What’s one major piece of advice that Marshall MacFarlane, an industry veteran and celebrated IFMA Fellow, would give to both new and established facilities managers? Make sure to network. According to him, building a support system could be “career-changing.”
MacFarlane currently serves as a facilities senior project manager at Bell Bank, the largest family- and employee-owned bank in the upper Midwest with over $13 billion in assets. In his role, he oversees all of the bank’s sites and facilities-related activities in Arizona.
With about 25 years of industry experience, MacFarlane has held numerous titles in the higher education, municipal government, manufacturing, and tech sectors before joining Bell Bank just over a year ago.
He is also proud to have been elected an IFMA Fellow in 2023 by the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), joining an elite group of leaders bestowed with the trade group’s highest honor. In fact, only 0.5% of the IFMA membership may hold the title, and as of this year, only 140 individuals have been named IFMA Fellows.
To learn more about MacFarlane and his take on industry issues, please read the “Faces of Facilities” interview below:
How did you get your start in the field?
I started by accident. As an industrial mechanic in a Tier II automotive plant, I was a maintenance supervisor. Then I became a safety director, then was assigned responsibilities related to environmental and security, along with construction. The company president at the time wanted to promote me but didn’t know what my title should be. With some research we discovered the field of facilities management, and I was made the facilities manager. My degrees came later in life.
Who has been your biggest influence in the industry, and why?
Not a “who” per se, but I think the organization of IFMA by far has most influenced my career. IFMA and similar organizations provide structure, doctrine, training, education, networking, mentoring, and so much more—both at a local level and a global level.
What’s your best mistake, and what did you learn from it?
I’m an introvert and for many years was happy to “keep my head down and do my thing.” Learning the value of networking was career-changing, even if not in my comfort zone. I have a huge network now. Many times in my career I have seemed a hero simply because I knew someone to call when an unusual or challenging situation arose. Conversely, I have ended up being a resource to many folks over the span of my career. Having a good network is a “force multiplier,” and you owe it to your department and organization to build an expansive network.
What are some of the biggest facilities management issues at your organization? Are there any unique FM challenges (or benefits) compared to some other organizations?
I love my company and my department. That said, we utilize a very basic approach to FM. The cool thing is, it works. There is little backlog and few complaints, so we must be doing something right. Personally, I’d enjoy a more traditional approach to FM organizationally, but I can’t fault something that seems to be working.
Regarding operational challenges, like many industries are experiencing, I think right-sizing spaces is a challenge as we enter the post-COVID era. Balancing assigned space with actual utilization versus policy and forecasting space needs—all can be challenging.
What’s your favorite part about working in the industry?
The variety. Every day is different. Every day has a unique challenge. In my role, I may be involved in the sale of a building costing millions of dollars one minute and figuring out coffee service the next. There are technical aspects to our work, strategic aspects, people aspects, communication aspects, and more. No two days are the same, and the tasks and responsibilities are so varied.
What changes would you like to see in the FM industry?
FMs have been poor advocates for themselves and their profession, making it difficult sometimes to maximize our effectiveness and the value we can add to an organization. Good facilities managers need to learn and practice diplomacy, communication, and leadership from below in order to get our message out there. I think many FMs tend to be “quiet professionals,” so self-promotion or even department promotion can be unnatural or uncomfortable. We need to change that.
How can company leaders make facilities management a value within their organization?
I think many company leaders don’t recognize what their facilities departments can contribute. FM organizations typically fly under the radar until something doesn’t work. Only then do they get noticed. Company leaders need to understand that of three of their organization’s biggest costs —buildings, utilities, and personnel—facilities management directly affects two of those and can have significant effects on the third. Those costs directly affect the bottom line.
Where do you see the industry heading in five years? Are you noticing any major trends?
Well, AI is certainly in front of mind currently. I think now that FMs have tremendous amounts of data available to them, AI can help sort and process that data looking for the trends and incidents that allow us to be more effective.
I think that FM has changed since COVID. Now, especially with hybrid work and similar programs, facilities management is more of a collaborative effort along with IT and HR. That is still evolving, but I think the days of huge office buildings full of cubicles will go the way of the dinosaurs for many companies.
What are you most proud of?
I’m most proud of becoming an IFMA Fellow. I can’t think of a higher recognition in my profession, and it was by no means an easy appointment. The selection process is extensive.
I’m also a veteran, having served 13 years in the Canadian Army. I’m pretty proud of that.
Do you have any advice for people entering the profession?
Build your network, promote the value of yourself and your department, and learn new things at every opportunity. At one of my roles, I had significant opportunity to build security and emergency planning experience and I took it!
Anything else you’d like to add?
I love to volunteer. I think it is important to give back. I’ve belonged to a number of professional organizations, conservation groups, and other organizations. Everybody has some kind of talent that they can share to benefit others.
Are you or a colleague an FM professional interested in being profiled for the “Faces of Facilities” series? Please contact Editor Joe Bebon at JBebon@BLR.com.