Practical Facilities Tips, News & Advice.
FM Perspectives provides a platform for leaders and change-makers of the facilities management community to share their thoughtful insights and opinions.
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. HVAC is fundamental to keeping commercial spaces safe, comfortable, and productive. Yet with soaring energy bills, increasingly erratic weather patterns, and much tougher building performance benchmarks, facilities managers must balance strict temperature and air-quality […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. For decades, facilities management leaders have attempted to bridge the gap between preventative and reactive maintenance—now, the rapid onset of new technologies gives providers vastly improved methods of detecting when systems may be at […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. In 2026, the skilled trades are facing a reality check that is impossible to ignore: A significant rift has opened between the priorities of organizational leaders and the priorities of their employees, especially as […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. The residential and commercial building sector is the leading energy consumer in the U.S. economy, accounting for approximately 40% of the nation’s entire energy consumption and 35% of U.S. carbon emissions. What’s worse? The […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. As artificial intelligence (AI) accelerates the construction of data centers, utilities are rapidly investing in energy infrastructure, including new power generation, transmission lines, and grid upgrades, to keep pace with the surge in energy […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. Facilities management is often defined by its technical responsibilities—HVAC systems, electrical distribution, preventive maintenance, capital planning, compliance. But anyone who works in FM knows the job extends far beyond equipment and infrastructure. It’s people […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. I was on a call with an operations director at a big ag plant. She’d been running the place for years, knew her equipment inside and out. Her question was one I hear in […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. In many organizations, facilities management (FM) is still viewed as a cost center. Something breaks. It gets repaired. The invoice gets paid. When budgets tighten, FM is often one of the first places company […]
Editor’s note: Originally published in 2025, this FM Perspectives op-ed is being reposted in honor of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day (observed March 8). 22: The percentage of women in the global FM labor force. 45: The average age of women in FM. These two pieces of data are from IFMA’s “Women in Facility Management: A […]
Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. Ask facilities managers about their biggest operational challenges, and staffing consistently ranks near the top. Cleaning teams face unique pressures—and the consequences show up everywhere, from inconsistent cleanliness to rising costs to guest complaints. […]