Developing FM
Where are all the young facilities managers? PDF Print E-mail
Written by Nick Adams, Committee Member, Young Managers Forum, 2008   

It is well documented that there is a developing skills gap in this sector, and one solution to the problem would be an influx of young talent comprised of recent university leavers. Nick Adams outlines the challenge.

  • How can graduates' awareness about FM as a potential career be raised?
  • What graduate opportunities are currently available in FM?

In an attempt to redress the shortage of new recruits, the Young Managers Forum (YMF) of the Facilities Management Association (FMA) has been actively trying to raise the awareness of FM amongst graduates and university careers departments, with the goal of increasing the number of graduates seeking a career in FM.

I was lucky enough to not only have been put in touch with the YMF whilst studying for a Masters degree in Politics at University College London, but also to have been invited to join the group in January 2007.

As an ex-student myself I was only too aware of where the problems lay, and had some ideas as to how these could be addressed.

The problem as I saw it was twofold. Firstly, people of university leaving age simply do not know what FM is, and secondly, there is a serious lack of jobs in the sector designed with graduates in mind.

The first problem was the one that the YMF was focusing on when I joined them, and since then several steps have been taken to further raise awareness amongst students.

This was done with the kind help of UCL's careers department who gave us the benefit of their expertise and experience in advising us of activities we could become involved with to reach out to students.

By working with UCL, the YMF was able to plan and carry out a series of activities last year, giving us the opportunity to talk directly with students about a career in FM and what it could offer them.

Building bridges


The first event attended by the YMF was in May 2007. This was an informal networking session where companies and organisations could chat with students who were coming to the end of their studies, but who did not know what career path they wanted to follow.

Although this was a small-scale event, it offered us the opportunity to hone our 'sales pitch' and to find out what aspects of FM would appeal to students.

Feedback was mostly positive and students seemed interested, although trying to get them to follow up on this interest proved problematic, especially when setting up our pitch next to an investment bank.

The main event we participated in was the UCL finance and management fair last October for final year students looking for a career/employer after university.

The FMA paid for a stall at the fair, which was manned by members of the committee and stocked with information on the industry as well as free giveaways, which were kindly donated by FMA member companies.

The purpose of having this stall was to address directly up to 2,000 students who at that point were weighing up career options, trying to highlight FM as a potential career path.

We also used this event to hand out flyers for a follow-up event the next evening (generously sponsored by facilities recruitment company and FMA member FRL) in which we gave a more in-depth overview of FM and the opportunities that existed for graduates if they were willing to put in the time and carve out a career in the industry.

Unfortunately the follow-up event turned out to attract a lot less interest than was hoped for - despite the lure of free alcohol!

The reason for this poor turnout can be attributed to our second problem in recruiting graduates to the industry, namely a lack of jobs alluring enough to entice students into committing themselves to a career in FM.

What's on offer


Upon leaving university myself, I could only find work on a facilities helpdesk, despite nearly two months of applying for jobs - and this simply does not appeal to intelligent, capable students who, when comparing FM with other industries, will find vastly fewer graduate schemes despite helpdesks being an important part of any facilities department.

Furthermore, these graduate schemes (and sometimes even just roles designed for university leavers) offer competitive salaries; but more to the point, they promise that the graduate will be fast-tracked to the top quicker than they would be if they simply took a standard job in the organisation.

Without these 'sexy' jobs, the industry is fighting a losing battle if it hopes to be able to draw upon graduates as a source of future facilities managers.

I have persevered with FM as I can see that the potential lies ahead for not only a fulfilling and interesting career; but also the benefits can be as good, if not better, than other industries which have graduate schemes.

I appreciated that the first few years would offer me some roles and jobs that weren't necessarily challenging to a Masters student but that in the long-run it would be worth it.

From this we can deduce that further attempts to attend grad fairs remain a questionable battle unless we have something to offer graduates, and here now we must turn our attention towards FM and property management companies and the people who run them.

It is up to companies to have both the belief that recruiting graduates is a necessary evolution in the industry and the ability to acknowledge the massive benefits to be had by bringing in graduates and investing time and resources into their development.

The challenge is therefore laid down to the people who plan the futures of these companies to make it their goal to alter their recruitment strategies to target students and provide them with the kind of training and opportunity that will see them end up in roles befitting their ability.

Rising to the challenge


One such company, and there are a few, that has adopted this forward-thinking approach is Broadgate Estates Limited.

Barry Winfield, Managing Director, explains that, "Broadgate Estates' services to owners and occupiers extend way beyond the conventional confines of property management and FM.

Imagination and service are the hallmarks of what we seek to deliver, as reflected in our view that 'true property management is an art, a science and always a service'.

Intelligent, enthusiastic and imaginative staff (guided occasionally by those with a little applied experience) are invaluable in delivering this.

That is why we greatly value good graduates from a variety of backgrounds and are in the early stages of adding to our comprehensive training programme, with a specific element in part run by graduates for graduates."

The target is for opinion-forming organisations such as the YMF to be able to attend grad fairs and have knowledge of real jobs that they can offer graduates, as well as literature and information specifically targeted at students that explains not only the history and evolving nature of the industry, but provides a context in which the students can place both themselves and their futures.

The question is, are FM and property management companies willing to evolve and take up the challenge?

Nick Adams is a Committee Member at the Young Managers Forum. Please visit www.fmassociation.org.uk
 
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