Understand the Needs of the Business
facility management, top management, planning May 20, 2008
I’m Ed Sullivan, editor of Building Operating Management magazine. Today’s topic is understanding the needs of the business.
Many facility executives have achieved leadership because they bring more to the organization than facility-related expertise. That requires a grasp of the functions within the organization, whether it is underwriting, radiology or eighth-grade science. Indeed, facility executives need to be more well-rounded than the managers they support. Those managers don’t need to understand facility management, but ideally facility executives will have a handle on all the important business functions of an organization.
Facility executives who don’t have a good grasp of the unique value that the organization brings to its customers – factors that distinguish it from the competition – will have a hard time identifying ways facilities can add value. In some organizations, cost cutting may be the top priority; in others, it may be attracting new customers.
Top executives weigh choices based on whether they increase stakeholder value; that’s a test facility executives can apply too.
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