Target the facilities management metrics that matter most

Does your organization have enough square footage to accommodate its growth strategy? How satisfied are employees with their workspaces? When and where can you reduce power usage to save money?

Without the right metrics in place, questions like these are tough to answer. The metrics that matter most to facilities managers are the ones that act as key performance indicators to drive workplace improvement, lower costs, and enhance operations.

If your organization wants to improve the performance of its people, processes, and properties, then measuring the corporate real estate (CRE) metrics that matter to facilities management (FM) is a great way to get started.

Although there are several metrics we could include on this list, our in-house real estate experts identified four of the most important FM metrics to measure.

Measuring the frequency of emergency repairs, repair backlogs, response times, and employee feedback on workspace conditions can isolate pain points and offer insight into what the future may hold.

A sudden increase in hot/cold calls, for example, may indicate that the HVAC system needs attention before it malfunctions or fails.

Tracking this information can also help you benchmark work order data over time to identify trends, shorten the amount of time it takes to resolve a facility-related problem, and make informed staffing decisions to keep on top of maintenance, operations, and repair work.

To achieve operational efficiency and create savings, you need to optimize your portfolio’s energy usage—which starts with tracking energy consumption data.

This information offers a precise look at which systems use energy—and how much—so you can reduce waste and improve efficiency. If a specific system suddenly begins using more power than usual, the metric can also identify the need for maintenance, repair, or replacement.

Energy consumption data can help you establish benchmarks and track progress toward sustainability goals, too. Compare consumption performance over time, so you can see whether energy usage is increasing, remaining stable, or decreasing.

Better understanding the real estate you have—and how to maximize the return on investment of every square foot—starts with tracking space utilization.

FM metrics that evaluate space efficiency can verify how square footage is used, which areas are used most often, and how much space sits idle. You’ll be able to confidently determine whether to downsize or expand as you define where space is underutilized, decide how to make it more usable, and pinpoint which rooms or spaces are at a premium.

Tracking this information does more than optimize square footage: By identifying over- and underutilized space, you can better control utilities, rent, and maintenance costs.

You rely on third-party service providers to manage many aspects of your buildings—from pest control and security to AV and janitorial—so it’s crucial to measure the value and ROI they provide.

Tracking CRE metrics about third-party relationships can reveal which providers offer the most benefit when it comes to response time, quality, and cost as well as identify below- and above-average providers. It also allows you to establish benchmarks that reveal whether a provider’s performance is deteriorating, improving, or remaining consistent over time.

With this information, you can make informed decisions about which service providers deliver the most value. Determine the partnerships you want to continue—and those that need to enhance performance (reduce costs, increase the amount of time spent onsite, etc.) if they want to provide services in the future.

Improving the performance of your people, processes, and properties starts with measuring the right FM metrics.