by Brianna Crandall — January 15, 2020 — Connex (previously the Professional Retail Store Maintenance Association), the authority on multisite facilities management (FM), released in recent months its annual review of the state of multisite FM and key trends impacting the nation’s leading retailers, multisite healthcare facilities, entertainment facilities, banks and suppliers.
The industry-leading report identifies six major trends driving the multisite facilities management (FM) industry. They include changing demographics, the rise of multisite entertainment facilities, FM in the financial services industry, microgrids and energy resilience, new FM technology, and small-concept stores. These trends are driving change across the industry and will require facilities executives adapt new strategies and tactics to succeed.
Myriah Kingen, director, Facilities Management at DaVita Kidney Care and board chair of Connex, remarked:
Multisite facilities management changes daily, and the Connex 2020 Trends Report helps our members understand new trends. It also provides insights into the entertainment and financial FM markets, as well as other critical issues.
Connex’s breakdown of the major trends includes:
- Powering up: To avert power loss, businesses are investing in technology that promises energy resilience and sustainability — the ability to keep the lights on or recover quickly, while maximizing renewable energy. Among these technologies, microgrids can keep the power on the longest and boost sustainability.
- Expanding tech options: Facilities managers continually strive to make facilities’ operations more efficient, reduce costs and adhere to increasingly stringent environmental expectations. While there are no one-size-fits-all solutions, FM technology being introduced today can help FMs make progress toward these goals.
- Stronger together: In multisite facilities management, an industry so reliant upon bringing many people to the table, attracting and building a diverse workforce with widely varied perspectives and skill sets is crucial. FM faces a critical labor shortage, and now is the time to create the workforce of tomorrow.
- Action-packed entertainment: People want entertainment experiences — and businesses are listening. Adapting to this market trend, multisite entertainment venues are expanding at a rapid rate. They provide customers the opportunity to create memories, as opposed to simply exchanging money for goods.
- Moving money in the new frontier: In recent years, several large regional and national banks have closed branches, opting for more technology-based customer service portals to reduce costs and streamline customer interactions. But as it turns out, the physical presence of customers is still needed and desired, and facilities of varying stripes are still required.
- Small stores, big concepts: Small-format stores are popping up everywhere. Retail giants hope smaller, more conveniently located stores make it easier for customers to return products — and to buy online and pick up in-store. But will these new formats create unique challenges for FMs?
Download the Connex 2020 Trends Report and 2020 Trends Report Infographic to learn more about the key changes and trends impacting the multisite facilities management industry today.
The 2020 Trends Report will be a topic of discussion during the Connex2020 National Conference that will be held in Orlando, FL, April 20 – 22 and is billed as the largest annual gathering of multisite facilities management professionals.
