Definition
Facility Management (FM) involves administering and managing buildings, facilities and equipment; it is frequently outsourced nowadays:
- Technical operation of buildings, facilities and equipment
- Letting / administration of buildings, facilities and equipment
Independent FM
Property was traditionally managed by investors themselves at their own expense (employed real estate administrator [now “property manager”], employed caretakers and so on). These roles are now increasingly outsourced.
Outsourced FM
Outsourcing is a specific form of external procurement of services that were originally performed in-house, whereby the duration, nature of the services and prices are stipulated in contracts.
Outsourced facility management should fulfil the following aims:
- Rationalisation of management processes
- Reduction of procedural complexity
- Free up own management capacities
- Focus on own core business
- Rationalisation
- Savings
Effective outsourcing requires:
- Individual specifications
- Suitable and attractive offers from the FM provider
- Good FM contracts
The rationale behind outsourcing which originated in the English-speaking world where it is very popular was: “Do what you can do best – outsource the rest”.
