Cycle of Service
Understand the Cycle of Service for your organization is critical for the growth of your career and your organization. Knowing the individual aspects of the cycle will ensure the longevity of a facility and save time and money in the long run.
Cool concept arrived will talking to some other business professionals - The Cycles of Service. The one thing that seperates return business and a failed customer.
As industries evolve I’m finding that positions are evolving right along side of them. This isn’t inherently good or bad, it just is. For instance, what used to building managers, now are facility managers. It seems as industries are evolving the level of professionalism is evolving higher than ever. Take the building manager, excellent job, the trusted man who can fix anything. I remember walking behind our fix it man in our schools growing up. The tool bag was a field trip without ever leaving the school.
Fast forward to adulthood, each new job required a skillset I didn’t have before. I imagine it was that way for my admired school building tradespersons (some schools called them Building Engineers, Janitors, etc) The jobs have changed along with the knowledge needs. Systems grew more complicated. Resumes went from “no experience necessary” to “experience needed”. I saw this in the Army too - “go to jail or join the Army” to “highschool graduate and/or college degree needed”.
But why? Have the industries changed that much?
Facility managers have two major functions they provide, the foresight and the for now situational awareness. This comes from experience and book work. Experience will only get your ceiling of employment and bookwork will not gain you respect easily. Both accommodate the needs of the tenant and the facility.
Lets go back to a building manager. From discussing this with others it seems that building managers might have moved up in the ranks from being hired as an entry level position before and moved up through the ranks as someone getting things done. Lights out, call the building manager. Leak in the roof, call the building manager. A goto person for that location, honored and revered by all, and sometimes feared a bit. They were someone you made sure you took care of at the holidays. Gift cards and donuts always went a long way.
We all have a person in our building like this and hopefully they exude professionalism in spades. I bet they can turn a wrench with the best of them. They are usually the first to jump in front of a broke water line and catch the spray right in the face just to shut the valve, or the first to chase the bird out of the office while everyone is screaming. This person holds a spot in our hearts as the knight who fights aging systems and band aided services from running amok.
But we are talking of evolution of our industries here today.
Companies grow and so should our building processionals. Hunting down leaks and fixing/changing ballasts and light bulbs are just the tip of the iceberg to true facility management. That same knight needs to learn to forecast, communicate, track, predict, and organize work in a systematic way to keep that building alive well past the knight either moves on or moves away. Setting up systems to secure a building past the current generation is a challenge and requires skills not normally taught to trades individuals.
The evolution of the building trades has been in a transformation for the last couple of decades. Focusing on growth of the professional and the profession. There are more training programs than ever before, college programs designed for the technician to move to leadership, and inhouse programs at the progressive organizations to secure the future of facilities for tomorrow.
But what of this Cycle of Service?
Identifying the gap between fix it now or fix it for tomorrow and more is the cycle part. Getting the facility to be void of complaints is the service part.
Our whole goal in the facility profession is to allow our tenants to focus on their jobs without a bother of service persons interrupting their days, or our tenants worrying about the leaky roof all day like a water torture device. The gap of fix it now (with a bandaid) to fix it forever takes long term planning, facility assessments, standardization, best practices, business continuity understanding, financial End-of-Life planning, and then the cycle circles back around to long term planning and continues around again. These are the gaps that our leadership needs help with understanding in THEIR language.
Cycle of Service
Some business leaders feel these are unnecessary because that means the building/facility professional is not actively wrench bending when he/she/they are planning. And that’s true, to a point. Here is an example to illustrate what facility/building professionals can bring to the table that a leader should consider.
A new carpet needs to be installed, there are two options":
Option #1, cheaper price per square foot, 7-year EOL, and no warranty. Cost/square foot =$10
Option #2, more expensive per square foot, 10-year EOL, and 5-warrenty. Cost/square foot =$13
Space is 1000 square feet. Building is owned by the company and expected to be used for the next 30 years. Initially the building leader says just get the cheaper one and get it in. Now that might solve an immediate problem of a complaining department, but the math doesn’t support the long term plan. After doing a facility assessment you learn this area is used often.
Two scenarios continued -
Option #1, 1000 ft squared X $10 = $10,000 easy to see.
Option #2, 1000 ft squared X $13 = $13,000 not great to see value.
Take it one step further, we need to learn our leaders language. Thinking in terms of business continuity and EOL planning the more expensive option might be the best choice.
Two scenarios continued more -
Option #1, 1000 ft squared X $10 = $10,000 easy to see. However with a 30 year goal the carpet will be replaced 4.2 times and interrupt the tenant 4 times and what consequences will that have. Total spend is $42,000 plus interrupted down time.
Option #2, 1000 ft squared X $13 = $13,000 not great to see value. However with a 30-year goal the carpet will be change 3 times and only interrupt the tenants 3, maybe less as this carpet comes with a warranty which can be used for minor repairs. Total cost $39,000.
A $3,000 savings and less down time for the tenant, which equates to less lost production.
This is the added evolutionary value of the new facility management professionals. Its not to say our past heroes didn’t all do this or know this (the good ones do and did), but this is what is expected of the facility profession now. Learning this cycle of service will effects the longevity of your organization and at the same time help the financial forecast at the same time.
Facility management and really systems management is a favorite topic of mine. Systems can be applied to any and all industries. Below is the link to an awesome book every facility professional should have on their shelf. It can walk you through most situations of applying a system to communicate need to your leaders in their language. Start getting results, get this book.
Description of one of my favorite books.
The wide-ranging umbrella of facility management covers everything from technology systems to disaster recovery planning to zoning compliance...and that's just getting started.
Facilities management is a multidisciplinary function that requires a deep knowledge of the entire business and physical planning cycle. Undoubtedly, the sheer scope of duties requires a far-reaching reference for staying abreast of the latest innovations and best practices. The Facility Management Handbook is the answer.
This guide shares insightful overviews, case studies, and practical guidelines that pave the way for successful planning, budgeting, real estate transactions, construction, emergency preparedness, security, operations, maintenance, and more.
The thoroughly revised fourth edition examines cutting-edge technologies and includes new information on:
Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Contracting and project management methods
FASB and IASB requirements
Distributed working
Sustainability reporting and more
The Facility Management Handbook is the one-stop resource every facility manager must have to master a broad scope of duties while staying current on innovations and best practices.
The Small Business Dread of an Election Cycle - Using the Strip Mall Study Method
Starting a business should be fun, but too often entrepreneurs dread the process. Then add in an election, Trump/Biden politics, economy pains, it can all be overwhelming. Working the Strip Mall Method can provide guidance.
Decisions are what stress leaders. Over thinking without resources will give us grey hairs.
The Small Business Dread of an Election Cycle and finding if a community is right for your business. The Strip Mall Method can help make the right choice for YOUR business.
A little starting entrepreneurial factoid - Most small businesses do not make it past the five-year mark. This is a statistic known to most entrepreneurs. You can look it up on the small business association website AND you can see it around your community. With an election coming up stress is even higher. What to do?
Location, Location, Location is the key. Always has been and always will be.
A quick look around can tell you the state of some businesses. As you drive through the streets of your community, look at what businesses used to be there, which businesses are new, and which ones have been there more than five years?
Surprised at what you see?
Too often we are on automatic pilot. Just coming and going to our favorite establishments, and we do not notice minor changes in the business store fronts. If you have a business, or are thinking of starting one, this little exercise alone can help guide you to what local services are a fit in your community.
The Exercise - if you want to start a pizza joint. Check the surroundings for other pizza places. You may be surprised that the market for that area is saturated already. That could be a good thing or dreadful thing, depending on what your pizza joint offers. New York style, Chicago style, cheap pizza, Mod pizza, special dietary pizza, or something unheard of.
CAUTION to the new entrepreneur!
Educating Your Market - may slow profits.
What happens when you have a product that does not match the current market? Customer Discovery should help with this scenario but if you are still determined to move forward with a product and location that doesn’t fit the need - you will have to educate the public.
The Next Economy MBA mentions “I can be difficult, challenging, and humbling to attempt to shift the awareness of something from a need to a known need.”
However, if after you drive around, looking at how many of the joints offer your ideal pizza, you notice more of those pizza restaurants are run down or empty during peak times, this is a strong sign to either double down on your goal to offer YOUR best quality pizza or even better, there might be a different need you can help fill.
Questions you should ask.
Is the market shifting?
Is there a need for better pizza?
Or should you pivot?
Is there a need for cheaper pizza?
What’s the demographic look like?
Frontal Cortex Work That Must Be Done
There are a ton of questions that should start flooding into your frontal cortex. We have mentioned using a Business Canvas method in a few other blogs and this is the prime situation to use the tool again (Follow this link to get a PDF version of the Business Canvas Template).
Whether the market (pizza market in this example) is good or bad. Whether it’s an election year, or a Trump/Biden rivalry going on, or whether you’re planning on competing with Spacca Napoli Pizzeria in Chicago, working your research is vital to your next move.
What research should you do to spot a trend in the brick-and-mortar business world?
Here are the top three activities for deciding if you’re on the right track with your business – The Strip Mall Study (Survey, Evaluate, Identify)
1. Pick three or four strip malls and find out how many businesses are open, or if there are blanks in that strip mall. This will tell you how good business has been lately, if a strip mall can’t keep businesses in their storefronts, it can tell you a couple things. One, it can tell you that it might be expensive to have a storefront where you’re at and that rents are maybe too high for a starting business for the ideal demographic. And/or two, it could tell you the market is saturated already.
2. Looking at the brick-and-mortar stores within strip malls or within your community, can tell you if your community is supporting commercial business or supporting the service industry. If you did an audit in your community, if the majority are restaurants, drycleaners, service centers, then you’re looking at a community that supports service industries.
That community board, or business association, is bringing in people. People for services.
If you see nothing but industrial parks, services that support industrial business, like shipping centers and such, a B2B might be the better possibility.
3. Next, Identify whether or not the businesses in your community are set up to support the community (as in Home Depots, Menards, Hobby Lobby’s), or are they set up to support businesses (as in office supplies, small banks, credit unions, and educational facilities). This sounds like the 2nd activity; however, this is a more granular activity. This activity is to name the exact name brands of stores. If you are thinking of buying into a Little Caesars franchise you would want to put one up next to an existing one.
This step is where you work through Michael Porter’s 5 Forces model and get critical with entrant barriers, local government oversight, permits. Etc.
Understanding the concept of these three activities, or “the strip mall study”, will help you decide whether you want to support the community, or whether you want to support industry, or both. Answers to these activities will/might guide you into your own entrepreneurship journey and lead you to what might be a good fit, for you.
If neither of these are a fit for you (supporting the community needs through business, or supporting an industry through location), then an online business might be better suited. Online businesses can do much of the same as brick and mortar. You can also include sales marketing, affiliate marketing, any media marketing can be supported within any one of these types of communities at a fraction of the cost.
The world of entrepreneurship is vast with opportunities. You could be the next Bezos!
Supporting your drive to ditch the 9-5 day-jobber rat race is just around the corner for you. Check out the resources on HandPrint Content and for those who like to read up on an idea first, there are several impressive books that have helped in my journey below.
