What Facilities Management Metrics Should We Be Tracking?

Facilities management metrics are data points that reflect the overall performance of your assets in your organization. Identifying the right metrics to measure will help keep you from being overwhelmed and slowed down by unimportant data. Those facilities management metrics you should be focused on include the percentage of office space, percentage of meeting space, percentage of technical space utilized, total downtime of equipment and software along with total electricity consumption. We explain these metrics and why they are important to track below.

As the facility management profession has evolved, so has the definition of success. To consolidate expenses and streamline operations,  facilities managers need to pay attention to a new set of facilities management metrics — those that are more accurate and dynamic than the old standards. The Internet of Things (IoT) has made it possible to capture real-time space utilization data from sensors, allowing workplace managers to get a more complete picture of how employees are using spaces and resources.

Below is a list of the most important numbers to track as well as the triggers behind them.

Shift Toward the Digital Workplace

One of the key components of the digital workplace is flexibility. This has given rise to more shared desks within office spaces as well as work-from-home options for employees.

While this reduces the amount of office space being used, it creates a new hill to climb: Space needs will vary from day to day. This makes it especially important to monitor space usage.

Old Facilities Management Metrics

In the past, keeping tabs on space utilization often translated into workplace managers making observations. They would tally headcounts and then use this information to look at metrics like vacancy rate and office space density — an approach that lacks efficiency and is often inaccurate.

New Facilities Management Metrics

With new metrics, facilities managers get a much clearer picture of space utilization. Looking at the costs of owning or leasing space per employee, for instance, offers a more accurate representation of spacing costs. Meanwhile, the percentage of office space, meeting space and technical space utilized provides greater insight into whether each space is being used to its full potential.

Greater Emphasis on Proactive Maintenance

Old Facilities Management Metrics

When companies take a reactive approach to maintenance policies, maintenance productivity can suffer substantially. In the past, many organizations have focused only on total maintenance costs from one year to the next, without much of an attempt to understand what’s driving them.

New Facilities Management Metrics

Recognizing the need to be proactive, more organizations are taking the time to review maintenance needs regularly, rather than waiting until the inevitable equipment outage. To measure success in this area, look at the total cost of repairing equipment, the cost of service and the labor hours compared to parts and strive for improvement in each of these areas. A facility management software helps make this information readily available.

The total downtime of equipment and software is also a useful metric to consult. Understanding the length of time associated with equipment maintenance enables facilities managers to better coordinate this process and prevent long wait times.

Creating a Sustainable Future

The workplace is becoming more environmentally conscious. With this emphasis on sustainability from both an environmental and cost perspective, many offices are making moves to ensure a greener future.

Old Facilities Management Metrics

While many organizations say they prioritize sustainability, they don’t always set tangible goals. Among those that do, research shows only 2 percent actually meet those goals.

New Facilities Management Metrics

Making progress in this area means redefining success and setting goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-oriented (think SMART). Take total electricity consumption, for instance. From this data, facilities managers can identify ways to increase energy efficiency, whether that means transitioning to LED lighting or implementing lighting intelligence. Other metrics included under this umbrella are heating and cooling costs, paper product consumption and water usage.

To measure success, facilities managers now can look to a new set of metrics that encompass the changing scope of the role and deliver greater accuracy. Accessing real-time data on these metrics through an integrated workplace management system (IWMS) paves the way for optimizing business operations and saving on costs.

To learn more about the facilities management metrics that matter most, get our latest eBook, 8 New Facilities Management Metrics You Need to Know.