Day: March 7, 2018

PRSM does many things well,  but to be even better,  we must focus on what we do best.

The Retail Revolution Continues. In 1995, I came across a magazine called Fast Company, a magazine with a unique editorial focus on innovation in technology, leadership, world changing ideas and design. Alan Webber and Bill Taylor, two former Harvard Business Review editors, founded Fast Company on the premise that a global revolution was changing business, and business was changing the world. Today, Fast Company continues to chronicle how changing companies create and compete, and highlights new business practices. It also showcases the teams and individuals who are inventing the future and reinventing business.

A Change in Mindset is Necessary. Regular reading of Fast Company built my interest in the concept of the “entrepreneurial mindset.” There are many definitions of this “mindset,” but there are shortcuts to finding a true definition. Most directly, find those visionary entrepreneurs and find out what they know. In the early 2000s, the pages of Fast Company introduced me to a budding entrepreneur named Gary Vaynerchuk, who was making his name in the world of online wine sales. Since that time, Gary’s popularity and influence have grown exponentially. His VaynerMedia LLC operates as a brand consulting agency. Its services include creative and production, paid media, account management and strategy, social analysis, community management and consumer insights. With more than one million fans / followers / viewers of his social media efforts, Gary lives in the rare air of social media icon.

@garyvee. Gary’s podcast is a must-listen for leaders at all career stages – especially if you desire to lead in this digital age (www.garyvaynerchuk.com/podcast/). He is king of the blunt assessment – he pulls no punches. Gary is also the rare CEO unafraid to deliver his message and predictions with verve, energy and candor. Those of you who will be joining us in Nashville at PRSM2018 National Conference will have the opportunity to see him in person. In this time of reinventing retail, Gary’s message is exactly the right message for the moment.

When Doing Less = More. In 2011, Morten T. Hansen, a professor of management at the University of California, Berkeley, decided to try to answer the question of why some people outperform others. He recruited a team of researchers with expertise in statistical analysis and began generating a set of hypotheses about which specific behaviors lead to high performance. He then conducted a five-year survey of 5,000 managers and employees, including sales reps, lawyers, actuaries, brokers, medical doctors, software programmers, engineers, store managers, plant foremen, nurses and even a Las Vegas casino dealer.

The widespread practice Hansen found among the highest-ranked performers in the study wasn’t a better ability to organize or delegate. Instead, top performers mastered selectivity. Hansen’s new book, Great at Work: How Top Performers Do Less, Work Better, and Achieve More, explains in more detail his findings. This concept of delivering more effectively by doing less better is directly relevant to PRSM. PRSM does many things well, but to be even better, we must focus on what we do best.

PRSM 2018 Focus. PRSM is a successful association, but we must continue to evolve operations to keep up with the ongoing retail revolution and serve PRSM members most effectively. PRSM has partnered with Strategex to conduct a Voice of the Customer (VOC) analysis and strategic plan development. One major change for PRSM operations will be a renewed focus on what PRSM does best. Vaynerchuk puts it this way: “Whether you’re 9 or 90, stop trying to fix the things you’re bad at, and focus on the things you’re good at.” There are parts of PRSM that will always need fixing, but our strategic efforts in 2018 will narrow our association focus to what we do best – and attack those objectives with an entrepreneurial mindset and energy.

I look forward to seeing you in Nashville at PRSM2018 National Conference.

By: Bill Yanek

Community partnerships, training programs and career paths all part of the solution

There is a gap between the skills needed by members of the retail facilities management industry and the skills available in today’s emerging workforce. The gap, however, is not limited to retail FM – which exacerbates the challenge as FMs and their suppliers look for employees with trade, technology and management skills.

In fact, FMs are competing with manufacturing, construction and landscaping industries for talented individuals who can see career opportunities in jobs that may not be typically identified on a student’s wish list for jobs after graduation.

The reasons for the decline in skilled trades such as carpentry, electrical, plumbing and HVAC are varied, but the emphasis on college educations and careers focused on professional or white-collar jobs for young people is one reason. A slowdown in construction during the recession created a surplus of skilled trade workers who moved into other jobs and did not return when the construction industry began its recovery. For some retail FMs, the construction slowdown helped fill trade jobs in the retail industry, but these employees are closer to retirement, with no young, experienced people in the pipeline.

The gap was identified by members of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in a 2014 survey in which respondents identified the jobs for which they had the most difficulty recruiting. High-skilled technicians were identified by 65 percent and skilled trades were reported by 63 percent as difficult to recruit.1

More recently, 43 percent of PRSM’s supplier members responding to the 2017 member survey reported that hiring and retraining qualified trade professionals (43 percent) is one of their biggest challenges.2

The skills gap is not just related to trades. As FM departments become more technologically dependent on software, mobile apps, energy programs and integrated management systems, the ability to balance technology skills with people skills to ensure good customer service becomes critical.

A 2016 study conducted by SHRM reports that more than half of HR professionals reported some level of basic skills/knowledge deficits among job applicants and 84 percent reported applied skills shortages in job applicants in the last year.3

The most often identified basic skills shortage were writing in English, basic computer skills, spoken English language, reading comprehension and mathematics. The most commonly reported applied skills missing include critical thinking/problem-solving, professionalism/work ethic, leadership, written communications and teamwork/collaboration.

Although HR professionals admitted they were adjusting recruitment strategies to reach qualified candidates through social media, they also identified training existing employees to take on hard-to-fill roles and supporting them in their development of needed skills to fill the gaps as the most important strategy an organization can adopt.

Preparing employees to take on other roles such as moving from field tech to customer service representative in an FM department, supervising a skilled trade group, or managing a sourcing group, ensures retention of quality, experienced employees.

The opportunity to move up in an organization is important – in fact, 82 percent of respondents to the PRSM Retail Member Survey say that one of the challenges they face is difficulty finding a position that allows for career advancement and promotion.4 Because it costs less to train and keep employees, than to recruit, train and lose employees, companies that offer ongoing education and pathways for advancement have an edge on their competitors. Not only does this strategy differentiate an employee in the employee recruitment marketplace, but it also establishes a continuity retail organizations and clients appreciate.

Flexibility in the workplace is another way organizations can retain older workers. More members of the Baby Boomer generation are interested in working beyond traditional retirement age. A number of different strategies were reported by HR managers in a SHRM report on the aging workforce5:

• 48 percent offered reduced hours or part-time positions to older workers

• 40 percent hired retired employees as consultants or temporary workers

• 37 percent started flexible scheduling that included telework and alternative work schedules

• 30 percent created or redesigned positions that allow bridged employment – enabling employees to ease into retirement while the company retains good employees to train upcoming replacements

• 29 percent provided training to upgrade skills of older workers

• 27 percent provided opportunities for older workers to transfer to jobs with reduced pay and responsibility

• 24 percent increased training and cross-training to induce older workers to stay with or join the company

An often-overlooked potential employee pool are military veterans. Training they received while in service might cover a variety of skilled trades or information technology. Applied skills such as problem-solving, leadership and work ethic are all part of military training as well. Matching their experience and skills to the organization’s needs is another option to address job openings and skill gaps.

Even if FM managers can retain older, experienced employees, or fill openings with former military veterans, the need to strengthen the pipeline of FM employees for the future is critical. According to the Bureau of Labor, trade jobs account for 54 percent of the labor market but only 43 percent of the country’s workers are trained in the trades.6

Grassroots efforts by industry representatives can offset the negative impression or lack of awareness of career opportunities in trade skills through partnerships with vocational-technical schools as well as efforts to reach high school students. Summer internships, mentorships, sponsorship of school clubs, participation in school community events and even summer job opportunities give FMs an opportunity to further educate students, their parents and school counselors about career opportunities.

Students who like to build and create are the ideal audience for trade schools or apprentice programs. Unfortunately, most parents and high school counselors steer students to college, even if it may not be the best route for them. Skilled trades are often only recommended to students whose counselors do not believe have the academic potential for college.

In addition to promoting the employment opportunity that exists due to the gap between demand for and availability of tradespeople, young people have an opportunity to start a well-paying job with less time in school – two years or less compared to four years. A vocational-technical education is also less costly with little or no school debt depending on the program of study.

The skills gap challenge faced by FMs today won’t disappear quickly. However, experts say that thoughtful, strategic planning can address the need to strengthen the new employee pipeline, create partnerships that develop new employees and establish training programs that help recruit, develop and retain quality workers.   

References:

1. 2014 Economic Conditions—Recruiting and Skills Gaps (SHRM, 2014)

2. 2017 Supplier Member Survey (PRSM, 2017)

3. The New Talent Landscape (SHRM, 2016)

4. 2017 Retailer Member Survey (PRSM, 2017)

5. Preparing for an Aging Workforce (SHRM, 2016)

6. NSC Analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics by State (2015), and American Community Survey Data (2015)

Most difficulty recruiting for:

High-skilled technicians: 
65 percent

Skilled

trades:

63 percent

Source: 2014 Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) survey

43%

Job Openings

Hiring and retraining of 
qualified trade professionals 
(43 percent) is one of PRSM members’ biggest challenges.

Source: 2017 PRSM Member Survey

Flexibility with aging employees

48% offered reduced hours or part-time positions to older workers

40% hired retired employees as consultants or temporary workers

37% started flexible scheduling that included telework and alternative work schedules

30% created or redesigned positions that allow bridged employment – enabling employees to ease into retirement
                        while the company retains good employees to train upcoming replacements

29% provided training to upgrade skills of older workers

27% provided opportunities for older workers to transfer to jobs with reduced pay and responsibility

24% increased training and cross-training to induce older workers to stay with or join the company

Source: Preparing for an Aging Workforce (SHRM, 2016)

Over 50 percent of HR professionals reported some basic skills/knowledge deficits among job applicants.

84 percent reported applied skills shortages in job applicants in the last year.

Source: 2016 SHRM study

By: Sheryl S. Jackson

Best practices for recruiting qualified FM employees

Danika Melia, Executive Recruiter at Becker Wright Consultants, said it has become increasingly difficult in recent years to attract qualified FM talent, largely due to strong demand and a shortage of candidates who have all the skills retail companies are looking for, including experience in new construction.

The dearth of qualified FM candidates mirrors the broader trend seen in other industries during a time of nearly full employment in the United States. According to a 2018 statistical reference guide for recruiters put out by the online job board Glassdoor, 76 percent of U.S. hiring managers say attracting quality candidates is their No. 1 challenge, and that is a major reason why the average cost per hire in the U.S. is a whopping $4,129.

“Trying to find qualified employees for our clients has been a real challenge,” Melia said. “It’s night and day trying to get someone to call you back now versus 10 years ago. It seems like everyone is gainfully employed. And people use the term ‘facilities manager’ so loosely sometimes. Companies are looking for people to wear more hats than before, and the industry is moving at a much faster pace, so they’re really looking for these FMs to come in and hit the ground running.”

Here are some tips for FM professionals in the highly competitive market.

• Join LinkedIn groups. A quick search on LinkedIn reveals several networking groups for FM professionals that can be used to identify good candidates. These groups include Facilities Management Group, Facilities Management Network, Facilities Management Professionals International and Corporate Real Estate & Facilities Management Professionals.

But don’t just target members when you have an opening. Instead, make sure your company is active in these groups by sharing your company’s accomplishments and what it has to offer employees. Encourage your FM professionals to do the same.

• Focus on important industry events. Professional associations like PRSM are invaluable resources for targeting qualified candidates, so attend events like PRSM’s conferences armed with business cards and a good elevator pitch about what makes your company special. Recruiters should also try to obtain membership directories and lists of event attendees and should reach out to speakers at major events.

“Those are people who are notable in their field, so they’re the ones to reach out to, and they’re usually open to having recruiters and other companies reach out to them,” said Beth Oddan, Chief Executive and Executive Search Consultant with Hellotalent, Inc. “And it’s amazing the amount of membership lists or directories you can get access to even if you are not an attendee.”

• Look outside the retail industry.Separate the must-have skills from the nice-to-have skills, and you might find suitable FM candidates working in other industries such as at distribution and fulfillment centers and other stops along the supply chain. “The wider you can make the hiring funnel in terms of broadening who you’re open to, the more successful you will be,” Oddan said.

• Stay in touch. If you identify a good candidate during a time when your company doesn’t have a job opening in FM, reach out to them anyway and stay connected with them until a position opens up. Doing so allows you to develop a relationship with that candidate and can keep your company top of mind when they decide to look for another job.

“A lot of it is building and maintaining relationships,” Melia said. “So much of it is done through email now, but sometimes you have to actually pick up the phone and make a connection instead of just having your email sitting in their LinkedIn inbox.”

• Make recruiting a team effort.Recruiting top talent shouldn’t be solely the job of a recruiter or the HR department. Remind your company’s executives and other employees that they should be on the lookout for qualified candidates at industry events, alumni gatherings and other settings, and that they should be telling prospects what they like about your company. Having a program in place that rewards employees financially when a referral makes it through three or six months on the job incentivizes them to seek out qualified candidates.

“You’ll have better results as a recruiter if your hiring manager is really an engaged partner in recruiting,” Oddan said.

Once you’ve placed a recruit and they have proven themselves with your company, ask them if they have any former coworkers or friends who might be interested in a new job. “Once they have the job and they feel secure in it, then they feel free to provide referrals or make introductions,” Melia said.

• Tout your company online. Ensuring your company’s website is well designed and you’re highlighting the achievements of your company and its employees on social media are good ways to get the word out to prospective employees that your company is a desirable employment destination. Job candidates increasingly research companies before they apply for jobs, so it’s important to highlight your company’s workplace culture and the benefits of working there.

• Visit nearby schools. Establish relationships with professors and job-placement specialists at colleges and trade schools in your area that have good FM programs, and ask about participating in career fairs on campus. Ask instructors if your recruiter or an alumnus from that school who works for your company can make a presentation in class about your company to FM students, and seek out alumni groups that include FM professionals.

• Do a little sleuthing. Make a list of your top competitors for FM talent and another list of companies whose FM practices should be emulated. Use LinkedIn, companies’ websites and other resources to map out those companies’ organizational structure so you will know whom to target for each level of job opening. Where did their FM professionals and executives go to school, and do those schools have alumni associations? Where did they begin their careers? Did any of your company’s employees graduate from the same schools or work at the same companies?

By: Nick Fortuna

Smart glasses usher in era of augmented reality

For facilities management professionals, reality often leaves a lot to be desired. Equipment breaks down and service technicians often are too busy to respond immediately. Fortunately, augmented reality (AR) promises to make things a bit easier as this new technology gains wider adoption.

Augmented reality is the layering of computer-generated, digital information on top of the physical environment and allows users to integrate that data with the real world. AR technology has become one of the biggest areas of focus for software developers. At the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, 10 percent more exhibit space was dedicated to AR products this year, according to the Consumer Technology Association.

The Swedish furniture maker IKEA became one of the first retailers to adopt AR technology in 2012 when it launched a smartphone app that allows customers to see how a product would look in their home. The online home furnishings retailer Wayfair followed suit last year.

An AR product that has important practical applications for facilities managers is the Daqri Smart Glasses, made by the Los Angeles-based technology company Daqri. When an employee wears the glasses, they can see text such as a service checklist or repair instructions strategically positioned right next to a piece of equipment in real time. And to get an expert’s opinion, a service technician can use the Remote Expert tool to see exactly what the employee wearing the glasses is seeing. The new technology helps FM professionals complete inspections and repairs more quickly and with fewer errors and can save retailers money by eliminating the need for physical service visits.

Roy Ashok, Daqri’s Chief Executive, said the glasses make inspections and repairs easier by essentially bringing operating manuals and maintenance instructions to life, letting the FM employee see precisely what the text refers to. The lightweight glasses offer a wide 44-degree field of view and are equipped with a sixth-generation Intel Core m7 Processor, a suite of sensors and a camera.

“We’ve built a product that allows you to access information spacially and in a way that’s relevant to the real world,” he said. “When a worker is managing a facility, they are doing some complex tasks, and augmented reality is beneficial in that setting. These glasses are designed to fundamentally make your world safer and more efficient.”

Facilities managers can use the glasses to make a 3D scan of equipment so they can see if any aspect of it changes over time. Thermal imaging will let the FM see if equipment is running hotter or colder than in the past. The glasses can show BIM (Building Information Modeling) models of the facility so FM professionals can see how bringing in a larger piece of equipment or retrofitting an existing device might alter the layout of the facility or clash with other building systems.

The Remote Expert feature can save FMs time and money by allowing store employees to show them precisely what they are seeing with a piece of equipment. The FM might be able to instruct an employee how to repair it, and the employee will have access to a checklist, instructions, the equipment’s service records and a description of what they are seeing all positioned right alongside the equipment in their view.

If the employee can’t fix the problem, a service technician can be consulted remotely, which likely would cost less than a site visit and could be done quicker. Over time, the savings might more than offset the glasses’ $4,995 price tag.

“The person viewing the equipment remotely can draw a line to a screw that needs to be tightened or another part that has to be repaired, so there’s no chance of any mistakes,” Ashok said.

The smart glasses can be tied into a facility’s asset management program, such as IBM Maximo, to access product manuals and other relevant information. Daqri is working on a web app to allow users to create more content that could be integrated with the glasses.

“We’re trying to lower the barriers to content creation,” Ashok said. “The web app will introduce easy-to-use tools so the content creation time is dramatically reduced.”

Ashok said as AR products gain widespread adoption, they likely will be used for a variety of workplace tasks, such as:

• Training employees through step-by-step tutorials using text instructions layered on top of their workplace setting.

• Conducting meetings between employees working in different locations, enhancing collaboration through visual interaction.

• Touring facilities remotely to check on progress in construction or repairs or to evaluate a building or parcel for acquisition.

• Seeing how clothes or sunglasses would look on a customer without actually trying them on. If the need for private dressing rooms can be reduced, more customers likely would be comfortable buying fitted clothing online, and retailers could see a sharp reduction in stolen merchandise.

• Training drivers how to make simple repairs on trucks and other delivery vehicles and how to use and maintain specialized equipment.

By: Nick Fortuna

Address technical and soft skills to create the most effective workforce.

Most people don’t start out planning a career in facilities management. They often come to it after working in a trade industry, starting out in a restaurant or retail facility, or even from other departments to take advantage of greater opportunities. For this reason, training employees to develop the varied skills needed in facilities management is a critical role for successful FM operations.

“The type of people in FM departments is very different today than years ago,” said Phil Donahue, Facilities Manager for Staples, Inc. “We used to hire people who retired from the trades, but it is more of a help desk environment today, which requires different skills.”

Differences in age also require a thoughtful approach to training, said David Magill, SVP of Program Management at Ferrandino & Son. “We don’t train people differently, but we know younger employees who may only have a few years’ experience are more fluent with technology and comfortable with communicating via email, and tenured employees are more comfortable with verbal communication.” The ideal training strategy is to combine the strengths of both groups, so each can handle electronic as well as verbal communication – and understand when each is required.

Staples’ FM department’s training program for new employees includes training on the work order system, and then on-the-job training with the support of designated veteran employees, explained Donahue. “Our people handle calls about everything from landscaping to HVAC issues, so it is difficult to develop a formal program to cover everything. New employees shadow an experienced employee while they learn the work order system, and then they partner with someone who can answer questions and provide guidance as they begin handling calls.”

Because everyone has different skills and different skills gaps, training is more personalized rather than prescriptive, Donahue said. “Some of our people have been here a long time and had to learn how to navigate Excel, while others picked up on it quickly,” he said. In-house software-based training programs and remote training via webinars are also available to employees who want to learn more about topics such as customer service tips, organization skills or communications strategies.

Not all training has to be formal, Donahue pointed out. “At monthly staff meetings, we discuss topics that help people improve the way they do their job, but we also discuss ‘aha’ moments to share stories about how we’ve diffused tension with an unhappy store manager, or solved a difficult problem,” he said. “Everyone handles so many different types of situations. This sharing helps the group learn how to handle something if they should encounter it.”

At Ferrandino & Son, training is a priority, as evidenced by the hiring of a full-time, in-house training manager three years ago. “The training manager provides ongoing training and education to all our employees as well as supplier employees,” Magill said. “Every new employee completes a two-week onboarding program during which they learn the work order system, company organization and communications strategies for customer service.”

There are also trade-specific breakout sessions led by in-house subject matter experts (SMEs). These in-house SMEs also serve as ongoing teachers and troubleshooters for the company, Magill said. “For example, our plumbing SME is a master plumber with more than 30 years of experience.” These SMEs not only share information during new employee sessions, but also consult with employees when they encounter unusual or difficult-to-solve problems.

New employees receive refresher courses throughout the year, and there are opportunities for management and product-specific training as well, Magill said. “We offer our training to vendors – onboarding to teach them the work order and reporting system and the invoice process.” The benefit of training vendors, especially customer-specific training for new vendors, is increased understanding of service expectations, scope of work and fewer issues throughout the relationship, he explained.

Strengthening 
“soft skills” critical

While understanding the technical aspects of an FM position – work order system, supplier management program, basic knowledge about different trades – is important, the most difficult skills to develop in an employee are considered “soft skills.” The ability to communicate with customers, assume responsibility for getting the job done, juggle multiple tasks at one time, and effectively solve problems may come naturally to some people, but few excel in all areas without ongoing education.

Technical knowledge of different trades is not necessary, Scott Reyes, CEO of Envoy Facilities Management said. He typically hires former retail and restaurant employees who don’t understand how things get fixed, but they do understand the retail and restaurant business, so they understand how a non-working HVAC system or oven affects business.

Emotional intelligence is one of the most important skills needed in employees, Reyes said. “They need to be empathic and understand they are not here to fix things, but they are here to help people,” he explained. Ongoing education that helps employees learn how to express empathy and how to relate to customers as they help solve their problems is important, he added.

“Problem solving at all levels is also a critical skill,” Reyes said. “We teach employees how to actively listen to customers, how to use structured questions to get at the root of a problem, and how to evaluate options to address the issue.” With the fast pace of most FM departments or FM providers, the ability of every employee to make decisions and solve problems on their own ensures speedier resolution of customer problems, he pointed out. “If employees have to constantly bounce ideas off co-workers it takes longer to help customers.”

The FM of today and the future will also need to be a strong negotiator, Reyes said. “This isn’t about negotiating a contract. This is about the day-to-day negotiations that are part of our job.” For example, what tactics can be used to persuade the HVAC repair supplier to go to my customer’s site next? An FM employee who cannot negotiate and persuade is highly ineffective. Negotiation skills will increase in importance as the deficit in skilled labor continues to grow and FMs must compete for time and attention to their clients, he added.

Reyes’ company has invested in LinkedIn Learning as the foundation for ongoing employee education. “We have a series of courses all employees must take, but after those are completed, employees can take other courses that will help them develop skills for the job,” he explained. Envoy employees have 30 minutes every week during their workday to take a LinkedIn course. The ongoing, weekly expectation that employees will take time to focus on skill development creates a habit of ongoing learning, he added. “Employees can also access LinkedIn for courses not related to their jobs on their personal time.”

“We have had some people take video-editing and photography courses.”

Another creative way to promote learning and discussion of how to improve communications and relationships with customers and vendors, is the company book club. “We meet every Thursday for 30 minutes before work to talk about the book. We read one chapter each week,” Reyes explained. “We buy the book for everyone in the company, but participation in the Thursday meeting is voluntary. Participation is usually about 50 percent of the company.” Books read have included “Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win” and “Linchpin.” Topics include leadership, relationship building, perseverance, decision-making and problem-solving.

As technology increases in importance to the FM’s job, there will always be a need to offer robust training on systems, applications and devices used to improve the FM department’s ability to meet customer needs, but Reyes also pointed to the importance of training to retain FM employees of the future.

“We need to make sure our training programs develop the mental and emotional toughness FMs need today and in the future,” Reyes said. “Younger folks find it easy to give up and change jobs if the work is too stressful.” A focus on continuous learning helps employees handle tough situations, accept constructive feedback and develop professionally results in a more confident employee who is more likely to stay with the company, he said.

Be sure a training and education program results in employees taking action in their jobs – making decisions, finding solutions, seeking help when needed on technical issues but not overthinking things, Reyes suggested. Learning can be a form of procrastination as people try to learn everything they think they need to know before tackling the job, he said. Make it clear that everyone learns from “wins” and “mistakes.” He added, “Design a training program so that everyone knows: Here’s what we learned, now let’s apply these lessons.”

By: Sheryl S. Jackson

Tips and insights from Sarah Sladek, CEO of XYZ University

If you haven’t started adjusting your leadership tactics to fit millennial workers, you’re already behind the curve. In 2016, millennials officially became the majority in the American workforce, with more than one in three American workers between the ages of 18 and 34, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data.

Millennials are bringing an entirely different set of values and expectations to the office, which are posing some unique challenges for employers. For one, these young workers rarely stay in one position for very long. In fact, 66 percent of millennials expect to leave their current positions by 2020, and only 16 percent of millennials see themselves with their current employers a decade from now, according to The Deloitte Millennial Survey.

Of course, these are just a few figures pulled from an avalanche of studies and statistics available about this generation. “I think there’s a certain amount of millennial fatigue that’s out there,” said Sarah L. Sladek, best-selling author, speaker and CEO of XYZ University. “Many people think the millennial focus is way overblown. But there’s a reason why millennials are the largest generation globally, the largest generation in history, and the largest percentage of our workforce. This should be reason enough to pay attention to the demographic that’s now influencing everything from business decisions to consumer spending.”

Sladek founded XYZ University in 2002 when she was 30 years old. What started as a one-woman-show has grown into the leading consulting firm on Generations X, Y and Z. Over the years, her team has studied demographics, economics and pop culture, conducted industry and workforce research, and helped hundreds of organizations better understand the millennial generation.

So, why is it so important for business managers to take time to research and understand millennials? “The leaders who don’t take the time to understand and be in relationship with younger generations are missing out on key information and relationships essential to moving their organizations forward,” Sladek warned.

A Different Breed

Millennials are extremely different from prior generations, which is why managers cannot use old-fashioned leadership tactics with these employees.

“They are the first generation to be raised using technology and the first in over 70 years to come of age during a recession,” Sladek pointed out. “They were raised by the wealthiest generation in history, yet they are currently the most debt-ridden generation in history.”

She adds that millennials were the first generation of children rewarded for participation and not achievement. They were also the first to experience “school shut down” drills in the shadow of terrorism and school shootings. “Millennials have been shaped in radically different ways in a radically different world,” she emphasized.

For Millennials, It’s Personal

Sladek explains that millennials experienced a rocky transition from college to career thanks to the recession. “As a result, they are desperately seeking opportunities to further their careers,” she added. “Millennials will quickly disengage if they feel there is no room for growth or limited opportunities to learn or lead.”

However, the recession also taught millennials another tough lesson: Hard work doesn’t always pay off. “They watched parents and relatives lose their jobs and their savings,” Sladek remarked.

To further complicate matters, this generation does not view work as a destination with defined hours. “This tech-raised workforce doesn’t ‘shut off’ work the minute they leave the office, so to them, work really is part of their lives,” she explained. “It’s personal. They don’t just want a job – they want to feel valued and challenged and have close relationships with their co-workers.”

So, what’s her advice to floundering managers? “If you’re struggling to manage them, ask them to give the management team feedback or put them on a management track,” she suggested. “Your organization has to find a way to stay relevant and engaging to the future workforce – and we’re not going backward. Change will continue to happen. The sooner you listen and adapt to the needs and interests of the changing workforce, the better.”

By: Amy Bell

The HOW-TO on setting up your own mentorship or apprenticeship program

For companies trying to address the skills gap, do in-house training options work? Retail Store Maintenance spoke to two companies that have explored mentorships and apprenticeships with great results.

When Justin Shannon was hired as Maintenance Coordinator at The Fresh Market, Inc., he was charged with developing an in-house mentorship program, which operates 180 stores. Based in North Carolina, his schedule now includes travelling to work one-on-one with regional maintenance coordinator mentees in other cities.

“It starts out heavy the first few weeks, with a lot of hands-on training. Then they’re more on their own. I’ll spend a week with them once a month for more in-depth training on paperwork and project work,” he said.

Besides bringing new employees up to speed quickly, the program lets mentees make suggestions and discuss their own approaches to daily tasks and problem solving. “I might learn a better way, a faster way to do something from them, so it works both ways,” he said. “You’re a mentor, but any time you’re interacting with a person, you’re learning something, if you’re doing it right.”

And the mentees like the process. “The training I received was informative and productive. It was hands-on and well organized,” said Teri Newman, one of the Regional Maintenance Coordinators who has gone through the program.

“Justin had it structured and well organized; the time and up-front prep work Justin had done made a big difference in the quality of the training,” said another mentee, Andre Mailliez. “The fact that Justin was doing the job currently allowed him to be the subject matter expert and make it very relatable to your situation.”

While Shannon himself was being trained, he kept a notebook to keep track of details. “My boss noticed that and said, ‘That’s a great idea; Is that something we could standardize for your position?’ So my notebook turned into the training manual,” he said. “It started out as a quarter-inch binder and now it’s about two inches thick – a couple of hundred pages.”

The manual is constantly being updated with new information, including feedback from the mentees. Beginning with such simple material as a daily schedule template and vendor contacts, it eventually evolved into “step-by-step instructions for everyday tasks and detailed descriptions on troubleshooting the equipment we have,” Shannon said, noting that “the book pays for itself and the time it took me to make it.”

In fact, since implementing the mentorship program, “we have been able to drastically reduce our maintenance spend. We prevent work orders from happening by providing the source troubleshooting; by reviewing quotes and invoices, we’re reducing costs,” he said. “The store managers were responsible for sourcing their own vendors, calling their own vendors – they were responsible for their own budget. Now we’re taking that out of their hands.”

His top advice? “Be open to who you’re training. Everybody’s different, so something that works for you might not work for somebody else.”

Mentorship is one approach; in the technical trades, a second option is a formal apprenticeship. This is the route chosen by CMS Mechanical Services, which manages facilities asset management and HVAC/R services for numerous large and small retailers across the country.

Although most apprenticeship programs are federally accredited, some are not. “We are in the process of getting our program set up though the Federal Department of Labor,” said CMS Vice-President David Grzech.

“Manual labor has become less popular with younger people entering the workforce in HVAC, probably even more so. CMS Mechanical has been really lucky in that the skills gap that has impacted so many other trades, has not affected us,” Grzech said. “You have a large number of people retiring and only a small number coming in.”

“At CMS Mechanical, we’re able to use the variety of skills we have in our multi-skilled workforce in training apprentices on all aspects of HVAC/R,” Grzech said. CMS Mechanical’s Apprenticeship Program provides high school students and trade-school graduates the opportunity to determine if a career in HVAC/R is right for them as an alternative to the traditional college route where students can amass huge debt. “The candidates we look for need to have the right attitude and aptitude to be selected in the program,” he added. “These young workers see the value in getting no-cost training while they earn their pay. We also have internal employees who started at CMS as maintenance technicians or other positions that are looking to advance their career in HVAC/R through the Apprenticeship Program.”

A year into the program, most candidates are thriving. “The opportunity of a lifetime” is what Apprentice Graduate Daniel Flohr called the program. “It took hours of hard work, but it is something I would do all over again. It gave me the skills and the knowledge to succeed in the HVAC/R industry. It is also a skill no one can take away from you. This past year was just the beginning for me in what it means to me to be a technician. In addition to the Apprenticeship Program, there will be another two years of advanced training and goals to meet.”

“The Apprenticeship Program is awesome. I wish I could have trained like this,” said trainer Mikkel Moon. “To learn from a book while applying it in the field really helps speed up the learning curve on a daily basis.”

Grzech says anyone establishing an apprenticeship needs to consider several necessary criteria, including top-down commitment from all levels of the business and, of course, the cost. “You have to have the financial resources and a reasonable amount of time.”

Apart from the other advantages, “I get personal satisfaction,” Grzech said. “It’s a good way to go out there and get people into a decent paying job without a huge investment.”

“It’s personally very nice to know that you helped develop somebody and helped further that person’s career,” Shannon said. “It’s a good feeling.”

By: Sarah B. Hood

Men and women who have served their country offer skills their civilian counterparts can’t match, making them an excellent fit for the fast-paced, demanding environment of facilities management.

“When you hire a veteran, you hire somebody who is highly trained and easily trainable and who has leadership capabilities,” said Brian Foster of the Paint Folks, a PRSM member. Foster, a veteran himself, now chairs PRSM’s Military/Veteran Hiring Partnership Program Committee.

Service veterans can perform under pressure and are accustomed to working on a team. They’re able to think outside the box to develop creative solutions, but at the same time they understand the importance of following directions. “If you tell a veteran, ‘We need this and this and this, and it needs to be done this way all the time,’ they will do it,” Foster added.

Veterans have a great deal of integrity and self-responsibility; they commit and take pride in themselves, their work and their team.

Foster explained that the U.S. military helps young people develop skills and assume levels of responsibility people outside the service may not gain for many years.

“The military takes an 18-year-old fresh out of high school, or a 22-year-old fresh out of college, puts them through six to eight weeks of military basic training, and sends them to a technical school that lasts from 30 days to a year to teach them their career field. Then, in some cases, you have a 24-year-old flying a multi-million-dollar jet or an 18-year-old who is responsible for making sure a ship or a submarine is running. It’s an enormous responsibility, but they are trained for it,” he said. “Where else are you going to see that? You don’t see a company hiring a high school kid and putting them in charge of a multimillion-dollar operation.”

Many companies today look for employees with college degrees, but veterans have real-world experience with responsibility that no college degree can replace, Foster added.

Hiring disabled veterans

Companies in the facilities maintenance industry shouldn’t overlook another valuable resource – veterans who have been disabled during their service.

SourceAmerica has more than 1,200 partners nationwide providing products and services that help people with severe disabilities, including disabled veterans, find work. It contracts with federal government agencies and commercial and retail sectors for jobs in everything from facilities maintenance and administrative services to call centers, IT services and supply chain management. SourceAmerica is the prime facilities maintenance contractor for public works at Ft. Knox. One of its non-profit agency subcontractors there performs general facilities maintenance repairs for plumbing, electrical, mechanical, buildings and structures and roads and grounds work.

Approximately 20 to 25 percent of people SourceAmerica and their nonprofit agencies are able to assist are disabled veterans, said Todd Bennett, former director of FM Operations at Ft. Knox, now working in regional operations in the FM program for the organization. “When we’re out recruiting, we look first for veterans and for people who are just coming out of the service.”

The organization works with the disabled individuals to assess their capabilities and then find the right placements for them. While an individual who has lost an arm may not be a good person to handle service orders, they might be an excellent fit for a call center position or a data analytics task where it’s all desk work. “These are people who are dedicated and who want to work,” Bennett added.

The majority of former service members who work with Source America usually start as a government contractor at first. But the goal is to have them graduate into private sector employment. Employers can help with this effort. For example, at Ft. Knox, Source America established an approved Department of Labor apprenticeship program that helps the person with a disability gain additional skills. “Two of our people in the program were disabled; they graduated and are now working in the public sector, getting paid competitive wages,” Bennett said.

Finding job candidates

The PRSM Task Force has been looking for ways to make it easier for people who have completed or will soon complete their military service to find jobs within the industry. They are working with the team redesigning the PRSM website to develop a section dedicated to helping veterans find jobs with retailers and suppliers. Through this special section of the PRSM website, veterans will be able to respond to job openings posted by PRSM members and will be able to post their resumes as well.

The Task Force is also working to identify organizations that help veterans find jobs so that they can spread the word about the PRSM job site for service veterans. It’s a big task, however, because the committee members are finding in addition to the larger organizations like SourceAmerica, Wounded Warriors or Hire a Hero, there are many local organizations who take on this task in their own communities.

Bennett suggested any company that would like to hire more veterans can start by seeking assistance from the local veterans’ organizations. If there are military bases in their area, the companies can contact the out-processing office the base provides for those leaving the service. Businesses may be able to post job openings with these offices and participate in job fairs they hold.

Bennett also noted the government does offer some tax incentives to companies who hire disabled veterans, such as the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). Grants and funding are also available for employers and non-profit agencies who want to develop an apprenticeship program through SourceAmerica or one of its non-profit agencies.

Companies may seek to hire veterans because they want to honor their service and their commitment. “The veterans gave to their country, and it’s a way for employers to give back to them,’ Bennett said.

But facilities management companies and other businesses should also realize they’re gaining much more, Foster said. “When they’re hiring a veteran, they’re hiring someone who is a genuine leader and who will be a great benefit to their company.”

By: Mary Lou Jay

The skills gap is a real and costly issue that impacts virtually every PRSM retailer and supplier. A shortage or lack of skilled employees drives up labor costs, which drives up retail costs. There are simply not enough skilled workers available. While long-term solutions are being developed, PRSM Education programs help bridge the gap.

“If a PRSM member company has employees who need training, PRSM is a great place to start,” said Kip Eads, VP of Professional Development at PRSM. “PRSM can provide the training your employees need to get started in their FM career, or to take it to a whole new level through our RFMP (Retail Facilities Management Professional) program.”

Members have access to a wealth of online resources that can bridge the knowledge gap, whether it is for your organization or for yourself. PRSM’s goal is to provide committed, dedicated retail facility maintenance professionals with basic technical trade knowledge that is valuable in the marketplace.

Retail Facilities 101 is just one of the programs offered to educate members. The program includes a comprehensive curriculum of specific and practical trade classes focused specifically on the multi-site retail facilities environment and taught by subject matter experts.

The 10 topics include basic lighting maintenance, HVAC, electrical, plumbing and much more. This program was created for FM professionals who need to increase basic knowledge in a specific trade, individuals transitioning into the FM profession, or young professionals entering the field. At the end of the course, individuals complete an evaluation and receive the Retail Facilities 101 Certificate.

“This is a great program for anyone who is not familiar with the trades to help them become more effective in their careers. Retail Facilities 101 is even beneficial for other departments who work with facilities managers. It helps them understand the industry, terms, and basic concepts.” Eads said.

PRSM’s flagship training course is the RFMP Study Program. It is a comprehensive program that covers essential concepts required of a professional in retail facilities management. A series of eight classes provides more in-depth industry education and helps individuals prepare for the RFMP exam. Those who successfully complete the exam receive the RFMP designation.

The RFMP designation is held by leading retail facility management professionals, and was created to elevate industry standards and enhance individual performance. RFMP candidates can immediately use knowledge gained in the classes in their daily work.

“The Retail Facilities 101 courses provides foundational trades training, while the RFMP study program elevates that knowledge to showcase facilities management and the trades our members manage,” Eads said. “This program prepares you to be a well-rounded facilities manager, and adding the designation to your expertise shows you as one of the respected leaders in the retail FM industry.”

Also available to members are live and on-demand webinars that explore a wide variety of topics. There are nearly 150 on-demand webinars presented by subject matter experts with years of knowledge and expertise. Webinars range from implementing green solutions, to disaster recovery, to interacting with workers within supplier companies.

In addition to the educational programs, PRSM also provides a variety of resources to help close the gap further.

Benchmarking reports offer an objective resource of information and data that can be used to validate your own data. They can also be used to compare your business practices to other, similar organizations with facilities management functions. Reports range from snapshots to in-depth analyses of industry KPIs and aggregated data, all of which is secure, valid, confidential and trustworthy.

Reviewing Best Practices is one of the best ways to learn about solutions and how they can be implemented successfully. PRSM creates an annual Best Practice Book written by working FM professionals who want to share their experiences and lessons learned. With more than 300 topics available, these papers are great tools to educate and inform you about what other industry professionals are doing along with their successes and failures. The topics are available for individual download, or can be downloaded as a full book.

PRSM White Papers provide solutions to common FM issues and challenges, and are written by experienced industry consultants and professionals. These comprehensive reports cover everything from managing supplier relations to snow and ice management and are available to download from PRSM.com. White Papers are great resources for not only younger professionals, but experienced ones as well.

Other PRSM resources include tools and templates designed to simplify your day-to-day tasks, trends reports which monitor current or future trends in the FM industry, and the X-Change forum where PRSM members can ask questions and receive answers from other members about industry-related topics.

Regardless of where you are in your career in the facilities management industry, PRSM has the tools you need to bridge the gap and succeed. For more information about the different educational programs and resources PRSM offers, visit prsm.com.

By: Kendall Carlson