A workplace has dedicated jobs for everyone. A manager manages, a salesperson sells, and the accounts manager manages the accounts. So what does a facility manager do? They manage facilities, right?

The truth is that facility managers do so much more than just manage facilities. They manage workers, develop property strategies, are involved in space management, look after building administration & maintenance, EHS, renovations & refurbishments, so on & so forth.

Facility managers work across multiple business functions in terms of strategic planning as well as foreseeing operational processes. Since Facility Managers (or FMs) are tasked with providing, maintaining & developing various services, a technology enabling them to ensure seamless management of tasks works as a great boon.

Let us briefly look at the critical responsibilities of facility managers.

Duties of Facility Managers

Facility managers are the manual management system of an organisation. They ensure everything runs smoothly, from resource and labour to work management. 

In aligning the concerned people with their jobs, the facility managers are responsible for:-

• Sourcing and administering contracts and service providers
• Devising measures to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the facility
• Managing employees & coordinating tasks with other departments
• Ensuring a well-kept facility through proactive maintenance
• Handling emergencies
• Managing budgets
• Meeting compliance standards and government regulations
• Planning for the future by forecasting the facility’s upcoming needs and requirements
• Overseeing renovations, refurbishments, and building projects
• Helping with office relocations
• Drafting maintenance reports
• Proper submission of work order requests

Thus, from people to technology, facility managers ensure seamless working throughout the organisation. They must submit the finance prospects regarding new technologies, people, and facilities along with the determined ROI.

One of the major tasks of a facility manager & their team is handling the daily operations & maintaining the facility contracts. On a typical basis, a majority of FMs rely on externally contracted vendors for maintenance jobs such as cleaning, janitorial services, plumbers, electricians, mechanics, so on & so forth. 

Tracking & maintaining data pertaining to this as well as managing their information is quite a bit of a work cut out for the FMs. Here’s where our CMS software can assist facility managers to streamline & automate many of their tasks.

Let us look at what this software is and its benefits.

Benefits of Having a CMS

A CMS has various in-built functions to support the duties of facility managers. It offers a centralised, dynamic, and automated management system across all platforms. The facility manager’s responsibilities are not only simplified but also efficient and streamlined.

Let us look in detail at how CMS software helps facility managers.

An exclusive Vendor Repository

A special contract database to store information of all the vendor contracts can be created. This repository will also ensure transparency & foster better communication amongst team members. 

Additionally, it also cuts down the efforts of digging through piles & decks of folders for hard copies of invoices, contracts, works orders etc. With the added segregation of name wise, product/servicewise, pricingwise & any other keywords or metadata ensure easi fetching of information

Data Centralization and Visibility

Data centralization helps the managers identify the requests, timeouts, validity, approvals, and requirements. The visibility access can be granted to the required personnel to get the work status and reasons for its uphold, if any.

Automated and Streamlined Processes

The entire manual system is automated and, in turn, streamlined. This involves managing orders, inventory, maintenance, distribution, audits, and shifts. Mobile compatibility ensures sharing of information, saves time, reduces errors, and amplifies coordination. The data sharing across various devices helps to increase the efficiency and coordination of employees working on-field and off-field.

Consistent Maintenance and Easy Knowledge Transfer

The CMS software enables a proactive approach toward safety measures. Proper synchronisation of devices, alerts, suggestions, and IoT can help prevent incidents and underperformance. Knowledge transfer is no more a tedious task. All service-related documentation is stored in the software and is accessible to the person in charge of the job. All the necessary documentation is secured and accessible to the related personnel. Also, knowledge transfer can be carried out more quickly in the case of the departed team member.

EHS and Compliance Management

The software determines and forecasts the entire audit management process. It generates responses, reports, and analyses based on the audits. Thus, it becomes effortless to manage audits and meet compliances. Now that the audit management is in place, there is a centralised data generation for environment, health and safety data. The streamlined processes help to identify incidents earlier, thus leading to better preventive and corrective measures. 

And We Conclude.

No doubt CMS software effortlessly manages the jobs of facility managers, but it comes with its set of risks too. Organisations must have a selective approach while implementing the CMS software in their system. The software should be able to provide a competitive advantage along with asset operation management.

But as IDC (International Data Corporation) states, “some organisations have yet to move past legacy systems and spreadsheets for critical EAM functions like repair order management, work scheduling and replace/repair decisions.“

Therefore we hope that after knowing the benefits of the CMS system, your organisation may proceed from the past legacy system to the newer technology with a positive frame of mind!