One lasting change from the pandemic that has had a major impact on daily operations is the adoption of remote work. This has affected the way Facilities Management (FM) or Facilities Services organizations do business as well.

Many organizations are getting rid of large offices and moving more towards smaller office spaces in different locations or flexible workspace, as a way of offloading unused real estate, cutting costs, and meeting the demands of modern workers.

• As a result, service organizations that provide Facilities Management are having to adapt and adopt new solutions in order to meet changing needs.

Is Your Service Organization Prepared?

Facilities Management now involves more sporadic and less predictable workloads, new or more diverse territories, and a need for reactive service. Aside from the reasons discussed above, these changes are due to:

1. A Push for Sustainability and Efficiency

• With sustainability being one of the reasons remote work has caught on, a service organization that shows up to a job with pen and paper is going to be instantly seen as out of touch.
• The amount of investment that has been put into infrastructure for remote work means that people in general are now used to being able to access services quickly and efficiently, via technology.

2. Fluctuation in Service Demand

• Flexible work spaces mean some services will be used more or less often, creating different needs for emergency work and routine maintenance alike; which has an impact on what organizations need, and what they’re looking for in terms of SLAs.

3. Labor Shortages

• An aging workforce and difficulty attracting new talent to the service industry has meant labor shortages.
• With organizations spreading out to take advantage of smaller, less expensive, and more adaptable work spaces, service organizations may have trouble sourcing skilled workers to meet demands in certain areas.

4. A Rise in Customer Expectations

• Personalized, intuitive service, that gives customers a choice in how they receive service is expected.
• The key here is that your customers, just like anyone, will feel better about your company when you’re easy to do business with; which means different things to different people.

How to More Easily Meet Changing Demands

The right technology  is absolutely critical to address these changes in Facilities Management. It can make the difference between missing out on opportunities and creating new ones.

How the right solution can help:

1. A Push for Sustainability and Efficiency

• Paperless, on-platform solution functionality in the field, with mobile capabilities.
• Access to data, digitalized forms, contracts and SLAs, and any and all information needed onsite.

2. Fluctuation in Service Demand

• The ability to capture data points in order to better predict when and what type of service is needed.
• Real-time information for scheduling optimizations.
• The ability to know when and if 3^rd party contractors are needed.
• IoT capabilities gather data for predicative maintenance.

3. Labor Shortages

• Retention of knowledge and processes thanks to automation and databases.
• Self-help functionality for customers.
• Remote assistance for less experienced workers, so they can receive the help they need onsite from a more experienced worker in a different location.

4. A Rise in Customer Expectations

• IoT and predictive maintenance helps here as well, meeting needs before they become an emergency.
• More data points allows for better estimations of demands, and more intuitive service and service offerings; tailoring SLAs and contracts to reflect what your customers need means broader appeal.
• Personalized engagement and the ability to more quickly respond.

The Right Technology

Gogh Solutions partners with IFS to more easily meet changing demands for service and Facilities Management organizations, and can leverage our experience to make sure your organization finds the right technology and the right solution for your business.

Contact us for advice or information to help ensure your Facilities Management or service organization is prepared. To find out more download the full IFS brochure here.