry or managing a particular type of building. Job titles include general manager and customer services manager.

Sector trends

FM specialists have started taking on larger, more complex contracts covering longer periods and a range of geographical areas. There has also been a move for FM specialists to provide a huge range of services in one package for private finance initiative (PFI) partnerships. Technological advances have also been beneficial, with equipment such as hand-held computers making it easier to manage essential processes.

Sustainable development

Facilities managers have a huge influence on the day-to-day implementation of sustainable practices. For example, they make choices about how waste is managed and how utilities are used. In fact, as clients take an increased interest in their operational carbon footprint, an FM company’s knowledge of sustainability is often the differentiator that wins the contract from a competitor.

Graduate career routes

You can join FM with any background – it doesn’t matter whether you have an engineering, business or philosophy degree as long as you have the right skills. Most specialist FM and construction companies run graduate schemes and other types of employer also have training programmes in place. Many schemes are rotational, allowing you to sample different business areas. You might work on the commercial side, putting together bids for work or budgets, or be put in charge of a particular team or client. Just months after finishing your training you could be responsible for projects worth £3.5 million; as you progress, the size and geographical reach of your projects will increase.

Skills required

Those who do best in FM are ambitious and dedicated to providing high quality service. You’ll also need:

• management potential
• the ability to handle pressure
• an innovative mindset.

Highs and lows

It’s great when a client asks you to take on the provision of another service: it shows that you’ve been providing good service. Occasionally I have to commute to sites but when searching for a graduate job I soon realised that nothing would give me the same scope as FM.

We would like to thank Chris Wright, customer service manager for Balfour Beatty Workplace, for his assistance with this article. He has a degree in mechanical engineering from Loughborough University and is an associate member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineering.