Transform your FM operations one data insight at a time.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to invest a fortune to get value from your data or wait months or even years for ROI. The key lies in strategically identifying where you want to create an impact with your data. Start with the end in mind.  

In the built environment; information is flowing from various sources – operating platforms, energy metering, access control systems, IoT devices, CAFM and BMS systems, etc.  

analytics for fm operations datore

A common mistake we’ve seen in the industry is capturing this data for the sake of capturing data.

The raw data is mostly rubbish. So, organisations decide to gather it, clean it, prepare it and two or three years later, and several hundreds of thousands of pounds down, they’ve got a massive data warehouse with lots of neat data.

But they don’t have a clue what they’re going to do with it. And only at this point do they start thinking about what impact it could have and what value it could deliver.

What we've always said is - no, start with the impact, and look for low-hanging fruit first.

Pick two or three bits of data, get that value immediately, and then look at the next impact.

That way, you don’t have to build a business case that costs a fortune, like some of the big FM companies do, in order to drive data-informed actions and be able to get a return on investment.  

Think of the insights that you want to derive to reduce risk, reduce costs, or increase turnover. Think of the impact it will have on the organisation over time. 

what will you get from it?

Start with the end in mind.

The era of simply measuring KPIs is (or at least should be) over.

Key performance indicators, by definition, focus on the past. They provide us with a history lesson.

We’re now in an era where data can and should be used to have an impact on the future, and only then it is truly valuable. 

Remember, 90% of insights die at the dashboard; it’s putting your newfound knowledge to work that generates the impact.

How exactly does it apply to FM operations?

Whether you’re the in-house FM professional striving to fine-tune building performance or the service provider fielding clients’ demands beyond mere KPI stats, the principles remain the same. 

Now, you’ve likely heard variations of the following sentiment echoed countless times, almost to the point of cliché. Yet, clichés are so often said because they hold true: 

COVID’s impact has reshaped our relationship with facilities.

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With hybrid and flexible work models taking centre stage, FM professionals must pivot to align with this new paradigm of building utilisation and optimisation.

The burning questions we ought to be posing are: 

And those are not typically the type of questions that you will answer through a set of KPIs.

So, how do you answer them? 

Analytics in Facilities Management

Typically, we see that the more data sources you combine, the higher the value of the insights.

In any scenario, eight or ten different data sources are blended to uncover valuable patterns and information that create the real impact on the organisation.  

We talked about 5 hacks to maximise the impact of your FM data here, but to summarise: 

Start small, think big.

 In the realm of FM, data isn’t just about numbersit’s about driving meaningful change. Don’t drown in a sea of information; focus on what matters. Leverage diverse data sources to unearth actionable insights. 

It's not about the past; it's about making impact on the future.
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Graham Perry

Managing Director
Graham has worked within the built environment technology industry for the last 30 years. He is the lead judge for technology in the IWFM impact awards and has been a judge for the i-FM technology awards for the last 7 years.
If you want to know more about how our AaaS offering will align with your strategic objectives and move you through the data journey to actionable insights, get in contact now.

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