Outsourcing Facilities Management

Is It the Right Decision for Your Organization?

The question of whether or not to outsource your Facilities Management (FM) function is a tricky one that Business Officers and FM leadership face. While outsourcing Facilities Management has the ability to save your organization money and in many cases improve performance if done correctly, it also has the potential to negatively affect your organization if you outsource the wrong work at the wrong time to the wrong outside company.

Facilities Management outsourcing trends state that around 44% of facilities management is outsourced in the U.S.

While it may seem like everyone is choosing this route before you follow in their footsteps, you need to determine if it’s the right choice for your specific organization. When making your decision, keep the following pros and cons in mind.

Pros of outsourcing Facilities Management

1. Time and money savings

The Provider you choose will be highly specialized in facilities services, which means they will already have an effective set of programs and processes developed to best fit your needs. They are prepared with the tools, technology and training necessary to do this, so you can take those expenses off your plate when you choose to outsource.

Research shows that outsourcing Facilities Management services can help you achieve annual cost savings of up to 10-15%, so if you’re looking to stick to a tight budget outsourcing may be a significant benefit for you.

2. Expertise

By using an outsourcing provider that specializes in certain aspects of facilities management (such as L.E.E.D compliance or building renovations and building maintenance) you can be sure that they have the core competency and expertise necessary to perform high-quality services. Custodial and Grounds services are often out tasked via a piecemeal approach rather than full FM.

Outsourcing specialized projects or service lines is a great way to become more comfortable with the process and vet a vendor, without outsourcing a large number of your facilities management services.

3. Staffing flexibility

It’s important to analyze where your team is excelling and where it needs a little help. If your team is lacking expertise in a certain trade or type of equipment, you can outsource your weakest Facilities Management tasks, which frees up your team’s time to focus on what they are best at.

Cons of outsourcing Facilities Management

1. Less control over operations

If you have a clear goal in mind for how you want your Department to function and the time and expertise to oversee the process, it may be a lot easier to meet those goals with an in-house team than working with an outsourcing company. Each Provider will determine how they will deliver their services and handle their personnel, which decreases your control over the processes.

Establishing a clear contract built around KPI’s (key performance indicators)-such as cost savings, work order response/resolution time, customer satisfaction, etc.-can help counteract this risk and let Providers maintain a competitive advantage as they perform the work for you.

2. Lack of knowledge about your organization’s needs

Sometimes a Provider will be unfamiliar with your organization’s expectations, staff, processes, equipment, or facilities in general. A clear understanding of these elements is crucial for outsourcing success, so if the service provider doesn’t put in the effort to familiarize themselves with your specific Facilities Management needs you may want to evaluate different options. The flip side of this issue is that the Institution should communicate their wishes and share all pertinent data via the RFP process, so companies are not left guessing.

3. Dedication issues

The Company you choose is going to be working with other organizations, so their Regional and Corporate management and support time is going to be spread across more projects than just your own. While many providers are able to juggle multiple clients, you want to make sure that the Provider you choose is able to meet your needs and expectations. Ask for referrals and gauge customer satisfaction.