Mohamad Jaber

Facility management is a business function, and the actions of facility managers have financial and organizational impacts.

Safety is always the first concern followed by legality, cost, and customer service.

An FM staff member should be directly responsible for every physical asset and function.

There is a cost of ownership of facilities; it is the facility manager’s task to ensure that management understands that cost.

Facility managers should be cost-conscious in everything they do, and should capture all costs in this analysis.

If something looks like a good idea, investigate whether anyone else has tried it. If it works in one place, it can be adapted to another this is the essence of benchmarking.

A good, commonsense decision beats “paralysis by analysis.”

The budget should be the chief management information tool. Put effort into its preparation and format, and then monitor its execution carefully.

Every physical asset should be under appropriate life-cycle management.

When an outside consultant is used, take care and time in defining expectations.

Clarify life-cycle and sustainable design and operational intents before launching new projects.

As the design-construct cycle proceeds, changes become costlier and less effective. The facility manager must retain control of the design-construct cycle.

In the planning of major projects, engineering requirements are nearly always understated.

Plan for flexibility and redundancy in building systems if FM expects to use them permanently.

Plan with care, and always retain the capability to react.

Cultivate long-term relationships. Remember that the successful FM organization is a team (staff, suppliers, contractors, consultants).

Remember that the customer—and the customer alone—defines service. The facility manager’s responsibility is to find out how the customer rates the service.

The facility manager must regularly measure both the effectiveness and the efficiency of the department.

The facility manager must be active in public relations outside the department. If the facility manager doesn’t promote the department, who will?

The best way to save money is to participate in facility business planning. A facility business plan should support the company business plan. Business plans should be the result of long-range facility master plans.

The facility manager should prioritize the development of an FM information system with the budget as the base document.

Conduct oneself with a high regard for ethics.