Connex (previously the Professional Retail Store Maintenance Association), the authority on multi-site facilities management, released its annual review of the state of multi-site facilities management and key trends impacting the nation’s leading retailers, multi-site healthcare facilities, entertainment facilities, banks and suppliers.
The industry-leading report identifies six major trends driving the multi-site facilities management (FM) industry. They include changing demographics, the rise of multi-site entertainment facilities, FM in the financial services industry, microgrids and energy resilience, new FM technology, and small-concept stores. These trends are driving change across the industry and will require facilities executives adapt new strategies and tactics to succeed.
“Multi-site facilities management changes daily, and the Connex 2020 Trends Report helps our members understand new trends. It also provides insights into the entertainment and financial FM markets, as well as other critical issues,” said Myriah Kingen, Director, Facilities Management at DaVita Kidney Care and Board Chair of Connex.
A breakdown of the major trends includes:
- Stronger Together: In multi-site facilities management (FM), an industry so reliant upon bringing many people to the table, attracting and building a diverse workforce with widely varied perspectives and skill sets is crucial. Facilities management faces a critical labor shortage, and now is the time to create the workforce of tomorrow.
- Action-packed Entertainment: People want entertainment experiences—and businesses are listening. Adapting to this market trend, multi-site entertainment venues are expanding at a rapid rate. They provide customers the opportunity to create memories, as opposed to simply exchanging money for goods.
- Moving Money in the New Frontier: In recent years, several large regional and national banks have closed branches, opting for more technology-based customer service portals to reduce costs and streamline customer interactions. But as it turns out, the physical presence of customers is still needed and desired, and facilities of varying stripes are still required.
- Powering Up: To avert power loss, businesses are investing in technology that promises energy resilience and sustainability – the ability to keep the lights on or recover quickly, while maximizing renewable energy. Among these technologies, microgrids can keep the power on the longest and boost sustainability.
- Expanding Tech Options: Facility managers continually strive to make facilities’ operations more efficient, reduce costs and adhere to increasingly stringent environmental expectations. While there are no one-size-fits-all solutions, FM technology being introduced today can help FMs make progress toward these goals.
- Small Stores, Big Concepts: Small-format stores are popping up everywhere. Retail giants hope smaller, more conveniently located stores make it easier for customers to return products — and to buy online and pick up in-store. But will these new formats create unique challenges for FMs?
Download the Connex 2020 Trends Report and 2020 Trends Report Infographic to learn more about how changes in the multi-site facility industry are impacting retail facilities management today.
The 2020 Trends Report will be a topic of discussion during the Connex Mid-Year Connexion events in the U.S. and Canada. Held each fall, these events provide strategic direction and tactical guidance for multi-site facilities management professionals. April 20 – 22, 2020, the Connex2020 National Conference will be held in Orlando, FL, and will host the largest annual gathering of multi-site facilities management professionals in the nation.
