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5 Things Every Facility Management Company in India Should Do in 2022

No longer than a few weeks into 2022 and media platforms were thronged with updates surrounding the current state and future of facility management in India. These were senior leadership folks and progressive thinkers at facilities management companies talking about change and leveraging the power of digitalisation. All of this coverage signaled a positive outlook towards the use of data and digital technology to make facilities management in India more proactive and streamlined.

So the sentiment is there, and the business environment is favourable, to say the least. Only one thing remains to be done. Acting upon these trends, that people in the Indian facility management industry are talking about, especially trends at the intersection of facilities management and digital transformation.

Umesh Bhutoria, founder & CEO, Xempla took this opportunity to get right to the bottom of this much awaited development. In a 5 minute micro podcast, he takes you through a step-by-step process to get your digital and business transformation roadmap up and running. You can scroll down and catch all the action by listening to the podcast at the end of this article, or you can read along here.

Either way, let’s get you started.

Facilities management in India is ripe for technological disruption, with data center, pharma, healthcare, and manufacturing being top priority sectors. Although India lags behind other established facility management markets like the US, UK and UAE in terms of organized players and degree of automation, it only means there’s scope for incredible growth.

Sure, there will be challenges along the way, but that’s what we’re here to help you out with. Digital transformation and automation in facilities management requires smart investment, careful planning and adoption of new technology. More than this, empowering the people – the end users and consumers of these technologies – is what matters most.

And to undertake this inclusive transformation, we put together a list of 5 key things that every facilities management company in India should in 2022, and continue to work upon over the coming years.

5 key things every facility management company in India should do in 2022

#1

First, companies have to set a timeline for 100% digitization. Most facility management companies in India, perhaps almost all, still record and plan maintenance activities on paper. Using paper-based maintenance systems implies little or no sharing of information. So the move to complete digitization is absolutely critical in improving communication and efficiency across the organization.

A timeline between 1 and 2 years could be an ideal one to follow. But longer than 2 years could mean your company will be falling behind the curve.

#2

The next step is to map the smartphone skills of the workforce. India has a great degree of smartphone penetration, thanks to the large user base and increasing demand for mobile internet. Availability of mobile devices is widespread, manpower is also abundant, but there are still underlying problems faced by facility management companies in India. Some of the devices are not very favourable for the use of voice, text, and camera features, which are essential to the accessibility of asset data and convenience of the blue collar workforce.

The other problem that the industry faces deserves much higher attention. In the digital transformation process, the importance of empowering the blue collar workforce cannot be stressed enough. Training the operations and maintenance staff, and other ground level workers to adapt to the evolving technology is going to be critical, especially for a market like India. Their observations and the kind of data they bring in are key to preserving the ‘human’ aspect of facilities management.

#3

Most facility management companies in India, apart from the usual bigger ones, do not have a tech stack or a data stack. Naturally, they cannot be expected to invest heavily in building or buying the required technology and get ready in a short period of time. A great starting point is to connect with a group of 2 to 3 technology partners, ideally startups that work well with your in-house team. As you expand upon your portfolio, you can narrow down to the one company that you would like to work with over the longer term. Collaboration and complementing your business knowledge is essential.

Listen to our latest podcast on the importance of digital collaboration.

#4

Next, dedicate a team to track the entire digital transformation journey. Preferably, get people from Human Resources, Operations, IT and Business Development. Any function that you think will hold a key should have a representation in this team. Core responsibilities of the team will be tracking the implementation of strategies and making any course corrections as needed.

#5

And finally, take care of risk management right away. You lose out on future bids when you’re in the middle of your current contract, not at the time of the rebid, because performance-based contracts are fast replacing time-based ones. Very few facility management companies in India consider risks associated with the current portfolio, largely from the innovation or rebid perspective. Commercial property owners, users, tenants and clients expect high performance from facility management teams and minimised risks. It’s very important that whatever initiatives you take, you factor the risks within existing projects, especially the ones that have higher risks.

Let’s do a quick recap of all the action items we discussed above.

Digital transformation has become essential for every business, even if it is a traditional business which is based on people relationships like facility management. Companies that fail to follow will be pushed out of the industry in the coming years.

Make 2022 the year of change you were talking about. What are some of the important things that FM companies in India should be working on from this year onwards? We would love to know your thoughts!

February 7, 2022
Workflow automation – defining ideal flow for asset management
What comes to mind when one comes across a workflow management application for facility management? It should be a customer-facing application for creating support tickets, managing work orders, centralizing all work requests on a central platform for quick access, etc. Well, It’s all true but not complete. The concept is not new to the FM industry in fact, workflow automation software have been in use in IT, banking, and SaaS-based firms for a long time and they have been using it to streamline their external as well as internal processes.

Workflow automation puts critical functions of the facility management on autopilot mode, It simplifies complex procedures which include condition-based Maintenance/Monitoring into a set of chain actions reducing human intervention. For example, if an air handling unit’s fan is taking more current than expected value (statistically driven calculation) then it will alert the operator to check the filter or take appropriate action.

However, when it comes to asset management or maintenance schedules, we have rarely explored the possibilities and opportunities of asset-based workflow automation for the operations and maintenance team. It’s far from a crude concept of managing a maintenance calendar or setting up an alert on an asset set point condition.

The current state of FM automation software

Nowadays, facility management teams have multiple options to build their technology stack that includes data collection sensors, processing, and cloud storage and finally, the user interface application for visualization and reporting either for O&M teams or the tenants. Teams can choose asset performance management software and CMMs/CAFM from the different vendors and work with both of them simultaneously.

But then are few challenges there,
- Obviously, the level of integration and inter-application communication can be challenging as both the applications would want to build their own set of modules for critical functions.
- The functionality of creating a ‘trigger then, that’ condition can be limited and only applies to a fixed set of assets.
- Takes a lot of time to set up and synchronize different applications at a new site. A user would usually need to create ‘If conditions’ from the scratch.
With all these limitations, It becomes very difficult to pinpoint an Ideal application or software that has overcome these. But in a true sense if we want to define a set of functionalities that can be exhibited in workflow automation software specifically for managing the asset performance then it should be comprehensive for all asset class and logic types.

Ideal Workflow:

In terms of steps, It should look like this
1. The O&M engineer or facility manager can log in to the application and select the asset on which we would like to set up a condition. So there would be a list of assets available for consideration.
2. Select the condition based trigger template from the library. Once the asset has been selected he can choose the list of parameters he would like to track for the desired condition. at the same time, he would also set up a condition/ trigger /logic for the same. (ideally, the user should have ready-made libraries to select the condition template so that can easily select the appropriate)
3. The next step would be selecting a time-frequency he would want the logic to run or scan the data, for example, check the inlet airflow once in every 10 min and trigger if the system finds an outlier when another logic also satisfies.
4. The fourth step would be to choose a medium for notification/alerts to appear as the O&M team might be using other CAFM or CMMS application. This is where the pre-configured integration would come into the picture as an operator would receive the notification in his CAFM application’s inbox or his preferred communication medium such as slack, WhatsApp ore even Microsoft teams.
5. Closing the loop: this would be the last step once an operator receives a notification he also gets the recommendation to take corrective action so that he does not need to go back to his data bank/ BMS for rechecking.
In this entire process, an application can achieve four critical functionalities or could be considered as benefits to the facility manager.
1. It streamlines complex conditions that are otherwise difficult to track manually. An O&M operator can not monitor every asset parameter all the time even on operator-specific dashboards. Such an application can set up multiple ‘If-then’ conditions and notify on every desired stage.
2. Since there is no manual intervention chances of errors and delay are very low. The facility manager can maintain transparency in asset performance monitoring.
3. Inter application communication: This is perhaps a very important and critical aspect for uninterrupted operations. As we are moving ahead to the multi-family technology stack it becomes a crucial part of managing data/ insight flow on different platforms/applications without losing the gist. This gives the ability to complete the loop from a different application.
4. Ready to use templates: user can save his setup condition or flow in a template library so that he can apply the same flow to other assets. This is also a useful feature to a first time user at a new facility as he gets the list of ready to use templates to set up a flow.
In terms of savings, facility management teams can save a lot of time and effort of the operators and engineers by automating critical functions. By scanning, segmenting, and filtering all the asset and operations-related data, workflow automation software lets FM teams focus on implementing insights.

Now, wouldn’t that be an interesting value proposition to have all the benefits in a single application? What’s your experience with workflow automation software before? Anything else that you would like to see in it?
Share your thoughts with us.
December 27, 2021
ESG in the Built Environment:The Real Estate Industry’s Growing Importance
Climate change has made it plainly obvious how certain businesses have turned a blind eye towards the environment for years. Even after so many pledges and virtuous display of corporate social responsibility, very few trust business to do right by the planet and society. The gravity of global challenges and the impact of business on them have brought environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues under intense scrutiny by all stakeholders – from shareholders and employees to customers and people at large.

Today, a company’s operations and growth prospects are closely assessed in terms of its ESG performance, irrespective of sector and size. However, the real estate sector is of special focus to the ESG agenda. ESG practices in real estate were fundamentally born out of necessity. But the theme of such practices should slowly move away from merely preventing damage, towards creating a positive impact and delivering solutions.

Why ESG Should be Top of the List for the Real Estate Industry?

1. Real Estate’s Big Environmental Impact

We can safely say that investors’, customers’ and the general public’s heightened awareness on climate change in recent years is making ESG climb up the priority list for companies in just about every industry. And when you consider that buildings alone are responsible for a whopping 40% of the world’s carbon footprint, you already know where we need to pick up the most pieces!

The real estate industry, with its large-scale and complex system of assets for heating, cooling, lighting and other purposes, causes a significant amount of operational emissions and energy waste. Real estate establishments have a long lifespan and normally cannot be relocated, leaving them vulnerable to regional consequences of ESG risks such as stricter regulatory requirements, shifting preferences of society, and exposure to extreme weather events.

2. Global Commitments to a Net Zero Future

Commitments from governments and organisations around the world are increasing demand for the adoption of ESG initiatives by real estate companies.

World Green Building Council CEO Cristina Gamboa says

“We require a solution focused response to the urgent need to significantly reduce upfront emissions in buildings. We will accelerate action to achieve our goal of slashing embodied carbon by 40% by 2030 and securing net zero embodied carbon by 2050, in addition to our net zero operational carbon goals.”

The GlobalABC’s 2021 Global Status Report shows that real estate’s current efforts since COP21, will not be sufficient to achieve net-zero by 2050. Real estate even rose to its villainous status at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow earlier this year. There will be a special focus on the industry, as an entire day was set aside to address the huge implications of the built environment on climate change goals. Despite increases in energy efficiency, global building energy consumption and GHG emissions continue to rise and be locked in for decades.

Also, building floor area is nearly going to double by 2050. Newly designed buildings are certainly more efficient, but 70% of buildings that will exist in 2050 have already been built, so decarbonising our current stock is a top concern.

3. Greater Integration of ESG in Investment Decisions

In response to rising environmental challenges, commitments to net-zero targets, and evolving preferences of investors, real estate companies will undoubtedly have to make massive improvements in their ESG strategies.

Investment decisions are becoming increasingly dependent on ESG factors. In order to make informed decisions, investors require information on how real estate companies are performing on ESG issues, catering to customer demands and meeting legislation. Therefore, building owners, operators and occupants clearly face the material dangers of climate change and potential future costs of lagging behind in sustainability measures.

The same report mentioned in the figure above finds that 74% of investors in UK commercial property think the importance of ESG credentials will increase over the next 12 months.

What’s more, 81% believe it will become even more crucial over the next 3 years, highlighting how important real estate’s commitment to ESG is for investors.

But ESG in the real estate industry can be far more impactful. A report by Deloitte suggests that ESG integration among businesses and investors can serve as a key differentiator for real estate companies, improving reputation and as well as financial performance. The industry’s urgency for transformation presents an ideal opportunity for real estate to concentrate efforts on the “E” in ESG to drive long-term value creation for all stakeholders.

ESG as a Value Driver for Real Estate

Real estate companies that perform strongly on ESG metrics can attract tenants who are progressively looking for efficient, healthy and green certified buildings. Beyond this, ESG-oriented companies can increase profitability through higher property values, tenant retention and improved return on investment.

The gap between green rental premium and brown rental discount is widening. There exists substantial evidence that green buildings command higher rents over equivalent non-green buildings. This indicates strong signals for a “brown discount” on properties with comparatively weaker sustainability credentials.

According to the World Green Building Council, better decarbonisation systems in buildings result in increased marketability, and play a major role in preserving property value. Such mitigation measures in real estate properties have also been found to save money by optimising asset use, leading to cheaper long-term operations and maintenance costs.

It’s About Your Bottom Line

Studies and real world examples have proven over and over again that good environmental practice is excellent for business. When done right, ESG initiatives not only address sustainability, but can also contribute to cost savings, social equity, tenant and employee health and well-being.
- Sustainability has been linked to enhanced cash flow at the building level,
- There is a direct link between portfolio sustainability and stock market success,
- A link between sustainable buildings and greater profits for real estate investors. Returns are also starting to fall for companies that are reluctant or unable to disclose their ESG performance.
Leading real estate companies are proactively managing ESG-related issues, including climate resilience and the net-zero transition. However, there remains a considerable gap between global leaders and conventional businesses. Those who haven’t yet embraced ESG strategies must quickly get on track or they will risk falling behind. There is a crucial need for building analytics solutions to make buildings sustainable and smart.

If you enjoyed reading this article and want to take action, we want to hear from you! Get in touch via LinkedIn or send an email to chanchal chadha and we’ll be happy to talk.
December 21, 2021
COP26 Impact: Six ESG Mega Trends to Watch in 2022

The trends that set the tone for a more sophisticated ESG environment gathered steam at the Paris Agreement in 2015. Six years later, these trends further intensified and evolved at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), which provided clear direction for ESG-oriented action from governments, business leaders, and the financial industry. Those who have progressively embraced the ESG movement know that companies with strong corporate governance and good business practice are best-positioned for the future.

Down below are six ESG megatrends likely to feature prominently in the actions of companies, investors, and regulators in ways that will redefine the ESG landscape in 2022.

Six Esg Megatrends To Watch In 2022

1. Growing Multi-Sector Collaboration & Finance on ESG Issues

If 2021 taught us one thing, it was that global challenges require global collaboration. Fighting climate change is perhaps the biggest environmental challenge of our time. While governments have always been billed with this responsibility upfront, the good news following COP26 is that private sector players and capital owners have allied to contribute as well.

Apart from world leaders pledging to deliver on climate goals at COP26, more than 30% of the 2,000 largest publicly traded companies in the US have committed to going net-zero by 2050. Over 250 banks representing 40% of financial assets worldwide have joined the Principles for Responsible Banking movement, in which the banking community finances actions to build a socially just and sustainable world. Nearly 300 member companies work together in the Business for Social Responsibility coalition, and the world’s largest investors are joining Climate Action 100+.

Expect more public-private partnerships, collaborations between companies, investors, financial institutions, and industry coalitions to tackle environmental issues, mobilize climate finance, and set standards for responsible business.

2. A New Common Standard for ESG Disclosures

The announcement of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) at COP26 opens a new chapter in the field of ESG compliance and reporting. The ISSB, which will be formed as a merger of the Value Reporting Foundation (VRF) and the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB), likely by June 2022, is an important step towards a consistent reporting framework. The board will unite all different frameworks and build a common, global baseline of sustainability standards to better assess the ESG impact of businesses.

A new common standard like this means compliance with ESG regulation will become easier, and companies will be able to honour their roles in realizing the goals of COP26.

3. From Greenwashing to Integration of ESG Principles

The last 5 years have seen a remarkable rise in interest over ESG from investors, asset managers, and corporate boardrooms. That said, private companies and sustainable finance evangelists are being confronted with growing criticism over “greenwashing” as part of their CSR activities and investment portfolios. For a long time, ESG has been used as nothing more than a marketing tool to persuade the public into believing that a company’s products and operations are environmentally friendly.

COP26 presented a reality check for many business leaders and global organizations. With climate change becoming more visible by the day, we expect more and more stakeholders to understand how ESG principles can and should be integrated into investment decisions and corporate risk management. Further, companies that can better measure their ESG impacts and risks will be better equipped to make smarter capital allocation decisions.

Only companies that make the move away from check-the-box exercises to an outcome-driven approach to ESG operations will be able to successfully drive transformation.

4. The Role of the Built Environment Comes to the Fore

For the first time, at COP26, buildings received the attention of governments and policymakers as they looked to remove this huge barrier to a net-zero world, in a session dedicated to cities, regions, and the built environment. The attention was long overdue.

Buildings use about 50% of extracted materials and produce 40% of annual global carbon emissions. And the total building floor area around the world is expected to double by 2060. All countries are rapidly urbanizing, and we need to check the environmental impact of buildings across their lifespan – their operational emissions from heating, cooling, and lighting as well as embodied emissions involving the production and transport of materials used in construction.

The role of the built environment will certainly take centre stage in the quest for reversing climate change and will form a crucial part of ESG considerations for companies. ESG also prioritizes the well-being of occupants, tenants, and employees within the building. This means that good air quality and safety measures are going to be extremely important for ESG-oriented real estate companies. Thankfully, technologies already exist that can help drive down emissions and make the built environment a safer and more sustainable place to live, eat, play and work.

This brings us to our next ESG megatrend…

5. Data and Technology Will Drive Smart ESG Practices

Data and digital technologies grabbed global recognition as ways to speed up climate mitigation and adaptation at the Glasgow Climate Summit. As Commissioner Thierry Breton said in his speech on the green digital transition at the EU Pavillion side event of COP26 – “Connectivity enabled by digital technologies carries the enormous power of cutting global carbon emissions. 5G, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, digital twins, blockchain, satellite technologies, and so many others can help to reduce them by 15% by 2030!”

Data and technology will enhance the ability to implement and measure ESG related practices and assess their impact on long-term value creation. Better visibility and access to information like asset maintenance schedules and resource consumption will play a major role in linking financial performance to ESG indicators.

For example, digital twins allow operators to look at real-time data across a building’s entire assets including HVAC, security, and occupancy systems, which can then be used to cut down costs, optimize resources and reduce greenhouse emissions.

6. The Rise of the CSO: Increased Focus on Metrics & Executive Compensation

Another ESG trend that will continue to grow into 2022, is the dramatic increase in the position of Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) at companies around the world. According to CSO recruitment firm Weinreb Group’s latest report, of the total 95 CSOs hired in publicly traded US companies since 2007, 43 have been hired in 2020 and 2021 alone. McDonald’s, Walmart, HP, Aramark, FedEx, Morgan Stanley – they all have one.

As companies focus on ESG related metrics, a greater proportion of executive compensation is also becoming performance-based instead of time-based. Even though ESG linked executive compensation can turn into a topic of contention among investors and shareholders, the role of the CSO is expanding and changing. This includes the leap beyond the ‘E’ in ESG to include social justice, diversity, and inclusion at the workplace. Chief Sustainability Officer, Head of Sustainability, Head ESG Officer – we’re expecting more of them in 2022!

Seizing the ESG Moment

If 2020 was the year of awareness and 2021 the year of commitments, 2022 is going to be the year of action. As the foundations are being laid for the trends highlighted above, you can expect to see the extensive implementation of sustainable practices and meaningful collaborations on environmental, social, and governance issues. Energy management for asset maintenance is also becoming the center of sustinable practices.

Stakeholders who fail to seize the ESG moment will likely suffer greater risks and lose out on crucial opportunities compared to ESG leaders in several key areas, ranging from easier access to finance to improved business performance and exploring new business projects.

What are your thoughts on the ESG trends we’re going to see in 2022? How are you preparing to embrace ESG as part of your business strategy? Let us know!

December 14, 2021
Ever-Changing Landscape of Hard Services

To operate effectively, all organisations require a variety of services and it is critical to ensure that individuals, processes and the built environment all operate seamlessly while assisting in an organisation’s everyday operations, increased performance and benefit to the end result by rewarding and recognising the employees.

Organisations have an obligation to deploy certain FM services to comply with regulatory requirements which are determined by the nature, size and location of the organisation. Facility management is a broad term that usually refers to two major aspects: hard and soft services.

We’ll delve deeper into the hard services space and the future of it:

Bridging the gap between the small differentiators and big differentiators

It’s all about trusting and paying attention to the world of technology. While absorbing a lot of information and then looking for small differentiators that can compound into big differentiators, there are lot of things to look for, not necessarily scientific journals, but rather the types of blogs that keep their finger on the pulse of those scientific journals, which you may not know what to expect unless you read it.

So pay attention to those details and try to incorporate them into a broader technology strategy. Many entrepreneurs have a very narrow understanding of the challenges they wish to solve. And it’s often because they are born to be extremely capable individuals who become bored with the type of work they are doing and they want to build something better and you try to help them understand you are on the right track, but you are existing in a traditional kind of space.

Bringing New Regulations and ESG goals into the Hard Services Space

Environmental sustainability and governance issues are the most fundamental tectonic shifts in hard services. So how can you get people into space and continue to make a revenue? That’s less important right now than figuring out how to ensure you’ll be in compliance with the far too late regulation in space. The majority of occupiers now indicate they will make tenancy decisions based on ESG factors. The most significant consideration is how you will persuade the people that your building is a better option than the one right next door.

It’s more of a question of whether we’ll be compliant when this comes up if we don’t do it now as well as if we don’t come up with something, the regulatory climate and economic demand will.

What will not change in the Hard Services?

Materials will not change since there have been some incredible breakthroughs in materials as our society has been so focused on things like digital services. So, unfortunately, in our thoughts enough will change in terms of the materials used.

The term “materials” here refers to the types of materials that make up the actual building itself. It’s like we should deal with challenges knowing that nothing will change. Using technology to track the supply chain of building materials, QR codes and simple optical recognition are all that is required. For tracking purposes, we don’t always require RF, narrow band IOT, or anything like that and now you will start to measure the impact that building has on the supply chain from the beginning.

Taking a look at pre stages of both the consumption and production sides

It’s easy to understand the consumption side. However, not many people are considering the production side. So a lot of the actual production isn’t going to change, not in terms of what is produced, but in terms of how it is transported. You can start to have a real impact by monitoring, measuring and managing.

What’s not going to change in the post construction stage?

The demand for people would be constant, as there is currently a significant shortage of engineering skills in the operational space and the shortage isn’t likely to go away any time soon. So you should consider how you may centralise expertise and provide remote support while encouraging hard services workforce to work in a data first environment and recognising and rewarding them based on their performance.

These hard systems in assets will continue to have trait critical dependencies. There are still four factors which are mechanical, electrical, and plumbing, and the only thing that can be added to that is connectivity, which is somewhat changing as well. It’s no longer like you’ll have power in a building, especially automated systems that are now being deployed. but without connectivity, its capability is very limited. The power from the connection is sufficient to supply us with the information we require. MEP + C isn’t going to change but will only grow and is essential in the next step.

Aspects to consider in the FM space in the short to long term

You can think of augmented reality in the near future for the short term which can be as simple as a user manual or that could be something like troubleshooting guides or might just be a document in today’s world. By providing information and restricting access to only those who need it, it will reduce the amount of minutes or seconds wasted.

Medium term has to be a knock on effect of using augmented reality where it can be applied to machine systems, but it needs to know what to look for.

Considering the long term, it would be the value of decentralised systems and how that can lead to better data transparency allowing for more participants to help improve processes. Introducing building analytics will go along way.

All of the key breakthroughs and approaches in the hard services space are addressed in our blog. To discover more, listen to our podcast episode!

Let us know what you think about leveraging white collar technologies to address future blue collar problems.

November 9, 2021
Key Barriers and Outcomes of State of Facilities Management in South East Asia
Facility management firms are striving to adjust to changing technological usage and economic trends and they have now realised how short a time span is left to handle these developments. Current unanticipated advancements, for which we had no way of preparing, have increased the importance of adaptability and innovation.

The urge to transform increases the risk factor but adds significantly to the improvement of your firm. If you are locked in a traditional company, you will find it more difficult to adjust to a data first environment. Transformation, once again, do not wait for your next planned implementation period. If your company does not make the necessary changes in a timely manner, it may be too late, and your company will be lagging behind the rest of the world.

We don’t want you to struggle so we’ve identified four major barriers and outcomes that Southeast Asia Facility management companies can avoid.

Southeast Asia FM firms compared to rest of the world

Countries have evolved and changed. Technology has become so intricate and developed that there aren’t many companies who understand it any longer. It takes time for them to recognise the change but then they struggle in the road of transformation.

South East Asia markets account for about 3% of the global market when considering the integrated facilities management. FM enterprises are being encouraged by the government to focus on innovation and technology. But, when the government evaluates organisations, they must have a certain number of headcounts. So the government wants organisations to not only have these efficiencies, but also a minimum headcount.

Innovation through the incorporation of technology-supported propositions or enabling technologies is key to the future of FM.” said Janice Wung, Program Manager, Industrial Practice, Frost & Sullivan.

If you look up to the Southeast Asian FM firms, you’ll see IoT is absolutely getting a lot more airtime than what it used to. The real issue, though, is how to get value from the data. It’s not good enough for an organisation to say tick the box, IoT is installed, we’re getting data. But it really does actually have to add some form of real value in the chain.

Is FM markets prepared to take calculated risks?

Digital transformation was once a key focus, but it has now become a requirement. For nearly a decade, it was in the forefront of people’s minds, yet it was also simple to neglect but now you can’t do that.

Inefficiency lies in the traditional companies which are unable to start with the transformational move. Inefficiency suggests that the FM industry is missing out on the advantage of making operations more efficient through technology. As a result, the organization struggles to adopt the new technologies coming by. When your company refuses to invest in upgrading facilities and providing a better workplace experience, it will miss out on attracting the best talent and with that if it becomes too comfortable with the continued business-as-usual scenario, the economical growth rate will drop.

Calculated Risk

Although coming up with a solution is easy, implementing it is a quite totally different thing. The reality is that you must be able to demonstrate to your customers, as well as your own employees, that this is the correct thing to do and that you can accomplish it.

As a result, it’s essentially a risk-reward situation. Taking a calculated risk by stating that our company will be slightly more proactive than its competitors, with the condition that there may be downside.

Internal roadblocks, impeding transformational change

Change is not an intention to eliminate traditional companies, rather, it is an effort to keep FM firms moving with the transformation.

The main difficulty, though, is that cost is tied with culture and comfort. You can’t simply add technology and expect the headcount to stay the same. The goal is to find efficiencies and cut down on costs. Facilities management and sustainability is another goal that needs to be kept in mind.

At Xempla, we believe that you should start by examining the problem you are attempting to address.

Even if the customer is unaware of the process, we are the ones who can, to some extent, change their focus from labour to technology. Of course, when it concerns the cost of tech innovation. Overall FM cost now must be lower in comparison to future costs.

Frameworks to get going on their transformational journey

In our Podcast Series, Umesh and James cover the four Cs: Culture, Comfort, Contracts, and Costs, which is a fundamental framework for properly addressing the underlying need for change.

Culture

Culture in this context refers to preparing your organisation or a portion of it for change. Culture has the capacity to alter, and it does so. It just needs to have the right leadership and vision.

“When organizations undertake digital transformation and focus only on technology at the expense of culture, that can hinder progress in many areas,” says Carey Oven, a partner with Deloitte Risk and Financial Advisory at Deloitte & Touche LLP.

Comfort

Working on an existing contract and running a parallel process with the team, assuring them that this is the site and you are not committed in any way, is what comfort entails.

As a result, you’ve pushed yourself, seen things from a fresh angle, and begun to identify the holes in the process. So that could be a technique to put yourself at comfort.

Contract

If the customer looks at you as an absolute promoter, has genuine love for technology, ready for the change and you have mutual trust. then this is the client with whom you can have an open and honest conversation about what you’re planning to do and what you believe the outcome will be.

Costs

If an FM company has been using traditional strategies, it should set aside savings. Considering Double digit savings is a must.

Of course, you can’t expect it to happen on its own, you must work at it, and there are some really simple things you can do to save money, such as integrating services and using cross-service synergies.

Our blogs cover all the major insights and frameworks briefly. You can check our Ebook or Podcast Series to know more!

Let us know what you think about these insights and frameworks. What, in your opinion, is an actionable framework or plan that will assist a traditional organisation in beginning their transformation journey?
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October 20, 2021
Takeaways from Deloitte’s commercial real estate outlook for 2021 and beyond
Stepping into the last quarter of 2021, the global economy appears to be picking up pace and faring better than many expected. The commercial real estate industry, which has undergone huge changes during the pandemic, became witness to trends such as remote work, digitalization and cloud applications.

In its CRE Outlook for the year, Deloitte investigated the effects of COVID-19 on some of the fundamental functions impacting the CRE industry, and underlined how overcoming these challenges could lead the way for new opportunities to build back stronger.

We bring you our key takeaways from these functional challenges facing the commercial real estate industry – technology, operations, and talent – and how CRE companies can position themselves for growth in the coming years. Let’s get straight into it!

Technology

COVID-19 accelerated and necessitated the use of technology in the CRE industry. Digital transformation and tenant experience are coming to the fore as main objectives amid the pandemic.

Challenge:

Even though digital technology has helped improve tenant experience, fast-track important tasks and ensure business continuity, CRE companies still struggle with defining digital workflows and digitizing key business processes. According to the report, 56% of the respondents believe the pandemic exposed frailties in their company’s digital capabilities and impeded their plans to transform.

So what can CRE companies do to address their digital transformation hiccups?

Opportunities:

By making digital transformation a priority, CRE companies can tap into a sea of benefits – like happier tenants and advanced business performance. Industry leaders suggest that developing a structured plan with a more proactive approach, including the uptake of various technologies and data analytics, would likely bear substantial results.
- Using IoT-enabled smart devices
Companies can significantly improve tenant experience by optimizing real-time updates about facilities and developing a sense of community using IoT-enabled smart devices and mobile applications.
- Leveraging Cloud Tech
Cloud technology could be the cornerstone for a wide range of functionalities as it offers scalability, data storage, and universal access. Some CRE companies have already ramped up their use of cloud-based collaboration and productivity tools like Realstax and Bixby to lower in-house technology costs and increase flexibility.
- Building Partnerships with Tech providers or Proptechs
REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) respondents have put a foot forward in this direction, showing more willingness to collaborate with proptechs. On an average, 58% of REIT respondents showed increased intent to partner, compared to 45% of respondents who are developers.

Operations

Cost management and redefining the value proposition of properties became primary goals for the CRE industry during the pandemic. Optimizing the operations function is considered to be essential for companies to build resilience against the volatile business environment.

Challenge:

As demand for leased space reduced significantly, CRE companies faced rising pressures to contain costs. Companies are also incurring higher operating costs because of the additional health and safety measures they need to implement across their portfolio of properties.

Opportunities:

To position themselves for longer-term success, companies should consider the following actions. These are crucial to enhancing business resilience and cutting down costs.
- Streamlining and Restructuring Operations
This involves an in-depth analysis of business processes, identifying opportunities to restructure and reduce inefficiencies which will allow work to get done faster and more cost-effectively.
- Automating or Outsourcing Non-core Operations
For CRE firms, non-core operations may be data collection & processing, maintenance, security, supply chain management, and so on. These should be automated and/or outsourced to gain operational efficiency. The pertinent dilemma – to build or to buy, must be taken care of.
- Deploying Smart building Design and Asset Management Systems
Companies could increase the value of their properties by deploying smart building design and modernizing asset performance management capabilities to render more relevant services to tenants and end users. This may involve using sensor technologies and predictive analytics to monitor facilities remotely and offer reliability-centered maintenance, implement more rigorous cleaning procedures, monitor HVAC systems, and enable data-driven decision making.

Talent

The shift to remote working was unprecedented for the CRE industry. Companies had to provide the infrastructure for employees to work effectively from home, or anywhere for that matter, while prioritizing health and safety.

Challenge:

The pandemic escalated many organizations’ need to reimagine job roles, leadership strategy, talent systems and processes, and culture to attract and retain a skilled and dynamic workforce.

Opportunities:

Some key avenues for CRE companies to improve upon and champion positive change in their workforce ecosystem
- Creating an enabling culture
Companies should adopt an enabling work culture and use the workplace to make employees feel valued, build strong relations, facilitate collaboration, and create more human experiences.
- Talent Transformation
Planning and implementing a talent transformation to adapt to the future of work, and prioritizing diversity and inclusion will provide a competitive edge.
- Three Approaches to the Way People Work
CRE companies could consider three approaches to the way work is done in the future.

Based on these approaches, companies could be progressives, visionaries, or simply traditionalists. The nature of work in the three types of companies is summed up well by the image that follows!

Conclusion

To state the obvious, the pandemic has altered the way we live and work, and it’s been no different for the CRE industry. It has pushed leaders across the globe to rethink their business strategies and goals, forced companies to prioritize cost containment, and amplified the scope of rewards from digital transformation. At the same time, human connection is becoming more relevant than ever, as in-person interactions have reduced significantly in the last year and a half.

From here on out, CRE companies are expected to master a balancing act – ensure business recovery, seize new opportunities, cultivate a cohesive workforce and improve tenant experience. This will require proactive leadership and organizational agility, and increased levels of collaboration among various stakeholders, to be able to adapt and thrive in the future of commercial real estate.

What strategies have you applied to sustain and thrive in the CRE industry this year? Let us know your experience with technology, operations, and talent, and how you are preparing to overcome the challenges posed by the current commercial real estate scenario.
October 11, 2021
#CREate FM 25 Talks with CRE Changemakers | Episode 5

#CREate FM 25 Talks is an interview series with CRE change-makers and Doers. With this, we intend to bring out first-hand experiences and best practices on digital transformation, energy management, and sustainability initiatives from industry leaders.

In conversation with Gopalakrishnan G,

Having the correct set of solutions with a proven track record of providing a client’s facility is crucial, whether the objective is to preserve the Fundamentals of FM services in a retrofit or to adapt the pace of technology for improved service delivery. In this edition of the FM Times #CREate FM 25 interview, Emrill’s Gopalkrishnan describes how to make the most of cost-efficient solutions and technology implementations.

Q.1 Can you just brief us about your background, a little bit of what you are doing currently?

Gopal: I am a Civil engineer and MBA holder. When I started my career, I became a certified member of IWFM and joined Emrill around 18 years ago in 2003. Now I lead as an operational director and report directly to the CEO.

At Emrill we have staff from more than 16 nationalities working with us, that’s why their health and safety is always on priority for us. For the same reason, we have established a Safety Action Group (SAG group) under which we make sure that all the safety requirements are put in place. We consistently and constantly focus on team management and other activities such as statutory and legal requirements are maintained and achieved without any deviation.

We have also introduced a behavior-based safety program through which we detect any unsafe behavioral traits of our staff and try to eliminate them by providing additional safety training to them. According to Heinrich’s principle, every unsafe behavior can lead to a major incident. Hence we want to eliminate the build-up of any such behavior.

To reduce the communication gap between the supervisor and manager we introduced the Step-up program in 2016. With this capacity-building program, we tried to help the supervisor grow intellectually and knowledge-wise with the company. This has helped us to improve the retention rate and foster a better working environment. After all, at facilities, we are not talking to machines but the people hence our staff are our biggest assets and we invest in their training and growth. It was the same reason behind the starting of the Graduate engineer training program.

Q.2 You are one of those few who believe pandemic hasn’t really changed the fundamentals of FM services, rather it has just accelerated them. What makes you think so in terms of technology and service delivery?

Gopal: FM has not fundamentally changed but only the applications have evolved. The pace of technology adoption has increased. I can definitely say that. For Emrill as an organization, we have been driving this adoption of the relevant technology to improve service delivery. We have always been using cutting-edge technology, but more than that, we believe and value the opinions and suggestions of engineers and technicians, and other staff members.

We have implemented remote monitoring sensors for lighting and plumbing applications which we can track from our Command and control centers. So the pandemic has only increased the pace of implementation.

Q.3 What makes Emrill stand out from its competitors when it comes to O&M services? Use of specific applications or technology to manage or monitor assets, or unique strategies and practices?

Gopal: We never believe that one set of solutions fits everyone. We prefer going to the client to understand their needs, what is already there, what are the shortfalls, and then do the gap analysis to come up with solutions. So we will get everything approved by the client that we can customize the solution based on the client’s requirement.

We also believe in the speed of execution, in UAE there are three main sectors for FM contracts – the Commercial, retail, and aviation sector and most of the contracts last for 1-3 years. They want cost-efficient solutions and technology implementation as soon as possible. It is also not necessary that a piece of technology that is suitable for one sector should and must be implemented in another sector hence we never force the technology implementation rather we only support the client’s facility by providing relevant tech.

Q.4 In your opinion, what motivates you to launch or trial new technology applications or platforms? What percentage of that decision is determined by the client’s demand and your technology roadmap? What does Emrill’s tech roadmap look like?

Gopal: We have our own tech team which is the biggest advantage for us. But we also have different service providers working for us. For now, we are using FSI Go apart from the apps for improving technician’s efficiency. so we are using all these applications for different purposes. With the efficiency app, we get the dashboard to manage everything about housekeeping, etc while the Technician app gives us insight into technician’s productivity. Our IT team also provides integration capabilities so that we can work with any new client’s application or system without any problems.

Data is very important to bring visibility to operations and mobile applications are leading that way. Mobile applications are giving all the necessary data and insight on your hand and this is true for both the technician and facility manager.

Q5. In the UAE and MENA region, FM players have been very successful in capturing a large part of the market. There is fierce competition to win the next bid and even to retain the existing contract. What is it about Emrill that makes it more successful at winning contracts according to you?

Gopal: If I have to answer in four words then I would go with people, Training, Technology, and Integrated approach. To start with people, as I mentioned earlier we consider them as a real asset and hence we invest in their skills and make them ready to meet their next challenge.

We have a trainee engineer program that runs for 3 years to nurture world-class talent. We also have our own technology center where we constantly experiment with new applications that can be helpful to our clients. In some cases, when we don’t have the required tech available that the client is expecting, we honestly ask for some time and get back with the expert solution to them. This is what our client likes the most.

August 17, 2021