Martyn Freeman looks at how Property and FM services might work post Covid

Well, it’s officially Spring, the clocks have rolled forwards and everyone’s fixing their gaze on the lifting of Covid restrictions and getting back to business as usual. But what exactly is BAU going to look like now? There have been more articles published recently on the future of the workplace than you can shake a stick at, and this year’s Workplace Futures conference spent an entire day debating the subject.

Most folk agree that there is change afoot but disagree on the eventual outcomes. Every day there is another headline that provides a glimpse of this brave new world. Having mothballed its plush Waterside HQ in July last year, BA is now looking to sell it off completely and switch to hybrid working. As well as the inevitable branch closures, Nationwide is planning to relinquish leases on three buildings in its hometown of Swindon, where 3,000 staff are based.

As a result of the Covid lockdown, many middle managers who weren’t already practicing some kind of part-time, home working arrangement, quickly got a taste for the extended lie-ins and the absence of commuting. In a staff survey, 57% of the Nationwide’s employees said they wanted to work from home full-time after lockdown and more than a third (36%) said they preferred a mix of home and office-based work.

But it’s not for everyone and whose decision is it where we work? Do we have a choice? Another piece of research claims that three-quarters of remote workers reported feeling worse as a result of long-term working from home, with over one-third (39 percent) feeling more stressed. The report also claimed a significant generational divide, with 66 percent of younger workers saying they felt either tired, stressed or under more pressure at work, compared with their older colleagues, who were probably quite comfortable in their superior, suburban office set ups.

So, what are the implications for the property and FM industry? Historically, the commercial property market in the UK has been characterised by a certainty and routine to which both clients, landlords and property management companies have become comfortably accustomed. Most property portfolios were of a constant size, with long-term leases and incremental, inflationary increases in service charges and rates, providing a cosy, reassuring security for all parties. This steady predictability was reflected in the approach to the FM delivery which has also had a traditional focus on the infrastructure and managing buildings as physical assets. Indeed, most of the leading FM companies have grown their business models built on this assumption, with fixed schedules and rates for managing a fixed set of assets, guaranteeing a forward order pipeline to reassure shareholders.

Not now! Everywhere, that traditional model is becoming outmoded and irrelevant because of the rate at which these physical assets are diminishing and being disposed of. Landlords and Property Owners must now adapt to this uncertain environment or perish. And yet, I sat in on a webinar recently where a panel of property experts were predicting a quick return to the normality in the city of London property market once the restrictions are lifted. Somehow, I don’t think so – they are surely sleep-walking to oblivion.

Home delivery and the demise of the High Street are further manifestations of the same change process that is overtaking all of us. Like the High Street, most corporates are now finding that they have no need for all that physical space, or at least space on the scale they were once used to.

So, how can our industry respond in the face of this turmoil and upheaval? The answer is, we are going to have to flex and adopt a new client model. Working remotely, in some format, is here to stay and this has implications for the kinds of workspace we need and its location. Both Property and FM must accept that the physical asset is reducing at an alarming rate and we are all going to have to adapt to a more fluid format. Without the comfort blanket of the three-year or five-year contract that we have grown used to, we will have to work on shorter horizons and both clients and suppliers will have to factor in uncertainty when entering a contract.

Although the Landlord and the FM company both face this problem, they are unable to respond with the same degree of flexibility because of the nature of their business model. The Landlord is unfortunately stuck with an expensive fixed asset which will be difficult to dispose of in the current climate. Many leases may have many years outstanding and expensive lease break options. Landlords can try playing hardball, but there are so many situations right now where a client cannot pay the rent or the monthly service charge because there is little or no revenue stream from their own business.

The FM company on the other hand can be far more flexible because 90% of its cost is people who, can be redeployed, or for the overall survival of the business, sadly let go. If after a contract award, the client decides to close 25% of their buildings, and phones the FM company to inform them, the FM company is in the fortunate position to say “Of course, we will work through this with you to service whatever your future portfolio looks like.”

I afford myself a wry smile when discussing this subject, having been part of a research project some years ago which had already detected a groundswell move to shrink office footprints and move staff to what we then called agile working. Back then the change drivers were the financial crisis of 2008 and the availability of improved tech and broadband. This new working style has been evolving imperceptibly over a 12–15-year period but now Covid has surely turbocharged and accelerated the change process. In the space of twelve months, we’ve witnessed a revolution that will surely have repercussions on our industry for years to come.

We’re always willing to take on a new challenge!

At the start of this current lockdown, Q3 were looking at ways we could be of more value on one of our contracts, as regular activities were curtailed, and it had become particularly quiet.

The client asked whether it would be possible to take on a project! One large showroom area needed to be split into two, to create two separate storerooms.

We proceeded to demolish and remove the current built in furniture and walls and then built a new wall to specified standards, with sound proofing and insulation to create the two separate spaces.

The work has gone without a hitch, with only final decoration works to complete a job well done! Our client has expressed their satisfaction at the quality, speed and professionalism with which we approached the entire project.

It’s been great to see a happy client and rewarding for our on-site team to get their teeth into something a little bit different. Super work Atnand and Ardit!!!

A volunteering project to create a community orchard delivers real social value

A team from Lotus Landscapes, the landscaping division of Q3 Services, turned out on a blustery spring morning recently, to plant a new orchard in Windsor.

The team all provided their services voluntarily, as it was part of a project to enhance the outdoor community area at Sawyer’s Close, operated by the Abri, one of the south of England’s largest housing providers.

The project, designed and driven by Green Earth Plan, a Community Interest Company (CIC), was instigated to transform an area of grass into a vibrant orchard as part of a broader “Green Up Our Streets” campaign they are promoting across the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.

Green Earth Plan CIC sourced the trees for this project and Lotus Landscapes provided all the tools, heavy equipment, mulch and labour. During the morning, the team planted a total of 19 fruit trees, spanning 17 different varieties, including apple, pear, cherry, plum and quince.

Commenting on the installation, Danielle Lane, Community Development Officer for Abri, said, “We know that the pandemic has had a significant impact on people’s mental and physical health and wellbeing, and getting outside for fresh air and exercise can really help.”

“We’re investing £15m into our communities between 2020-2025 to help improve health and wellbeing, increase employment, and empower our communities. We hope that the community orchard will be something that the whole community can enjoy, enhancing their health and wellbeing, somewhere to bring the community together, and an opportunity to try some new and interesting fruits.”

Look at the maturity of a potential client before proposing a solution

In our industry, not many suppliers take account of the maturity of a potential client and where they sit in their outsourcing journey. When they first engage, FM companies hardly ever invest enough time listening to, and understanding their customer’s challenges and needs. This is a fundamental mistake, as any sales trainer will tell you.

Instead, they promote their usual, regular, FM offer, gift-wrapped with the client’s name on it and call it a bespoke solution. But in reality, it’s a solution better designed to suit the supplier than the client.

The “maturity” of a client, or where they are in their customer journey, makes a big difference to their outlook and their needs from a property/FM perspective. I liken the situation to the differing viewpoints of a graduate looking for a job straight from university, compared to an established manager with many years’ experience under his belt. The graduate won’t know the ropes, the art of the possible and in many cases, won’t have any expectations of what a new role might entail. The experienced manager on the other hand, will have a very much clearer picture with everything he wants mapped out to the last detail.

Q3 had just such an experience a couple of years back, with a potential client who was new to the whole outsourcing scene. This client was an innovative financial services company that had burst onto the scene and was making waves through the successful integration of modern technology across its business model. A combination of acquisition and rapid organic growth had turned it rapidly into a multi-million-pound success story, with a number of regional offices in cities across the UK.

Yet, in terms of its approach to managing its property and FM requirements, it was the equivalent of the graduate attending his first week at work. All the effort had gone into growing and establishing the business while the infrastructure to support it, came second. At the outset, all they knew was that they had a problem. What they needed was a robust solution that could flex to meet their expanding needs, while supporting their strategy of creating great places for all their colleagues to work.

Q3 chose not to thrust a standard approach for FM service delivery on them but listened and took a flexible stance to meet the evolving needs of the group. What we created was a hybrid FM service containing elements of consultancy, conventional FM delivery and supply-chain management. You may have heard this approach described as an integrator model. Effectively, Q3 now monitors and manages the entire supply chain utilising a unique software package that oversees, manages and measures all operations.

To work successfully in this kind of FM contract, you have to be flexible and informative, acting as a trusted advisor on all aspects related to property and FM activity. The person managing the account must be a subject matter expert, capable of dealing with every angle of operational delivery, because the client may not have the expertise, and sometimes even the interest, to get involved in all the detail.
The beauty of this approach is that, in a case like this one, you can deploy the most appropriate solution for each area of the business, in the best interests of the client. Very often with a national Integrated FM type contract, you may find that cleaning delivery is a disaster in one of the regions. There’s pain, anguish, and blood on the carpet while everyone struggles to correct the problem. The alternative is to recognise that sourcing a good local cleaning company through the supply chain may actually represent a more viable alternative, from both the quality of delivery perspective and the economics. It’s a common-sense approach that also supports social value, investing back into the local community through using SMEs.

Sadly, the big players in our industry are just too institutionalised to consider this and revert continually to the one-size-fits all approach. They don’t have their clients’ best interests at heart because at the end of the day, they know they have big beast to feed.
Q3 is now very much part of the client’s team and yes, we believe we have reached the status of a truly trusted partner, working to a set of core standards that are shared by both parties. There is a commitment to working together driven by the real value both parties are now drawing from the relationship.

As the graduate becomes a manager, it means we can easily adapt and evolve as needs change, but in a manner that minimises risk, ensures value for money and ensures that the client’s needs continue to be met.

Q3 is an approved supplier on the Fusion 21 National Workplace and Facilities Framework Agreement

Q3 Services is delighted to announce that it has successfully secured a place on the Fusion 21, National Workplace and Facilities Framework agreement.

Valued at £1.1bn, the Framework was open to both SMEs and multinational providers and, after a rigorous qualification process, Q3 is now an approved supplier in the category for cleaning and washroom services.

The Framework is designed to satisfy the complex and varied needs of housing providers, local authorities, NHS trusts, blue-light organisations, education providers and central government. It has the scope and flexibility for clients to call from a comprehensive range of single-line or bundled service packages, to create a solution tailored to the specific needs of their facility.

Commenting on the award, Martyn Freeman CEO of Q3 Services said, “One major attraction for Q3 is that the Framework allows clients the option to select agile, local suppliers like ourselves. Based in their local community, we have a rich pool of qualified and experienced staff who can deliver quality services, with a high element of social value.”

Peter Francis, Director of Operations at Fusion21 said: “We are delighted to welcome all of the new suppliers onto the framework, including Q3 Services Group. The tender process was highly competitive, and the process has identified the best contractors for our members to use.”