August 27, 2007—From emergency and disaster preparedness to the rise of sustainable building design, today’s facility manager must adapt to current trends and prepare for future problems. To help meet this two-tiered challenge, industry professionals from around the world met in Houston earlier this year for the International Facility Management Association’s (IFMA) forecasting workshop. The result was a peek into the future, as eight trends emerged that promise to shape building design and facility operations throughout the 21st century.
The top trends of 2007 that will most impact the built environment of the future are: linking facility management to strategy, emergency preparedness, change management, sustainability, emerging technology, globalization, broadening diversity in the workforce and aging buildings, according to IFMA. The trends were identified by forecasting workshop panelists representing industries such as corporate real estate, government policy, energy, security and technology.
To prepare for the future, facility management professionals should assess their competencies in these eight areas, says the organization. Addressing these trends through consideration, education and preparation will arm facility managers with the tools they need to face the challenges ahead.
Formed in 1980, IFMA certifies facility managers, conducts research, provides educational programs, recognizes facility management degree and certificate programs and produces World Workplace, a leding facility management conference and exposition. For more information, visit the Web site.
The full report, Facility Management Forecast 2007: Exploring the Current Trends and Future Outlook for Facility Management Professionals, can be downloaded form the Web site.
