ISO 41000
About ISO 41000. The ISO 41000 series currently comprises:
• ISO 41011: Facility management – Vocabulary
• ISO 41012: Facility management – Guidance on strategic sourcing and the development of agreements, and
• ISO 41001 Facility management – Management systems – Requirements with guidance for use.
These are supported by a Technical Report:
• ISO 41013:2017 Facility management – Scope, key concepts and benefits.
As stated in ISO 41001, the Standard establishes a common interpretation and understanding of FM and provides a common basis upon which FM can be assessed and measured. This acknowledges the recognition that, until now, global FM principles and practices have been lacking, resulting in discrepancies in service quality, demand organization expectations and unnecessary levels of contractual conflict. Significantly, ISO 41001 confirms that this is a certifiable Standard, stating that it is applicable to organizations wishing to seek accreditation by a third party certification body.
Although the most recent Standard to be published, ISO 41001 establishes an overall framework within which a facilities management system can be established, supported by the other Standards in the series. It comprises seven primary criteria structured around the ‘Plan-Do-Check-Act’ methodology:
• context of the organization
• leadership
• planning
• support
• operations
• performance evaluation, and
• improvement
In line with many Standards, ISO 41001 does not set out to be prescriptive, but provides for maximum flexibility in its interpretation through the guidance notes provided.
On the other hand, ISO 41012 is a bit more specific about the processes for strategic sourcing of support services and structuring FM agreements, with a section on measuring service provision performance. The key features of this Standard are the annexes – they include, for example, templates for service level agreements and descriptions of general agreement clauses.
ISO 41001 identifies five benefits of an integrated system standard for FM, listed and described as follows:
1. Improved workforce productivity, safety and health and well-being
Throughout my career, I have dealt with both demand organizations and service providers and through these interactions regularly have come across unproductive time consumed with ‘reinventing the wheel’. This has not been the fault of these organizations, but rather the lack of industry endorsed systems and processes. The Standards specifically address this and give all organizations the opportunity to take an ‘off the shelf’ solution and tailor it to meet individual requirements. In doing so, the Standards give organizations the confidence that their FM system is not missing something, particularly when it comes to safety, health and well-being.
2. Improved communication of requirements and methodologies among and between private and public sector organizations
One of the critical elements of communication is the language we use. For too long there has been confusion in the industry around certain terminologies. This leads to, at best, misunderstandings and, at worst, contractual conflict. The Standards, and in particular 41011, will play an essential role in resolving potential confusion and misinterpretation.
3. Improved efficiency and effectiveness, thus improving cost benefits to organizations
In the absence of standard systems and processes, there is a high risk of using unnecessary and/or inappropriate resources. This creates waste and redundancy, both factors that reduce efficiency and effectiveness. Adoption of the Standards will contribute significantly to minimizing this risk and have a direct positive impact on financial performance.
4. Improved service consistency
Customer satisfaction is impacted by, among other criteria, the consistency in all aspects of service delivery. By establishing, and continually improving, tried and tested processes and procedures, organizations will improve consistency without too much effort. The Standards provide comprehensive checklists for the broad range of activities that support the successful implementation of a new FM system.
5. Providing a common platform for all types of organizations
This is basically saying that the Standards will create a level playing field at an internationally acceptable level of performance for all organizations in the FM space. However, this should not be viewed as stifling differentiation and/or innovation, in fact quite the reverse. Compliance with the Standards means that organizations do not have to be focused on what should be ‘business as usual’ processes and, as a consequence, be able to divert more energy and resources to becoming more creative and innovative. This will not only set these organizations apart from the rest, but will also result in improved performance across the whole industry.