Por qué los SLA no son lo ANS

SLAs in Facility Management

Through the years I’ve been working as Facility Management consultant and trainer, I‘ve had to explain what FM is to different people with different professional backgrounds. This is why I’ve developed easy explanations that can help understand the basis on which we can build more complex models on. This article is the continuation of the Decalogue we posted before, to understand the discipline.

It’s obvious and known that in order to do FM we must begin by changing the way we define the client company’s needs first, because that will change the way we tender and consequently the way services are proposed and measured.

In addition, this is useful to refute the concept which is highly repeated (or was usually repeated), regarding “doing FM” as outsourcing all services to one sole contractor. No, that’s just outsourcing not doing FM, and it’s been done for quite a while. We could have one FM contract with a service provider for just one service and, because of this, we would be doing FM. It’s obvious that in order to do FM we must change something in the way we do things. If not, we won’t change the results we get.

The sequence of the letters SLA following is useful to explain the design and provision model of Facility Management services and is useful also to understand the general matters of the discipline and the way it works in the same way that we could say that this acronym represents the procurement model, used in other business areas. The idea is laying an easy explanation that helps understand how we proceed in FM. According to the following graphic we can explain:

sla

Figure 1: Provision Model Based on SLA.  Source: FMHOUSE

  1. “S”, or “Service”, is what is more similar to the definition in a traditional specifications document, although, if we’re defining a SL, it will already have distinguishing elements, such as higher risk transfer.
  2. To indicate that a Service Definition should be different, we’ll use the acronym Sd.
  3. “L”, or “Level” is what gives the service definition the ability to measure and to adjust within a certain range. The service definition can’t be changed as, if it is, the service itself would change.
  4. “A”, or “Agreement”, is only present if there is an actual agreement, this is to say, if after a tender process, RFI – RFP – RFQ (4), and after the necessary adjustment, there is a level of agreement that is good enough.

The correct use of this letter sequence within the process of service definition and provision helps to, amongst other things, to place the responsibilities of every stakeholder in a correct way. For example, when trying to place the responsibilities of the Purchasing Department or how this Department can fit into the FM activity, if this department where to take responsibility on the RFQ process.

This is the summarized explanation we give to our clients before we start a FM tender process. Just three letters that condense almost all FM´s main concepts.

As mentioned at the beginning, with this article I have tried to give a simple explanation of the significance of different terms used regularly in our Discipline. In the Module 6 of the FMHOUSE Institute’s International Masters Degree in Facility Management, tittled “Service Dimentioning”, this topic is developed in a more ample way.

Author: David Martínez, PhD. Strategic consultant, coach, researcher and international speaker. Renowned Facility and Asset Management expert. Specialized in multicultural property management models and productivity applied to workplace.

share on your social networks

Do you want more information about what we do in Consultancy, Training and Research en Facility Management?

Hola, ¿cómo
podemos ayudarte?

Rellena el siguiente formulario y te enviaremos el reglamento interno y código ético:

Hello, ¿how
can we help you?

Participate in the Observatorio FM

You can choose between these 3 options to participate:





How to participate?

Collaborating with the Observatorio FM is a personal and voluntary decision, and there is no contractual obligation or economic retribution for it.

Any interested person can apply to participate as a leader of a new project, or apply as a collaborator in an existing one.

A technical committee will evaluate the subject matter of the proposed projects and the applications of the participants, deciding which ones are carried out and by whom.

Each person decides how much they want to dedicate, depending on their availability or type of project. The aim is for it to be an altruistic activity and not an additional workload.

What does it consist of?

To promote and publish studies that help professionals in the sector and to help others understand our profession and discipline.

The results and deliverables are shared openly, always acknowledging the contributions of all authors and contributors.

The Observatorio FM’s activity will respect the objectivity, ethics, rigour and good practices that govern our Research area.

Contributors have access to the best collaborative tools, sectoral information and contacts, as well as the assistance of expert consultants and researchers at international level.

Research

FM Observatory

FM Observatory is a platform which develops and disseminates Facility Management information. It’s accessible to all those who’d genuinely like to participate. Ethical use and objectivity are essential, and all results must be shared. You decide how long you devote to it and what you want to achieve.

You can participate as:

We will provide:

All contributions will be given credit in completed projects.

Research

Projects

We are part of the European research group and we work in international teams to develop different types of initiatives:

We also work for service providers who require support with decisions linked to:

Research

Standardisation

As accredited experts in the drafting processes of European and International standards on Asset and Facility Management, we are the perfect partner to assist you with:

FMHOUSE is the only Spanish-speaking consulting firm that participates in these processes.

Research

Publications

At FMHOUSE we think that progress made in Facility Management should be shared, so we strive to produce and publish the following material:

The “FM Observatory” is open, should you like to contribute with a publication.

Consultancy

Workplace

Our view of spaces or workplaces from a Facility Management perspective leads to a better understanding of such a need as a service, as it is essential to apply the same logic and methodology.

Generally we offer:

We apply our knowledge and experience to offices, learning spaces, shopping centres and the industrial environment.

Consultancy

Benchmarking

In order to make the right decisions, clear accurate market data as well as facts about the organisation itself is essential. In the Facility Management environment, this is even more critical due to the impact it has on business.

Examples of benchmarks:

These services are requested mainly by end users, but also by service providers.

Consultancy

Customer Experience

Facility Management’s overarching goal is customer satisfaction, whether they are internal or external. Understanding their feelings and needs is the key to offering a good service.

Our support is based on:

We strive to understand and get to know our clients’ customers, in all sectors and types of businesses.

Consultancy

Digital Transformation

The Facility Management world is experiencing a major transition to digital environments. We help our clients understand how it impacts them and assist them throughout the change.

Our areas of support are:

We operate as independent advisers, not as brand vendors.

We advise end-users and service providers.

Consultancy

Service Design

All kinds of companies need to define or improve the way in which it structures supporting activities provided by Facility Management.

Our main products are:

Our proposals are structured according to individual requirements.

We help end customers and also service providers.

In FMHOUSE, we use third party cookies to improve our services. If you continue with navigation, we will consider that you accept our terms of use y nuestra privacy policy y de cookies