Facilitate March 2019

March 2019 / FacilitateMagazine.com

Taster edition

Guy Battle on the measurement methodology helping put social value top of the agenda

LOCAL DIMENSION What’s driving the social value agenda – and what could it mean for FM? CHANGING CHANNELS Adopting frontline communication tools to boost performance TAKING A TOLL The life-stage setbacks affecting mental and physical health

FAC I LITATE MARCH 2019

CONTENTS ANA LYS I S

6 WO RKP LACE WE LL-BE IN G Inadequate workplaces and practices can take a mental, emotional and physical toll 8 M AKI NG T HE L E V Y WORK Firms can get their money back if they invest it in apprenticeship programmes 9 WAI T TI LL AFTE R BRE XIT The food industry has urged Michael Gove to discuss new policies post-Brexit 10 VALU E-ADDE D WORKS Workplace Futures Conference discussed the role of social value in outsourcing 15 TH E SO CIAL CON TR AC T How IWFM is supporting the government’s social value framework

WHAT WE DO

Facilitate is the magazine of the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM).

For fourteen years we were known as FM World, changing our name in this January to reflect the British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM) relaunching as the IWFM in November of 2018.

COM M UNI TY

KNOW LE DGE

3 2 PE R SPE C TIV E S The four most interesting and insightful opinions on FM this month

45 PULL UP A CHAIR Swiss start-up Noonee introduces the Chairless Chair, a seat anywhere

3 5 A BIT A BOU T YOU Sinead Beglane, a workplace manager at ITV, discusses life behind the screen

46 FOSTER THE EXCEPTIONAL The role of a leader is to create conditions for employees to thrive

3 6 T HINK TA NK Our takeaways on topics and trends that could affect your business decisions

47 STOP T HE BU LLY Stamp out workplace bullying with the right set of personal skills

3 8 M A RC H @ IWF M The people and projects currently informing IWFM activity

52 ON THE GR ID Demand-Side Response may seem complicated, but AI makes it simple

3 9 C A LL S TO AC T ION The events, surveys and discussions that deserve your attention

54 GOING U P… A good maintenance agreement is essential for a lift’s longevity

LONG FORM

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SOCIAL CLIMBER Consultant Guy Battle’s methodology has promoted the social component of sustainability on most public and private organisations’ agendas.

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SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE Why, seven years after the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 was passed, is the topic now so indispensable to industry discourse?

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A LARGER MEASURE How do FM providers expect the growing importance of social value measurement to affect the market?

– your magazine

Facilitate keeps IWFM members and others up-to-date on all workplace and facilities management issues, ensuring you are informed of the very latest developments and thinking.

Within the magazine, as well as online, we also provide readers with a forum for topical debate.

Our monthly print edition, as well as the daily newsletters we

publish on every work day, make Facilitate your first port of call for the latest in workplace and facilities management. You’ll find analysis of research and legislation, insight from critical opinion-formers, service sector business news, case studies, best practice. event reports and much more.

Got a story for us? Get in touch via editorial@facilitatemagazine.com

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W W W. I W F M .O RG .U K

LO N G FO R M

S O C I A L VA L U E — G U Y B AT T L E

G

Developed with input from the Local Government Association, which represents the local authorities now obliged to address the social value element of their service procurement, the methodology has been downloaded more than 2,000 times by local authorities and other organisations keen to add measurable substance to their sustainability considerations. The SVP is clearly offering the right tool at the right time.

Battle cannot fully explain why it is specifically now, six years after it first entered law, that the legislation’s intent has taken such a firm hold in both public and corporate consciousness. But the collapse of service providers, a general mistrust of big business, a widening public interest in organisations ‘giving back’ and a younger generation wanting to be involved in meaningful work seem to be the elements coalescing into one overarching direction of travel.

We are likely to see more rewiring of facilities management service conversations as public, private and third sector organisations rush to embrace the potentially game-changing nature of social value.

“Whereas environmental sustainability took 10 years to be embedded properly in decision-making,” says

uy Battle is likely to look back on 2019 as a particularly busy year. The chief executive of the Social Value Portal (SVP), a private consultancy and social enterprise, has led the development of a methodology for organisations “to measure and manage the contribution that their organisation and supply chain makes to society, according to the principles laid out within the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012.”

It’s described as the TOMS (Themes, Outcomes, Measures) framework, and here in early 2019 the audience for this methodology is growing exponentially, with Battle currently involved on several fronts to expand its reach and acceptance.

Battle and his colleagues spent 18 months developing the methodology before making it available in late 2017. It’s essentially a tool that allows organisations to consider all aspects of their activity – environmental, economic and social – to identify the ‘social value’ derived from it.

The social component of sustainability - its management and measurement - has become a key discussion topic for organisations of all types. Martin Read talks to consultant Guy TO ACCESS THE Battle about his firm’s widely-adopted measurement methodology FULL VERSION – and how FM could benefit from social value’s high profileOF FACILITATE P H OTO G R A P H Y: PAU L S T UA RT

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LO N G FO R M

S O C I A L VA L U E — G U Y B AT T L E

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LO N G FO R M S O C I A L VA L U E

ive years ago, talk surrounding sustainability was of carbon emissions and energy-efficiency.

These days, sustainability’s focus is increasingly social. Indeed, the facilities management sector’s newly introduced ISO standards talk of sustainability’s ‘triple bottom line’ with its environmental, economic and, yes, social components.

“Social value is the people lens of sustainability,” argues Munish Datta, consultant at UK Green Buildings Council (UKGBC). Datta points to social value’s three components, as set out in the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012: economic, environmental - and social.

The first is about providing decent jobs for local people – including hard-to-reach and socially excluded groups – to help them build skills for long-term employment.

The second addresses issues of accessibility: sustainable transportation, resilient and adaptable buildings, good-quality public and green spaces, and spaces that promote better health through improved air quality.

The third refers to local ownership of businesses with reliable social networks using buildings that cater to diverse uses and contribute to a community’s distinctive character.

Charlotte Österman, social sustainability manager at Vinci Facilities, also focuses on these three principal pillars. Österman believes that social value can be embedded through its connection to an organisation’s employees who can provide additional value to traditionally CSR-related activities such as fundraising and volunteering – “those extra things on top of what you do as a business”, and inherent to an organisation’s business operations, such as maintaining schools or hospitals.

Rise in prominence

With definitions and categorisations out the way, let’s address why so many in the sector are discussing social value. After all, the Public Services (Social Value) Act was written into law in March 2012 and went live in January 2013. Since then, as Heather Carey, deputy director at the Work Foundation, notes: “We’ve seen a really light-touch approach to implementing social values in contracts.”

In a statement last month, Minister for the

“WHAT’S THE COST IN TERMS OF PRODUCTIVITY OF NOT HAVING AN ENGAGED WORKFORCE?” IWFM CONFERENCE THEME: UK Industry Perspective

SPEAKER: Heather Carey, deputy director of the Work Foundation LOCATION: Premium Suite, Etc Venues, St Paul’s London TIME: 09.45-10.30 TICKETS: iwfm. conference.org

TOPIC: UK industry is changing, which means the skills we need and the way we work are changing too.

Carey will refer to her research centred on improving UK productivity and management practices, developing diverse and highly skilled talent pipelines, exploring the consequences of technological innovation and the future of work, promoting responsible business and inclusive growth, and supporting good working practices that ensure a healthy and productive workforce.

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Cabinet Office David Lidington reiterated the government’s plan to extend the requirements of the act. Currently, government departments are to “consider” social value when commissioning services but in the future they need to “evaluate” social value. A subtle but significant shift adding a greater burden of proof to show that social value has been given sufficient attention in the contracting process.

Regardless of this shift, Carey says the act’s original purpose is to elevate the social value narrative from individual actions, such as providing a certain quota of apprenticeships or painting community centres, to determining how procurement decisions can support better work opportunities and conditions and positively affect wider communities.

“We are seeing a shift in the way that businesses are viewed,” Carey says. “That’s partly to do with the journey we’ve been on through the financial crisis and the defaulting of major contractors. We’re starting to see a much greater discussion about the absolute imperative of responsible business and responsible leadership.”

The upshot is that there is more pressure on businesses to act ethically. Failure to do so could result in lost customers, shareholders and suppliers. Emma Scott, W W manager W. I W F M at .Othe RG Chartered .U K representation

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Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)

LO N G FO R M

S O C I A L VA L U E — M E A S U R E M E N T

“If the information you have to put into the platform is difficult to compile that may detract from its Sodexo was among the first value. But fundamentally, if you get service providers the measurement right it will move to recognise the potential value of behaviours in the right direction social value to FM and create an environment for continuous improvement.”

Carr’s colleague Worrall, agrees.

“A simple way of measuring and a common approach are crucial for ensuring this regime is successful across the industry. If it isn’t simple it will cost too much to implement and maintain, lose momentum and ultimately fade away. If there is no commonality of approach the measurements will lose their overall value and become a thing to mistrust rather than believe in.

“The hallmark of success will come from an agreed benchmark for expected social value delivered through our operations – a target of 20p in social value for every £1 of contract value may be the place to start – and it becoming a ‘business as usual’ topic in monthly meetings and performance reports.

Service providers have had various attempts in the past to develop measures. Charlotte Österman, social sustainability manager at Vinci Facilities, recalls what happened when Vinci tested different measurement models for its highly successful ‘Reading from the start’ literacy programme (see picture). One model generated “a gazillion’s-worth of social value” because the inputs – handing out free books to young children – were weighted so heavily. But, says Österman, “It just didn’t sit right with us.” The company then partnered with Social Value UK to measure and define its social value.

A key issue, says Österman, is to look at “the value that people place on the changes they’re experiencing”. Reporting on social value should be a transparent process with a heavy focus on engagement with stakeholders.

“Look at where you have your impact,” says Österman, “then frame financial proxies and relate them to a metric based on research. If you don’t go through stakeholder consultation you’re just putting numbers on a piece of paper and you can’t really use people’s feedback to improve how you’re doing as a business.”

The Social Value Portal’s Guy Battle recognises the subtle distinction between a desired outcome and a lasting impact. He sees the latter as something that will inevitably take a lot longer to become clear.

Vinci Facilities’ ‘Reading from the Start’ campaign tackled illiteracy in partnership with its client Peabody housing association.

The project won an IWFM Award

Nevertheless, in his view clarity of reporting on quantifiable measures, correctly aligned to desired outcomes, is the best way to guarantee those impacts in due course.

Certainly measures such as the number of employees hired through a local economic regeneration TOMS scheme will be fairly easy to quantify. But TIMELINE what about these indirect measurements? The boosted confidence of people who’ve been FEBRUARY Initial FM Subthrough work programmes? The improved group meeting mental well-being of those using a community garden? Who should decide what these indirect MARCH FM sub-group measurements should be? meeting to “This requires feedback from beneficiaries continue mapping and is harder to measure practically,” says out FM TOMs and Jamie Quinn, corporate responsibility and receive feedback on online exercise environment director at Engie. “But there are methods. Engie has developed a model MAY using the TOMs framework alongside HACT’s Workshop to summarise work (Housing Associations’ Charitable Trust) Social and present draft Value Bank, which measures improvements to FM-specific TOMs individual well-being.”

JULY For Quinn, “delivering social value means Soft launch responding to needs, and needs of course differ in different places and for different clients so SEPTEMBER official launch should be led by research and engagement.

The most consistent metrics across regions measure outputs generally relating to employment and employment support (jobs themselves, apprenticeships, work experience); but focusing on these could miss more efficient, lower-cost or more innovative ways of delivering value and in relation to other areas like health, well-being, supporting business growth and environment”.

Nevertheless, to evaluate different providers a consistent methodology for measuring outputs that also identifies financial proxies is key. But Quinn says clients should consider procuring for outcomes.

“This means asking service providers to identify how they will address an outcome – for example, low employment rates – rather than to deliver W W–W. IW F M .O .U K a number of outputs [for example, number of jobs the kind of RG measure

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associated to a TOMs framework outcome].”

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INSIDE 32 34 35 36 39

Perspectives – four original opinion pieces FM @ Large – seen and heard this month Behind the Job – Sinead Beglane Think Tank – How good is your internal comms system?

Calls to action – events worthy of your attention

I

t’s the purpose of this page to interrogate the terms we hear popping up on conference circuits or read in social media posts. The ones that make you think: “This sounds compelling or catchy, but what exactly does it mean?”

Risk-aware versus risk-averse

A recent encounter for us at Facilitate concerns the terms ‘risk-aware’ contrasted with ‘risk-averse’. Risk, of course, is an omnipresent concern and inevitable reality for

Each month we explain the background to phrases you may be hearing, or the key issues currently making waves

VIEW POINT

every business so any new way of talking about it is worthy of investigation.

“Risk is uncertainty in achieving objectives whatever they are,” says Dave Cooke, chair of the IWFM Risk and Business Continuity Management SIG. “While the focus is almost always on the negative, risk can also have a positive outcome.”

So you can’t escape it and without hedging your bets and acting, you won’t grow your organisation. But there are better or worse ways of managing it.

Cooke says among risk management professionals, the terms ‘risk-aware’ and ‘risk-averse’ are neither standard terminology nor widely used. They do, however, provide insight into how some people and

THE B E ST O F THE S E C TO R’ S DI S C U S S I O N A N D DE BATE organisations outside of the risk management discipline regard risk.

“Both could be seen to be a statement about ‘risk appetite’,” Cooke explains.

What is risk appetite?

Simply put, it is measuring the “amount and type of risk an organisation is willing to take to achieve its objectives”, Cooke says. In other words, how much risk can you stomach without regretting the moment you chomped into it?

Within this broader definition or understanding of risk, the term risk-averse might tend to indicate a lower appetite towards risk, while being risk-aware could refer to taking a more informed stance on risk – and its potential positive outcomes – particularly in situations where higher but more calculated risks are taken.

“This appetite should be clearly defined and measurable for different types of risk,”

BUZZWORDS

RISK APPETITE

Cooke says. “One wouldn’t expect a financial investment company and a nuclear generation facility to have the same risk appetite – many of the risks and potential outcomes are very different.”

And even in cases in which organisations are more comparable, there will be some that have a higher risk appetite and could be said to be more “risk-hungry” than others, says Cooke, adding that ‘risk-hungry’ is also not a mainstream term.

Moving past terminology

The words we use are important, of course, but more so is “having an effective risk management system that is appropriate for the size and activities of the organisation”, says Cooke.

And many organisations do not have this in place.

Cooke points readers to the SIG’s recently published GPG on risk management, which provides a practical guide for workplace and facilities management professionals to manage risk. tinyurl.com/FacMag0319-risk

PHOTOGRAPHY: SHUTTERSTOCK

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V I E W P O I NT

SEEN AND HEARD

Ideas and comments made at Workplace Futures 2019

FM@LARGE

“I HAVE SAID IT BEFORE WHEN ATTENDING #FACILITIESMANAGEMENT CONFERENCES THAT I WOULD LOVE FOR FRONTLINE STAFF TO ALSO BE ON THE PODIUM TALKING ABOUT COMPANY VALUES, ETHOS & MAKING A DIFFERENCE. IT WOULD HAVE SO MUCH MORE CREDIBILITY.”

“Partnership is going to replace the traditional outsourcing model to a large extent. All of this is going to require long-term thinking on the part of contractors and that is very difficult for PLCs to achieve because they’re under constant share sh price pressure for short-t short-term returns.”

MARK WHITTAKER, FM CONSULTANT SULTANT ION CHAIR, AND IWFM NORTHERN REGION WITH A VALID SUGGESTION TO DEEPEN ECTOR UNDERSTANDING OF THE SECTOR

GEOFF TUC TUCKER, SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR AT NORS NORSE COMMERCIAL SERVICES, OFFERS A PREDIC PREDICTION FOR THE SECTOR

“Welcome to the employee experience of the VUCA world, where the contextt in which we operate is volatile, e, uncertain, complex ex and ambiguous”

“A SAFFRON, VANILLA “AFTER LA IS THE SECOND MOST EXPENSIVE SPICE IN THEE WORLD. UNEXPECTED EX LEARNING IN THE AFTERNOON LE NOON AREA HERE AT #WPFUT19 FROM @ANABASFM_MD.” #W ASFM_MD.” FACILITATE’S EDITOR MARTIN READ TWEETS FACILITAT TS AMID AS ALISTAIR CR CRAIG’S PRESENTATION, WHICH WAS ABOU UT SPICES NOT JUST ABOUT

ADELAIDE FORBES, HR O DIRECTOR AT MACE MACRO

“FUNDAMENTALLY, DAMENTTALLY TALLY, NG DELEVERAGING SHOULD BE THE WATCHWORDD FOR THE SECTOR””

NOTED&QUOTED “THE INDUSTRY SHOULD BE H HONEST ABOUT ITS RACE RACE-TO-THE-BOTTOM PRICING AND SAY: ‘LOOK, PRIC THIS IISN’T THE WAY TO RUN CONTRA CONTRACTS. IT’S NOT FAIR ON WHAT WE’R WE’RE TRYING TO DELIVER.’”

IAN MARSON, TRANSA TRANSACTION ACTION ADVISORY DIRECTOR AT A EY, PROVIDES CLEAR ADVIC CE TO ADVICE AVOID THE CALAMITIES S OF CARILLION AND OTHER RS IN THE OTHERS CONSTRUCTION INDUS STRY INDUSTRY

RUBY MCGREGOR-SM MCGREGOR-SMITH CBE ADDS HER VOICE TO THE FAMILIAR REFRAIN TO SHIFT FOCUS FO ON LOWEST COST FOR SERVICES

“The kind d of peoplee that go to buy b vanilla vanilla pods [instead [insttead of vanilla essence], e Paul P Hollywo ood aside,, are Hollywood the sortt of peoplee that are very y clear on n what they are arre buying” ”

“My notes read ‘@LarchLucy: social value, We talked about TO ACCESS THE transparency,FULL raceVERSION to the transpare vanilla, in the bottom, va OF sex FACILITATE MAGAZINE, elephants’ ” JOIN IWFM office, elep

ANABAS MD ALISTAIR CRAIG G GETS METAPHORICA ET AL ABOUT BUSI NESS METAPHORICAL BUSINESS ATE D SERVICE PROV VISION STRATEGY AND PROVISION

W W W. I WTHE F MSUMMARY .O RG .UOF K THE SIMON IATROU OF MAGENTA MAG SUMMARISES CONFERENCE FROM LU LUCY JEYNES, LARCH CONSULTING 34

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V I E W P O I NT

A B IT AB O UT YO U

SINEAD BEGLANE is a workplace manager at ITV’s Waterhouse Square office

What do you do? I look

after the cleaning and catering contracts including hospitality. I also manage the logistics/goods control and front-of-house teams plus the services they provide.

What attracted you to FM, and how did you get into the industry? After university,

I bounced around different temp jobs and an internship but ended up at ITV after a four-month FM placement at a brewery. I was initially hired for a three-week stint as a FM helpdesk operator and enjoyed it so much that I am still here almost eight years later!

How long have you been in your current role?

I have been the workplace manager of our new HQ for a year. Prior to that I was predominantly working on our relocation project but the two roles overlapped for much of last year.

Do you see yourself predominantly as a task or a people manager? A people

PHOTOGRAPHY: SHUTTERSTOCK/GETTY/ISTOCK

manager – getting all the tasks required for the workplace to run smoothly requires the cooperation and focus of my teams. My role involves providing a lot of support and advice to my teams by acting as a sounding board for their queries.

Would you describe your role as predominantly operational or strategic? Over

the past year I’ve had to focus on the operational requirements of the business

BEHIND THE JOB

SINEAD BEGLANE while we moved everyone into the new London offices and set up all our services. The relocation was driven by the ITV strategy. The FM team took this as an opportunity to review our operational approach, experiment with different ways of providing services and to implement change at the same time.

“I WAS ABLE TO BRING MY MUM, AN AVID CORONATION STREET FAN, TO SEE THE SET” posed my biggest challenge so far, particularly my involvement in our relocation.

At the same time, I became a line manager for the first time, managing two new teams of nine people in total. Managing people is an entirely new experience for me.

How many people are there in your FM team, and who does the FM team ultimately report to? I have

nine direct reports but the ITV FM team has 56 people… 31 looking after our London hub sites and regional buildings in the South with the remainder looking after our Northern hubs, studios and regional buildings. We report to Ian Jones, director of workplace services and estates.

If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be? It can be

relentless. As someone who naturally likes to focus on a particular task and complete it, I can struggle with the constantly changing demands that you often can’t predict are coming your way.

My top perk at work is… The

If I wasn’t in facilities management, I’d probably be… Who knows? I was

company I work for is instantly recognisable to most people. My family has watched ITV since I was a child, so to be part of it is great. I was able to bring my mum, an avid Coronation Street fan, to see the set as part of a family day.

struggling to find my career path when I started temping here after completing a history degree, travelling for six months and then trying out various industries but never feeling quite right about them.

maintenance, cleaning or catering, but it’s so much more.

What single piece of advice would you give to a young facilities manager starting out? Get involved in different aspects of FM, rather than strictly M&E or soft services.

When I moved on from being a helpdesk operator I worked alongside our procurement team, which taught me a lot about managing contracts.

What was the weirdest day you’ve had in the office?

It was the weekend before we rolled out ITV’s new brand a few years ago. Everything on screen was changing on the Monday so everything in our buildings had to be ready. From access control passes to pens to mugs to the flags flying on our building along the South Bank.

What FM job in the world would you love more than anything? I shadowed a guest

relations manager at one of the big hotels in Waterloo a couple of years ago and was amazed by the level of detail required. They recognised the impact of social media and the power of a personalised service, which can leave a lasting impression on visitors.

TO ACCESS THE FULL VERSION OF FACILITATE Your life outside FM mostly MAGAZINE, that when I tell people outside involves…JOIN SpendingIWFM time

Which “FM myth” would you most like to put an end to? I get the impression

What has been your biggest career challenge to date? 2018

of the FM industry what I do, they assume that it’s just

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with and WW W. Ifamily W F M .O RGtravelling .U K whenever I can.

INSIDE 46 47 48 52 56

Claire Curran: Foster the exceptional Fergus Roseburgh: Stop the bully May Laghzaoui: Energy tax breaks Mark Buttery: Division of assets Ben Gillam: Two office ‘Cats’ to consider

KNOW HOW

P O RTAB LE C H A IRS

THE L ATE ST L E A RN I N G A N D BE ST P RAC TI CE

BRING A SEAT

S

tanding in queues, BENEFITS watching your child’s OF THE football match, no seat CHAIRLESS at the pub? These are CHAIR all situations in which Employees can work in you might reasonably want a comfortable position to have a portable chair Decreases stress on strapped to your back. legs and back For factory workers who Reduces sick days have to stand for a significant Improves posture portion of their working day Ensures jobs even the idea of a portable chair with progressed age that could offer them an Less than a minute impromptu seat when moving to put the device on along the production line must Removes clutter be even more appealing. of chairs and Enter Swiss start-up Noonee auxiliary seats – creator of the Chairless Chair. The exoskeleton, which straps to the lower body, offers workers a seat and also supports them when bending, crouching and squatting. c The device frame, which weighs 3.5kg, 3.5k can be adjusted to an individual user’s height and in girth.

It straps around the hips g and runs along the backside of the legs, fitting into various brands of work-safe footwear to hold it in place. It is made predominantly of lightweight and durable polyamide.

Noonee describes the product as a wearable ergonomic p mechatronic device that me allows allow wearers to move around u unencumbered and relieves some of the muscular tension associated with standing for long periods.

The company adds that the Chairless Chair is useful given the realities of an ageing workforce. Older employees are at greater risk of developing back pain.

It cites statistics that show problems with muscle tissue and the skeleton are responsible for a quarter of all sick days, with older workers more likely to take sick days than their younger colleagues.

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K N OW H OW EXPL AINER

U

ncertainty has brought a shift in the way companies approach their real estate, with a demand for greater flexibility and enhanced customer service. This has led to the rapid growth of the serviced office model as well as the evolution of the way traditional workspace is leased and managed.

Landlords need new ways to market their properties and one method is Cat A+, a new idea that creates a middle ground between Cat A and Cat B.

What’s a Cat A fit-out?

A Cat A fit-out is typically implemented for a landlord who wishes to market a blank canvas space to a broad range of prospective clients.

Essentially, it is an empty space finished to an industrial standard, which is then usually transformed by an interior designer appointed by the tenant after the lease has been signed.

A Cat B fit-out is a full refurbishment of an existing workplace, creating an environment that is ready for immediate occupation.

PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY

And Cat A+?

Cat A+, on the other hand, is the most comprehensive fit-out a landlord can provide.

It creates a ‘plug-and-play’ space with full functionality, including data, fibre and cabling, and all that tenants need to do is add their brand stamp.

These spaces can be designed to appeal to tenants large and small, corporate and creative.

It is worth noting that most businesses in the UK are SMEs, and typically looking for around 10,000 square feet of space. This model makes it

BEN GILLAM is the founder of commercial property specialists The ThirdWay Group

projects in London to appeal to tenants who want the flexibility of a co-working office, but within their own private space.

Fund manager Columbia Threadneedle Investments, one of our clients, has applied the Cat A+ concept across its portfolio, following a successful leasing of its Copthall Avenue property.

The main benefits they’ve seen from the fit-out have been attracting tenants that are: Seeking greater independence; Looking to develop their identity as their businesses mature; and Wanting to transition from co-working and traditional

possible for small businesses and start-ups that might have struggled to fund their own refurbishment and whose other option would have been to share space in a co-working environment to move into their own fully finished and functioning space without the cost of a Cat B fit-out.

This is especially popular in London’s market, where rents continue to rise and the overheads of occupying premises are significant.

Flexible Cat A+

Since its conception, the Cat A+ model has been implemented on several

SERVICED OFFICES

TWO OFFICE ‘CATS’ TO CONSIDER

serviced offices into their own space.

This is what a Cat A+ turnkey solution provides.

Investment up front

Although Cat A+ requires more upfront investment from the investor, developer or landlord, this model eliminates the need for rent-free periods because the space is ready to go from day one.

Another benefit of this approach for both parties is that, at the end of the tenancy, dilapidations becomes easier, cheaper and far less contentious. It is also less wasteful as there isn't a need to remove everything and return the space to a blank canvas.

Following the speed of growth of co-working, traditional landlords are looking for new ways to market their properties, challenge the co-working phenomenon and meet tenants needs. Cat A + is a solution that meets these demands.

Cat A + is growing in popularity as the traditional office is evolving in response to occupier demand, says Ben Gillam

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BAC K PAG E

EPHFMERA

Facilitate, incorporating FM World, is the publication of IWFM, the professional body for workplace and facilities management. For information on membership, qualifications and training contact us:

The stories that just don’t fit anywhere else (Email us: editorial@facilitatemagazine.com)

Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management Charringtons House, 1st Floor South, The Causeway, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire CM23 2ER, UK Tel: +44 (0)1279 712 620 Email: admin@iwfm.org.uk Web: www.iwfm.org.uk

L’environnement bâti nécessite un jeu sans frontières

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A

s professions battle it out to attract the next generation of workers, the way they portray themselves to students takes on ever greater importance.

So we were intrigued to hear that Sue Hayhow, senior lecturer in property, construction & quantity surveying at Birmingham City University, has devised a board game to teach students the life cycle of property. ‘Construct-it’ brings together professional disciplines “to simulate a reallife, collaborative project and tackle some of the challenges which may be faced”. They’ve even conducted some research to prove that the game is “a fun, engaging and challenging way to educate students”.

Aspiring professionals for whom the game has been designed include architectural technicians, building surveyors, construction managers, quantity surveyors and, well, guess the obvious omission. Surely we need a game for all aspects of the built environment, including those who operate the finished buildings? A built environment game without frontiers, please.

So the mission to design a board game for workplace and facilities managers begins right here. We’ll take all reasonable suggestions. ‘Productopoly’?

‘Risk’? (Damn – that’s taken.) ‘The Polar Opposite of a Trivial Pursuit’? Perhaps ‘Facgammon’?

You could use ‘Monopoly’ as the inspiration, with the twist that instead

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of property acquisition it would focus on building up workplace performance credits. Players would land on squares such as ‘Retro-Fit CHP boiler’, ‘Boost nutrition through new catering offer’, ‘Create agile environment’, etc. The challenge would be in determining the value of each credit. And of course there’s no reason not to include an element of interaction across other disciplines.

Well, it’s either this or yet more screens. Perhaps our appeal to those much-coveted under-18s lies in an asyet unwritten level of ‘Fortnite’?

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FacilitateMagazine.com / March 2019

To subscribe call 020 8950 9117 or email subscriptions@fm-world.co.uk – alternatively, you can subscribe online at www.facilitatemagazine.com/about-us/subscribe/ Editorial Advisory Board Simon Ball, market director, Engie UK & Ireland Peter Brogan, research & information manager, IWFM Rob Greenfield, director, Assured Safety & Risk Management Ian Jones, director of facilities, ITV Liz Kentish, managing director, Kentish and Co. Pleun van Deurssen, EMEA regional facilities manager, JLL Anne Lennox Martin, FM consultant Jeremy Waud, chairman, Incentive FM group Jane Wiggins, FM tutor and author

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