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The Worlds of Facility Management and Workplace are, by definition, highly mobile and evolutive.

On these pages, you will find technical articles, news, reports on congresses and conferences in which Spaceonmove took part as well as positions or “mood tickets” which should give you a particular insight into these two fields. Nice readings.

AI in business: between strategic opportunity and the need for control

Posted on by Christian Hadorn | Article

AI has quietly made its way into almost every business in the service sector.

Its rollout often follows a subtle path: first a translation tool, then a voice assistant, and finally integration into the very heart of workstations, replacing certain tasks in a matter of months.

Although this technology is still in its infancy in the professional world, it is becoming impossible to ignore. Its performance, at times impressive or even worrying, makes its widespread adoption almost inevitable.

Yet, whilst the authorities struggle to agree on regulatory standards, businesses are navigating a certain degree of chaos. Success will favour those who cannot only master these technologies – mostly American or Chinese – but, above all, manage them intelligently.

The challenge is considerable: how can employees be trained to use tools that are evolving at lightning speed responsibly? A generational divide is thus widening within organisations:

• Generations Y, Z and Alpha, ‘AI natives’, use it intensively and are immersed in it, but without always perceiving its limits or dangers.

• Generations X and the baby boomers, who must learn these new tools, on the other hand, possess the experience of the ‘world before’. This perspective often enables them to intuitively detect certain abuses, such as AI hallucinations.

Whilst some large corporations are investing heavily in training and awareness-raising, other companies remain ill-equipped. This lack of understanding is already creating operational risks and leaving organisations more exposed to cybercrime that thrives on these new technologies.

Whilst AI excels at performing precise and rapid tasks, it cannot be entrusted with strategic decision-making. Companies must learn to make judgements, even without knowing all the purposes of the algorithms they use.

Given the reluctance of democracies to establish a clear framework, it is highly likely that only a major financial scandal or a large-scale cyberattack will rouse those most resistant to acting.

It is therefore imperative for every company to adopt a resilient AI strategy right now. Moving forward is the very essence of business, but this must be done in a considered manner. AI is no exception to the rule.

Food for thought.

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    Commercial buildings are becoming filled with sensors, digital twins and AI. This is undeniably a technological revolution. Yet a yawning gap still separates these advances from the executive boardroom.

    Why? Because these topics remain confined to a select circle of ultra-specialists and Facility Management “gurus”. Because executives, focused on their core business, all too often view the technical back office as an unglamorous black box. Because our training programmes, even in Switzerland, still struggle to build genuine bridges between strategic management and operational reality.

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  • There are consultants and consultants…

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    1. Does their DNA match my needs? Many claim to do everything. Few do it well. Check their actual expertise — not their marketing CV.
    2. Am I prepared to act on their recommendations? If the answer is no, there’s no point in hiring them. A consultant is not a strategy decorator.
    3. Is my organisation ready to welcome an ‘inquisitor’? A consultant is also a mirror. And sometimes, we don’t like what we see in it.
    4. Are they able to adapt to my context — or do they come with their ‘ready-made recipes’? ‘Copy-pasting’ between clients is the beginning of failure.
    5. Is there human chemistry? A power struggle from the outset = a doomed project.

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    1. There is room for everyone in consulting — as long as you position yourself with clarity and authenticity.
    2. The client must know themselves in order to know what type of consultant they need.
    3. SMEs deserve turnkey solutions, far removed from grand theoretical discourse and standardised models. To disparage consulting is to overlook a powerful tool — sometimes misused, but rarely useless. The real challenge? Choose wisely, engage with humility, and act with determination.
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