The British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM) has launched what it is dubbing ‘The Facilities Management Professional Standards’ – a ‘global competence model for the profession’ created in consultation with facilities management industry stakeholders, experts, and professional standards writers.
The new Professional Standards ‘clearly define the key functions performed by FMs, the main components of each functional area, and the competences required to be a proficient professional when carrying out each function’. The BIFM added: “The competences are defined for each level in a facilities management professional’s career, from a support role through to a strategic role. These standards can be used to benchmark skills, knowledge, and competence, for those working at all levels in the FM profession.”
The Institute say that the FM Professional Standards will be ‘a vital tool’ for:
• FM professionals (at any career level) – ‘to understand what is required in the role, and where they can develop skills and knowledge to enhance performance and advance their own career’.
• Employers of FM staff –‘ to better understand the skills and capability they can expect from FM teams’. The Standards can be used ‘to identify capability gaps and aid workforce planning to identify purposeful training and professional development needs, as well as to assist with FM recruitment’.
• Learning and development professionals – ‘to identify development needs aligned to The FM Professional Standards’. They can also use the FM Professional Standards ‘to inform learner assessment processes and tools’.
• New entrants – school leavers, career changers, and ‘anyone considering a career in FM’ – ‘to identify the types of roles and responsibilities involved in FM’, and the skills and knowledge requirements.
Linda Punter, head of Learning and Development at Bouygues, said: “These standards not only help individuals who want to achieve a professional FM qualification, but also provide a framework that enables us to:
• recruit against clearly defined competences and skill-sets.
• develop career pathways and succession plans for all members of the workforce, from new entrants to the profession, right through to strategic FMs.
• support individuals in creating professional development plans, and in monitoring their continuing professional development activities.
• carry out a ‘gap analysis’, and generate training plans that add value for all stakeholders, developing a skilled and motivated workforce ready for the challenges of tomorrow.”
Gareth Tancred, BIFM CEO, said: “Ensuring we have a proficient, qualified, and skilled workforce is essential to driving up the standards across the profession. Our work with stakeholders to develop these standards means we now have a robust set of professional standards against which professionals and employers alike can benchmark themselves.
“Professionalisation of facilities management is needed to ensure the relevance and effectiveness of the discipline to business. Organisations and business leaders now have a framework with which they can ensure they are fully utilising the management discipline of FM.”
The BIFM says it will introduce ‘new tools’ for both individuals and organisations to use in their professional development programmes ‘in due course’ to complement the framework.
