People in property leadership roles want to make their workspaces attractive for colleagues. This means keeping offices clean, operational and environmentally friendly – a goal that relies heavily on FM procurement teams. The challenge? The industry is highly commoditised, where cost often trumps value. To make workspaces genuinely desirable, property leaders need procurement specialists who prioritise value and innovation.
With two-thirds of the UK workforce visiting their office at least once a week, property leaders are focused on making workspaces appealing. Achieving this requires procurement teams who can effectively manage facilities management (FM) suppliers – because the quality of service these suppliers deliver directly shapes the office environment.
When everything runs smoothly FM suppliers keep washrooms sparkling, bins empty, and manage all manner of background jobs needed to maintain a safe, welcoming environment. But when things slip the workspace quickly becomes unpleasant. For example, if the person responsible for cleaning the kitchen is absent and not replaced, employees face a dirty kitchen. What’s better than a dirty kitchen at work? A clean one at home. Reliable FM suppliers aren’t a luxury – they’re essential for keeping colleagues engaged, and the office desirable.
That’s why finding the right procurement team to hire and lead your FM suppliers is equally vital. To attract people to a clean, enjoyable workspace, you need procurement professionals who create real value in the supply chain.
If you are a property leader or estate director looking to hire procurement specialists, here are three ideas to help you to reach this goal.
Think differently
Because FM suppliers run in a low-margin, commoditised environment, it’s a race to the bottom – cost-cutting is often the default. Suppliers tend to squeeze every penny of profit out of delivering services. Staff may not be replaced when they leave, and innovation is hard to come by. When your goal is to maximise value, this approach won’t cut it.
It’s helpful, then, to have a procurement team on your side that can apply an “encourage and reward” mindset. This means welcoming new bidding processes and incentivising innovation. For example, they encourage suppliers to put forward innovation as part of the tender, such as how they recommend improving profitability, value for money, and environmental performance. Once suppliers are appointed, procurement can embed these commitments into their contracts and offer appropriate yet clear incentives for delivery. This approach shifts the focus from merely cutting costs to creating tangible, sustainable value across the office.
Get practical
Hire procurement leaders who value practical, hands-on experience. Rather than just looking at spreadsheets, FM procurement professionals must get out of the office and onto sites. Teams that are willing to get outside and see for themselves can spot practical opportunities to improve cleanliness, safety, and sustainability, and engage more deeply with the services they buy on a more practical level.
Ideally, your procurement specialists would inspect multiple sites and ask questions such as: Are the toilets clean? Do fire extinguishers work, and are they up to date? Are there opportunities to reduce your carbon footprint? Teams that are willing to observe, ask questions, and roll up their sleeves gain invaluable insights into operational gaps and solutions.
Investing in practical exposure pays off. Seek procurement leaders who actively develop their teams through FM courses or industry events. For example, would they offer those team members who have special potential the opportunity to study FM courses? Would they send their teams to FM events? Most people in FM face similar challenges, so, the more your procurement team is exposed to, the better solutions they can find.
Here at Barkers, we see this as incredibly worthwhile; in the FM world, a little understanding and experience go a long way in showing value.
Set the tone with suppliers
Finally, look for procurement teams that can genuinely collaborate with your suppliers. If you want to create tangible benefits in the service, then the way procurement engages with suppliers makes a significant difference. This is particularly important because FM is inherently complex. Services vary widely between organisations – sometimes they operate behind the scenes, and in other cases, they are front of house and highly visible.
There are also multiple stakeholders to consider – from employees using the buildings, procurement professionals handling the contracts, and the supplier staff delivering the services. Ensuring everyone is aligned is critical to success.
So, having clear goals, standards and principles is immensely helpful and valuable. Find procurement teams that will engage suppliers early in the relationship, share their challenges transparently, and work together to find practical solutions. This sets the relationship up for long-term success, right from the start.
To reinforce alignment within the complex world of FM, procurement should implement robust onboarding processes, ensure compliance with relevant standards, and perform thorough due diligence along the way. Equipping suppliers with clear processes and expectations helps drive consistent performance and builds mutual trust.
Ultimately, by combining an “encourage and reward” mindset with proactive collaboration and enhanced practical knowledge, procurement leaders can directly support desirable, high-quality workspaces.
But, what if this focus on people can be taken a step further? Could procurement also champion social enterprises? For example, could they use a catering company that employs reformed prisoners that not only gives them a new start, but also introduces diversity and social value into your supply chain?
So, in a highly commoditised industry such as FM, find a procurement team that can show value and support your goal of keeping the workplace attractive. With the right specialists, procurement can be a lever to help people – from office employees seeking a desirable workspace, to suppliers and even social enterprises.