Honoring the Unsung Heroes Who Increase Productivity and Maintain Business Continuity

Today we are celebrating World Facilities Management Day (World FM Day), dedicated to recognizing the men and women across the globe who take on the challenging responsibility of maintaining the safety, efficiency and usability of our workplaces.

Not every profession has a day dedicated to the importance of their work – but since 2008, facilities management professionals have been recognized as the unsung heroes of the built environment. Facility management is a critical component in caring for the infrastructure of a business, which is critical for employees’ quality of life, performance and engagement.

This year’s theme is Empowering People for a Productive World. According to the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), the focus is on how FM enables people to work, and propels the economy, technology and social interaction. Improving quality of life is at the heart of the IFMA and Sodexo’s mission – and for this year’s World FM Day, we are highlighting how FM professionals empower people to reach their full potential, creating a more productive world.

The intent is to support the facility manager’s ability to adapt and respond to shifts in business, energy consumption, extreme weather and challenging economic conditions – keeping business operations up and running in all situations. World FM Day is the time to recognize our FM professionals for their expertise in facility management such as:

• Risk and Business Continuity – FM is a key component to building resilience in business both in prevention and in the continuity plans to keep operations running or getting them back up swiftly
• Sustainability– How we manage our buildings and FM infrastructure with the challenges and targets surrounding climate change
• Energy Management– With projected energy cuts in many countries and fluctuating energy prices, the way we manage our energy consumption is of continued importance to businesses, governments and society

Over the past 25 years, the role of the facilities management professional has grown as the FM function earns a seat at the strategy table in more organizations. FM professionals are being asked to continually adapt to the evolving business landscape and address emerging new trends within the sustainability, technology and energy management functions.

It’s an exciting time. Facility management teams have a chance to shape the future of their organization, not only from the cost and efficiency perspective, but also from the asset and infrastructure planning perspective. Perhaps most importantly, FM professionals have the opportunity to deliver a measurable increase in quality of life while simultaneously improving the performance of individuals, organizations and communities.

In a challenging economy, it’s important to look at things differently, and that’s just what Sodexo facilities management professionals are called to do — from creating a way to measure impact in Quality of Life per Square Foot, to sharing our industry insights via our Workplace Trends Report.

Our research reveals that senior executives know that a company is only as good as the engaging, innovative and safe environment they provide for their employees. Quality of life on the job affects employees’ productivity and engagement, which is directly correlated to the experience of their clients and customers. Whether it’s an energy management solution, an infrastructure renewal project, or a facility redesign to optimize workspace, the quality of life conversations are taking place at all levels. Today’s facilities solutions are mission critical to an organization’s culture, their people’s quality of life and ultimately their future success.

Sodexo is committed to improving performance and enhancing quality of life for the individuals, organizations and communities we serve. Learn more about our FM Leaders and join the celebration at #WorldFMDay.    

Dean Johnson is CEO of Service Operations for Sodexo North America where he is responsible for a portfolio of activities including operational efficiency and growth, IT, facilities management services, foodservice program development, safety and supply management. With $9.3 billion in annual revenues in the U.S. and Canada, Sodexo’s 133,000 employees provide more than 100 unique services that increase performance at 9,000 client sites and improve Quality of Life for 15 million consumers every day.