Editor's Viewpoint

Predicting the future

20th October 2016

We seem to have entered an age in which crystal balls are particularly cloudy, at least in parts. And it is in those parts, where we are less sure of events and their implications, that risk lies.

It's all in the name

9th September 2016

Whenever someone wants to talk about branding, I'm immediately reminded of Sigmund Freud's nephew and his work in the tobacco industry.

More of the same: that's one way to interpret the conclusions of the latest market research study on global trends in FM. But in this case 'the same' means some very big changes over the next five years or so.

Avoiding a Fexit

1st July 2016

For months, the British politicians who campaigned to leave the EU were portrayed as insular and parochial.

When will the robots take over?

31st May 2016

Every research report that i-FM has been involved in over the past decade has pointed to technology being one of the key game-changers in FM. But where will technology actually take us?

Solving the productivity equation

26th May 2016

If you have been paying attention over the past two years, you will have noticed a growing obsession in facilities management with productivity.

Never mind the title; concentrate on the message

18th May 2016

You might be surprised to learn that BaxterStorey has produced a white paper that purposely looks beyond its own service focus to the wider industry of outsourced FM, with the goal of uncovering how this sector can continue to grow and develop.

Uncertain times in FM

29th April 2016

The 2016 FM Business Confidence Monitor provided us with a window into an industry less confident than it was 12 months ago.

A new contract is not a guarantee of success

5th April 2016

Outsourcing is a big part of the FM sector, of course, but for many years there has been a small parallel stream running alongside this major trend. That stream is all about insourcing, or the taking back in-house of previously contracted out services.

Ready for change?

15th March 2016

Outsourcing walks a fine line between being perceived as a sound and sensible business solution to a whole range of challenges and tipping over into being damned as management conspiracy, incompetence or worse.

Measuring confidence in FM

22nd February 2016

At Workplace Futures earlier this month, i-FM took the opportunity to ask the 240 FM industry professionals that were gathered at The Crystal a few of the standout questions from the FM Business Confidence Monitor.

Public sector FM: a case of needs must

29th January 2016

We've been watching a small but growing trend in recent years. And just in the past couple of weeks it seems there's no doubt about it: whatever else you might say about central government austerity policy, it is now a key driver in the evolution of FM.

One step forward, two steps back

22nd January 2016

Last week, the Building Futures Group (BFG) announced its closure after two years in business. But the news didn't exactly come as a surprise.

FM - stick or twist?

18th December 2015

Traditionally, the festive season is a time for reflection. Drunk on turkey, television reruns and rejuvenated hope, the prospect of a New Year provides us with an opportunity to evaluate the deck of cards we hold and a chance to stick or twist.

Singing your praises

1st December 2015

Change is a fundamental theme in FM, a constant feature in both practice and discussion. Change in contracts and providers, change in the services themselves or how they are provided, change in work or the workplace.... Change is FM's middle name.

An empathic workplace

18th November 2015

In 1950, computer scientist and mathematician Alan Turing - the protagonist in 2014 biopic The Imitation Game - devised a test that would seek to answer one big question: can a machine think?

A living wage?

2nd November 2015

Sunday 1st November marked the beginning of Living Wage Week, a special week organised by the Living Wage Foundation to celebrate the 14-year-old initiative and its signatories.

Working your brand

29th October 2015

After a couple of decades in and around FM you might think I'd be used to it, but I am not. Every time we look at brand perceptions I am surprised by the competition, by the numbers involved and by the diverse views on who the market leaders are.

Awards with legs

30th September 2015

FM awards season is upon us, with the BIFM celebration due in October and the PFM bash following on in November. Those are the two big ones, and they always leave me with the same feeling: are they enough?

Facilities or workplace?

21st September 2015

A growing contingent of FM professionals is championing a transition to the term 'workplace'. At the nucleus of their argument is a belief that this more accurately reflects the discipline as it exists today and would accord it greater respect.

Brands talk, and people listen

26th August 2015

'Brand' is one of those ideas that can seem a bit too trendy for their own good. Of course this particular concept means something in the fast-paced and increasingly global commercial world; but what's it got to do with real life?

Where's the proof?

16th July 2015

I am a marketer's dream. In the two minutes I wait for a Northern Line train to reach the platform at London Bridge Station, I will have meticulously dissected every poster in my view.