Facility management is a diverse field that demands a lot of those who work in it. It aligns with the goals and strategies of an organization by supporting day-to-day service for individual people, their well-being, their productivity, and their quality of life. Facility managers are required to effectively apply knowledge and competencies to help drive organizational success.
The Professional Facility Management (ProFM) credential was introduced to unite and elevate the FM profession. The ProFM credential is based on the ProFM Body of Knowledge.
In 2017, several FM organizations and individuals came together with a common goal to elevate the facility management profession and advance the careers of facility professionals, resulting in the creation of the Professional Facility Management Institute (ProFMI). The ProFMI Commission was formed as a governance body to serve as an advisory committee for the ProFMI. Visit http://www.ProFMI.org/ to learn more.
The ProFMI Commission was tasked with defining the required knowledge and competencies of all facility managers to meet the expanding industry demands. Through an extensive research study involving thousands of facility management professionals from around the globe, the ProFM Body of Knowledge was developed. The ProFM model defines 19 functional FM knowledge areas and 5 cross-functional competencies required of today’s facility professionals. The ProFM Body of Knowledge provides a road map for developing the capabilities needed to advance in facility management and improve effectiveness in the workplace.
What is a Competency?
A competency is defined as a cluster of skills, knowledge, abilities, and personal traits that allow one to perform certain roles or tasks successfully. They can be categorized in different ways, including:
- Technical—This is the functional expertise (skills and knowledge) required in a particular role.
- Managerial—This is associated with planning, organizing, and directing work.
- Cognitive—This involves seeing patterns in data and events and logically making connections.
- Interpersonal—This is related to emotional intelligence, using an understanding of others to think clearly and perform professionally.
All of these competency traits are acquired and developed over time. They can be improved and honed through education and practice.
Functional FM Knowledge Areas
Through the ProFM research study, the broad scope of processes, services, and activities were categorized into four key knowledge domains. These were identified as the core capability areas to accomplish the mission of FM:
- Asset Management:
- Risk Management:
- Business Management:
- Operations and Maintenance:
Each knowledge domain is broken into essential competencies needed to ensure the capabilities. Descriptions of activities and required behaviors are linked to each competency.
Cross-Functional Competencies
Effective facility managers must acquire certain technical knowledge and develop many related skills and abilities. However, additional cross-functional competencies are required to facilitate the application of the knowledge and skills. These competencies are valuable without regard to level of experience, the types of FM disciplines managers are engaged in, the size and complexity of their facilities, or the types of organizations in which they work.
These “competency threads” apply to job-related behaviors and should be a key consideration when conducting any FM tasks:
This dual approach for FM success goes beyond the traditional definition of facility management to reflect all of the knowledge, skills, and behaviors required of today’s facility professionals. This success is dependent on not only what a facility manager knows but how that knowledge is applied.
Organization of the ProFM BOK
The ProFM Body of Knowledge is organized by the five cross-functional competencies and 19 functional FM knowledge areas required of today’s facility professionals. For each element, the following information is provided:
- An overview of the domain area.
- A definition of the competency or functional area within each domain.
- Key concepts describing foundational knowledge for that area.
- Proficiency indicators that identify the observable behaviors for measuring competence.
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Kazeem Olugbade, ProFM, is a facility management professional who has extensive knowledge and skills in the subject areas.
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