Keith Tate has built a successful career in facilities management by relying on a few key principles. The facilities management director for Polk County, Florida, has done it by embracing continuous improvement, technology and change.
FacilitiesNet: What career did you think you might pursue when you graduated?
Keith Tate: My father always preached to my brothers and I that once we graduated from high school, we would get a job in a factory. That was not for me. The sound of working in a factory was torture to me. I loved to draw as a kid growing up. Just different things, barns, houses, fields. I knew I didn’t want to be an art teacher, which was all that was taught at a local college. It took a while for me to figure things out. After several years of searching and going through various twists and turns, I ended up going to Lexington Community College and the University of Kentucky where I received a Bachelor of Architecture degree, which was great. I would draw for free when I was growing up, now I am getting paid to draw. It doesn’t get any better than that.
FacilitiesNet: What was your first job in facilities? Why did you choose it?
Tate: My first job in facilities was working as a general laborer in a plumbing shop. I didn’t really choose it. I needed a job, and they needed someone who was silly enough to take the position. After working in a few manholes, it did not take me long to figure out that I did not want to be a plumber for the rest of my life. However, I think that it is very important to say many of the lessons I learned from those old plumbers a long time ago I still refer back to as I navigate through my current duties. It seems like one of those memories pops up on almost a daily basis.
FacilitiesNet: What has surprised you most about facilities management?
Tate: I am always puzzled by the resistance of people in facilities management to new technologies and innovations. As an example, I tried and tried before the pandemic to get our team members to use video technology to do meetings. The pushback was unbelievable. Now, after the pandemic and being forced to go that route, it’s like, ‘How did we ever operate without Microsoft Teams or Zoom?’ You would think in a profession that is based upon results and efficiency that technology and an innovative mindset would go hand in hand?
FacilitiesNet: What accomplishment are you proudest of?
Tate: When I first accepted my appointment as facilities management director for Polk County, the first thing I did was listen. You can learn valuable information just by remaining silent. One of the things that stood out to me was there was no communication between the different counties, municipalities, cities and school boards, even though by state statute we are all charged with doing the same thing. We just accomplish our task in different ways.
So I researched the names of other directors across the state of Florida. I sent out an email inviting them to attend a symposium that I would host in Polk County. I did not know if anyone would show up. That first symposium we had approximately 30 people show up. It was awesome. That first meeting has evolved into a statewide networking group we affectionately call the Florida Facilities Information Network, or FIN for short. We have 66 out of 67 counties involved and numerous municipalities, cities and a school board or two. The only requirement to be a part of our group is a willingness to share information. The relationships that have been established across our state are priceless.
FacilitiesNet: What would you tell someone thinking of entering facilities management?
Tate: I believe there are three things that you need to be successful. One is continuous improvement through education and training. You must invest in your people. Two, the use of technology as a tool to improve organizational efficiency. And the third one is the hardest and what I would tell someone entering into facilities management, surround yourself with people who are willing to embrace change, people who are willing to do things in a way that they have never tried before. It has been my experience that everyone is willing to embrace change as long as it doesn’t affect them. You want to be successful, be innovative and keep an open mind to new ideas.
Are you interested in sharing your career path with the readers of FacilitiesNet and Facility Maintenance Decisions? If so, contact Dan Hounsell at dan.hounsell@tradepress.com
