Buildings are expensive to purchase and a logistical nightmare to maintain, yet we invest in them anyway. Why? It’s because they allow our employees to achieve overall business objectives. Surely then, the primary measure of a building’s success should be how well it does this job.

But the FM industry has not traditionally understood performance in this way. Compliance checks and solid monthly reporting indicate that the machines are running, but they don’t tell us whether a building supports the wellbeing of those within it.

For a facility to enable both individual and organisational success, we need to think about how well it supports our fundamental needs. I thought I’d left Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs behind in my undergraduate textbooks, but it’s surprisingly relevant here. 

We should be asking those baseline questions – does the workplace provide comfort, food, water and a sense of safety – right through to whether it enables collaboration, creativity and self-fulfilment. 

Last time I checked, Maslow wasn’t too concerned about whether 95% of reactive maintenance call-outs were attended on time.

Traditional metrics still indicate a well-organised and professional service, but their importance compared to our duty to support wellbeing needs reevaluating. To do this, FMs need to introduce new wellbeing-driven KPIs alongside their usual ones. 

We’ve started doing this in recent years at Q3 Services and have seen really promising effects: 

Capturing meaningful insights

Strong employee feedback is the foundation for any wellbeing-led approach, and can be gathered by a range of methods:

• QR codes offer a convenient way to leave a quick rating or comment on environmental conditions. When strategically placed next to thermostats or in natural break areas, this can be done with minimal workflow disruption.
• End-user feedback groups can often generate a more collective and nuanced understanding of overall workplace perceptions. When employees are eager to engage, this method provides rich and honest insights.

Analysing this feedback against traditional system-performance data then allows us to align our services with sought-after office dynamics. For instance, upon finding out that a rush for the best desks each morning is causing frustration, a more organised desk booking platform can be introduced to eliminate the chaos.

Asking the right questions

How we speak to occupants is just as important as the tools we use to gather their thoughts. 

In addition to familiar ideas of comfort, warmth and productivity, more emotion-led questioning helps to fully gauge workplace sentiment – for example, at which points during the day do you feel most stressed or anxious? Does this space make you feel relaxed? Does it contribute positively towards how valued you feel at work?

Linking FM services with human emotion in this way must be standard practice, especially as neurodiversity becomes increasingly important in workspace design and management.

Subtle changes with big impacts

I’ve finally noticed that acting on any feedback, however niche it may seem, can significantly influence workplace perceptions. 

• For one organisation, simply switching coffee brands and rearranging the bin layout to make waste disposal more convenient were noted as changes that would make a difference.
• Another saw value in repositioning refreshment units closer to outdoor spaces, so that employees could make the most of their breaks.

Subtle changes showcase a genuine investment in daily experiences specific to each office, but they are only the starting point – introducing specific metrics that measure impact over time truly signposts an attentive and supportive FM service.

A wellbeing-led approach to FM 

Ultimately, if each morning I arrive at a freezing office, face a 15-minute battle to find a desk and then find out that we’re once again out of coffee, I probably won’t be in the best frame of mind for the day ahead. 

Our traditional KPIs must be placed within a more wellbeing-driven context. Over asset performance and regulatory compliance, understanding human impact is perhaps the most comprehensive way FMs can show their contribution towards bottom-line business objectives.

Mark Hazelwood, managing director IFM/technical services, Q3 Services