This specific priority, better integrating with the Facilities Management function has come from some of the many priorities I have observed that CIOs have at the moment. The world of property management is one that like so many has become increasingly technology-driven in recent years. The number of devices in buildings that have IP addresses is growing at pace. The number that are just bunged onto networks without thought about, particularly, security is too scary to think about.
But facilities management is also integral into delivering modern workspaces – from the desks at which people sit to the meeting rooms to the security at reception, the list goes on. And if you want to see how these services so often don’t integrate, just look at the clunkiness at the reception desk, or the shambles that getting anything to work in a meeting room can be.
FM is just one function with whom IT needs to build stronger relationships. I’ve argued for years now that IT, HR, Finance, FM, Legal and other supporting functions need to be working in tandem to deliver much of the change that organisations are expecting from their investment in technology. It’s surprisingly rare to see that collaboration in action.
Inaction, more like.
-#-
I’ve recently launched Stamp London’s first physical product – a set of playing cards called CIO Priorities. You can find out more about them here, and order a set for yourself here (or simply download the PDF and print them out).
mmitII 