The management of infrastructures in companies is often considered by the bosses as “a necessary evil” not very glamorous and not very interesting compared to the customers, i.e. the “turnover” part of the operating account.
This is a pity because good infrastructure management can reduce costs by 15 to 20% annually.
There is certainly no lack of difficulties, but with a little help and technique, it is not so complicated after all.
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First of all, a clear strategy needs to be defined and we need to stop working “piecemeal” on service contracts.
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- Next, you should put all the cards on your side in terms of price, volumes, and quality: what better way to do this than to carry out these analyses before negotiating contracts. Experience has shown that 70-80% of potential gains are made during this period, much less during the life of the contracts.
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It is also necessary to focus on 3-4 main topics (e.g. maintenance & logistics, cleaning, security & safety, and document management). It is not very productive to tackle services that generate 2-3% of the total FM (Facility Management) expenses.
- Finally, one must remain pragmatic and not want to deal with processes or services in an overly academic way. Keeping service descriptions simple, precise, and comprehensible for both the customer and the supplier is the key to success.
Of course, every company should define its own requirements, but in the end, it is the quality of all measures, descriptions and processes that makes the difference.
To achieve this, the help of an external consultant should not be considered a luxury: it is often a small investment in proportion to the great effects for the 4-5 years following the signing of new infrastructure management contracts.