Identifying priority issues in facilities management benchmarking: Fid-Bau Portal

Identifying priority issues in facilities management benchmarking

McDougall, Gavin / Hinks, John

Considers the state of benchmarking in facilities management and finds that most academic and practice literature is mainly concerned with measurement techniques, and a formal approach of reducing performance gaps. Limitations are discussed, and the orientation of facilities management performance priorities is questioned. Argues that benchmarking is limited by the ability to identify the priorities, or performance indicators, that can measure contemporary issues such as customer satisfaction to any benefit. Applies the search for benchmarking issues to the human environment, home of the much-discussed knowledge worker. Research indicates that, far from being static measurable constructs, the environmental conditions in such offices rely on the influence of the market, the organisation culture, the type of users, and the external political conditions. Facilities and business managers often fail to consider these influences in the selection of the performance priorities. Concludes by suggesting that the tendency to rely on a general set of indicators leads to benchmarking issues that are often unhelpful in the pursuit of continuous improvement. Benchmarking issues are more clearly understood to need rich analysis that an investigative methodology could provide.