FM operations can derive benefits from IWMS through procedural analysis

Abstract/Business Case

1    Overview

Real estate management and facility management have both evolved together at a rapid pace during the last two decades. The complexity has also risen with changing demands of facility services. Facility managers want to know how IWMS/CAFM can drive efficiency and value in business processes that are directly linked to facilities management (FM).

2    Executive Summary

Facility managers view IWMS/CAFM as an automation tool that primarily supports core FM operations. However, managers must handle this technology in such a way that it adjusts the FM processes well in advance to cater to future complexities and drives the FM departmental objectives to deliver value of FM to the organization.

3    Purpose and Introduction

The whitepaper aims to project IWMS as a process improvement tool within FM to deliver departmental objectives that are in sync with organizational goals. Improper project management is more due to misalignment between project objectives and the solution offered rather than any grass root problems. It is very critical to understand that selecting an appropriate IWMS/CAFM technology alone is not sufficient to drive success. The balancing between technology and business objectives holds the key for optimizing value in that FM project.

Defining IWMS and CAFM

Integrated Workplace Management System (IWMS) is a single technology platform that supports the following functional areas in facilities management and real estate management:

• Facilities and space management
• Real estate and lease management
• Project management
• Maintenance management
• Environmental sustainability 

Across Europe and the United Kingdom these software solutions are termed        under the bucket of Computer Aided Facilities Management (CAFM). One of the key differences from a functional perspective between IWMS and CAFM is that CAFM does not include the functions of real estate, project management and environmental sustainability.

Driving value in an organization through IWMS

• Interoperability: The integration that IWMS systems bring on board contains lot of information which can be used by all departments. For example, the space management strategy interoperates with the overall organization planning by reducing the interruption time for space blend. This results in faster turnaround of goods and services to the market as the space is optimally utilized. IWMS is the only system that brings together and correlates people, assets and space in a single platform. The information gathered is of high importance, especially for planning and implementing departmental objectives
• Reorganization: The technology presents an opportunity for organizations to make their structure flat by eliminating silos as IWMS enhances delegation and accountability. It augments communication among various levels of an organization. Organizations can go a step higher by merging high spend areas such as real estate management with facilities management
• Cost savings: The operational costs of any department including facilities directly impact the bottom line. Therefore, organizations are constantly striving to bring down costs and increase their net earnings. A well implemented IWMS helps to visualize the factors that are driving costs and can help optimize processes to bring down costs across departments
• Cultural Connect: Technology like IWMS brings together employees from different sections to address a problem or share an insight that can be followed across other sections. Technology as a culture promoting tool is overlooked and not leveraged properly by many organizations. However, such tools can facilitate productivity, bring down employee turnover and convey the unique organizational culture through marketing the information and processes

How to select an ideal IWMS for your organization?

To derive maximum benefits from an IWMS, there are four key factors which should be considered before its selection.

• Cost: Investment in various phases of IWMS right from the initial phases and further depends heavily on the complexity of processes it supports and on the size and functionality of the project. It also depends on the type of IWMS that is selected. Before selection it is important to focus on the TCO for the technology rather than simply considering the initial investment. Well integrated systems often cost less in the long run and are faster to implement
• Processes and desired outcome: Each organization's strategy may vary from time to time. While it could be carbon emission reporting and LEED certification for one, it could be performance monitoring and SLA management for the other. The scope and processes that are essential for an IWMS depends on the organization's strategy.
• After analyzing the processes it is crucial to determine the output required before selecting an IWMS. For multinational companies it usually involves reports and KPIs that are centrally managed with parallel considerations on multiple languages, time zones and currency. Validation of these requirements is critical before selection
• Integration and technology: The IWMS needs to confirm with the existing IT infrastructure in an organization such as the operating system, security standards and database systems. Also the integration of IWMS with other platforms such as Microsoft Exchange, Building Management Systems, and SAP is also gaining attention. Customized systems are losing their foothold and giving way to more flexible integrations. These configurable standards are easy to maintain and have lower TCO in their lifecycle
• Selecting vendors and implementation: Vendors typically follow one of the two implementation approaches: start from scratch or best-practice. The market trend is shifting for best-practices approach as it confronts budget and timeline constraints and also gets the best out of vendors’ experiences in similar projects. Organizations must look at vendor selection from a continuous perspective as technology is an experience which keeps on evolving with time and full lifecycle support becomes critical. Training also holds the key to vendor selection as operational efficiency of IWMS depends on how well the employees understand and implement the technology

Direct benefits of IWMS

• Transparency and Efficiency: IWMS not only holds a huge amount of data but also gives a clear understanding on the current status of the existing processes. For example, the amount of idle work space available, whether preventive maintenance is on track or deviated, validity of contracts, etc. Information managers can therefore look into the present, analyze and remove bottlenecks (if any) and take key decisions that will impact the business processes
• Space optimization: IWMS provides the average space utilization (%) across meeting rooms, work stations, canteens, etc. Accordingly, one can eliminate the underutilized spaces, change their functions and effectively use the available spaces
• Future planning and Decision support: Usually it is difficult for organizations to predict and plan their future space occupancies, forecast their energy consumptions and maintenance budgets or any other metric which directly impacts their business. Based on historical data IWMS supports decision making on tactical, operational and strategic fronts allowing FM managers to plan in a much better way and take timely decisions
• Monitoring and Compliance: The entire supply chain of outsourced services can be integrated on a single platform and supplier's performance can be tracked in real time. IWMS also carries certain tools and functions that support the legislation and laws associated with facilities management and real estate services. These structures help to protect the business processes from any legal consequences

Conclusion

From a buyer’s perspective there are certain key elements to be considered while implementing an IWMS:

• Focus on understanding the business requirements and processes in depth before beginning the implementation
• Spend sufficient time in training the staff and bringing in the change management
• Implement the tool stagewise and be prepared to customize the processes instead of the tool
• Audit at regular intervals and obtain valuable feedback from the staff to track what is going right and what should be brought on track
• The IWMS/CAFM technology has grown at a much faster pace over the last decade and it truly adds value to FM department by improving service, reducing risk, reducing cost and effort. Now it is upon organizations to select an IWMS that will truly deliver their objectives