Facilities managers are often putting out proverbial fires, leaving less time for those “important but not urgent tasks”—like upskilling and refreshing technical knowledge.
But these “non-urgent,” small tasks, like preventive maintenance, can balloon into much bigger problems over time. According to Siemens’ “True Cost of Downtime 2024” report, the world’s top 500 companies lost 11% of their revenues to unplanned downtime.
The root causes? According to Dan Clapper, head of learner and business outcomes at Interplay Learning, it often boils down to human error: incorrect maintenance procedures, skipped steps for preventive maintenance, and ignored “wear and tear” signs—underpinning a lack of knowledge and training.
Why is training facilities management employees in preventive maintenance so vital for companies? During a recent Facilities Management Advisor webinar sponsored by Interplay Learning, Clapper laid out the business case for FMs to advocate for ongoing training, without pulling staff away from their day-to-day responsibilities.
Training Requires a Mindset Shift for Revenue-Focused Managers
Communicating the importance and urgency of training doesn’t add up when it’s just listed as an expense on a balance sheet, so context is needed. Clapper noted that since FMs place the critical systems of buildings at the top of their to-do lists, it’s useful to think of FM employees as a critical system too.
“Facilities are only as strong as the people maintaining them,” he said. Investing in consistent training ensures FM employees are performing at their peak, just like any high-value piece of infrastructure.
“One single unplanned downtime event could wipe out your annual training budget. Boom. Gone in a couple of hours,” Clapper said. That’s why training should be considered a strategic safeguard.
Furthermore, Clapper suggested that upskilling employees can be better for the business’s bottom line than spending resources on recruitment and onboarding. This might also add to employee satisfaction, building career ladders—rather than dead ends.
Hybrid Training Approaches
One-on-one or on-the-job training can seem efficient; it’s tailored, low-cost, and practical. But Clapper said that these methods are essentially a game of “telephone,” since senior technicians pass on habits that might not reflect best practice.
And while off-site, multi-day training at manufacturing headquarters was once a standard practice, those programs are expensive and can make it difficult for FMs to stay on top of updates in evolving maintenance methods.
Instead, Clapper suggested a blended learning approach. He said that on-the-job training ideally comes after online learning courses and resources that provide FMs with contextual and foundational knowledge. This way, when FMs are learning about troubleshooting a chiller, for example, they already understand how the system works. This can help prevent burnout from online-only learning and keep training grounded in daily tasks.
The Case for Micro-Learning
Training doesn’t need to be long or disruptive to be effective. Clapper recommended continuous micro-learning: 5 to 25 minutes of sessions, a few times a week, to create a snowball effect of knowledge and confidence over time. A systemic review of microlearning research shows that the technique can potentially improve learning outcomes, especially using short video clips or animations, and benefits learner engagement and independence.
These bite-sized training sessions won’t inhibit busy FMs from putting out fires, as they keep building new skills incrementally. Micro-learning also works well for seasonal skills refreshers— procedures that might only be done once a year, but are critical to get right. Short, targeted modules can help ensure FMs don’t skip steps simply because it’s been a while.
Where to Start
To implement preventive maintenance training, Clapper advised starting with a skills gap analysis. Identify which competencies need improvement, gather baseline data to build a case for ROI, and frame skills assessments as opportunities for growth, not audits.
To learn more practical steps to implementing preventive maintenance training—like determining what skills need to be improved, building baseline data sets to make your case for ROI, and how to reframe skills assessments as growth opportunities—watch the full webinar on-demand here.
Ali Hickerson is a freelance journalist, content writer, and strategist based in Brooklyn, N.Y. Outside of Facilities Management Advisor, Ali’s recent bylines on health and workplace issues have crisscrossed the country and helped advocate for programs and policies that work to create a healthier, more humane, and equitable world.
To learn more about training, make sure to sign up for Facilities Management Advisor‘s upcoming webinar, “Bridging the Gap: Next-Gen Workforce Development in Facilities Management.” Details and FREE registration are available here.