Tricks Of The Trade: Outsourcing Ups And Downs

By James C. Elledge, IFMA Fellow, CFM, FMA, RPA, RIAQM
Published in the June 2007 issue of Today’s Facility Manager

Q What are the pros and cons of outsourcing facilities management (FM)? What jobs or skills should not be outsourced and why?

Carolyn Bowler
Planner
Lockheed Martin
Manassas, VA

A TFM covers outsourcing every year, and the June 2007 story, “HelpWanted,” is particularly noteworthy. After reading this article, you should use the onlinearchives of the magazine and read some of the past coverage in TFM.Some articles that come to mind are:

Thereis also a new report available from the International FacilityManagement Association (IFMA) entitled, “An Inside Look at FMOutsourcing.” This report explains how outsourcing has evolved over thelast 15 years and reviews specific practices such as specifyingcontracts, hiring and training staff, and monitoring and evaluatingoutsourcing providers.

Another resource on thissubject from IFMA is The Guide To FM Outsourcing by Fred Klammt. Thisbook is good for anyone new to the subject of outsourcing, but it mayalso be helpful to those with a few contracts behind them.

Elledge,facility/office services manager for Dallas, TX-based Summit AllianceCompanies, is the recipient of the Distinguished Author Award from theInternational Facility Management Association (IFMA), is an IFMA Fellow, and isa member of TFM’sEditorial Advisory Board. All questions have been submitted via the “Ask TheExpert” portion of the magazine’s Web site. To pose a question, visit this link.