International. Before hiring an FM training program for you or your team you should have some clear data. Twenty years analyzing and training in the field has led the FM House Institute to create this small initial test.
We hope that answering these questions will help you make a good choice or at least clarify some ideas.
1. Areas. Facility Management as such, covers multiple areas of knowledge, which many times, due to ignorance, are not associated with the discipline. Although they all apply to a greater or lesser extent, each company decides how it serves them and to whom they are assigned. Knowledge of all of them is not always required, so you have to define what you want training in.
Answer the question, which of these generic subjects do you want to include in the training? Choose between (i) real estate activity, (ii) support assets, (iii) spaces, (iv) energy and sustainability, (v) management of operational services or (vi) technology and information systems.
If you only want part of an area, or a more specific topic, then a somewhat more detailed analysis is required, write it down and continue with the other questions. Now you have to define the objective you want in each one, since you may want to delve deeper into one than the other.
2. Intensity. This point is key but not easy to decide and will be illustrated using service levels as an example, since they are the basis and without them you can hardly talk about an FM course: we can explain what a Service Level is in a couple of hours of session without involvement on the part of the student, but if you want to understand the structure and identify all the elements it takes 40 hours, adding also some personal dedication; however, if what you are looking for is to be able to size an SL precisely and adapted to each need, about 120 hours of theory and as many hours of practice are necessary. It is clear that not all of us need to be experts in each subject, hence you must know the objective well. This will also give you an idea of the ratio between the theoretical and practical load that the program should contain.
Answer the question, what do I want to achieve for each of the areas included? Select between (i) knowing concepts, (ii) acquiring knowledge, (iii) understanding and being able to comment or (iv) developing new content.
3. Dedication. This is a key factor, since depending on the degree of dedication you can have you will complete one type of training or another. You must be very realistic and quantify in advance the time you have or want to associate. It is not easy to know precisely how much time available you will have, and more if you work in FM, but you have to make a forecast of personal commitment to be able to make a coherent decision.
Answer the question, how many total hours do you want to spend in training and what is the minimum dedication you can have on a daily, weekly or monthly basis?
4. Term. Apart from dedication, the deadline is another determining factor that you must take into account. It is not the same to have a deadline for completion, than to look for something long-term or continuous training.
There are programs that are more flexible than others in meeting the established schedule, which are offered several times a year, and even that can be started whenever one wishes.
Answer the questions, when can I start the program? On what date do I want or should I finish the training? What room for manoeuvre do I have on that date?
5. Modality. Years ago this point would not have made sense, however today you can choose between online, face-to-face or mixed training. You must consider which format is the one that could best suit your situation. Online training is not for everyone, but not everyone can access face-to-face training, motivated mainly by the place of residence or schedules.
Answer the questions, does it exist and can I attend the face-to-face training? Could you follow an online training course? Whether it is face-to-face or online, and especially if you have never done this last modality before, you should try before or ask for references, since you can end up tied to a wrong decision. This will also allow you to perceive the quality of the course.
In the market there is an ideal program, whether you are a client, supplier, FM director with little time who wants to update or simply want to grow within the department or enter the discipline. It's important to be realistic, because if you want to be able to have a say in all areas, and you can only devote a few hours a week for a few months, that's simply impossible. You need much more time and dedication or choose only some of the areas, because if not, you will surely not be satisfied.
If you want help, send your answers by mail and thus schedule a call to advise you and solve the doubts to [email protected]
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