Galamba, Kirsten Ramskov

Nielsen, Susanne Balslev

Online Research Database In Technology

                       General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights.  • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal   If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim.     Downloaded from orbit.dtu.dk on: Dec 17, 2017When Sustainable Development is Core BusinessChanging FM Focus in a Local Danish AurhorityGalamba, Kirsten Ramskov; Nielsen, Susanne BalslevPublished in:FM-Gespräche 2010Publication date:2010Link back to DTU OrbitCitation (APA):Galamba, K. R., & Nielsen, S. B. (2010). When Sustainable Development is Core Business: Changing FM Focusin a Local Danish Aurhority. In FM-Gespräche 2010: Industrial Facility ManagementPaper for the 12th International FM&REM-Congress, 27-29 January 2010 “Opportunities for Sustainability”  1  Authors:  Kirsten Ramskov Galamba, Ph.D. Student Susanne Balslev Nielsen, Associate Professor and Ph.D. Supervisor Centre for Facilities Management - Realdania Research, DTU Management Engineering, Technical University of Denmark.  Corresponding author:  Kirsten Ramskov Galamba, e-mail: Kirg@man.dtu.dk, phone: +45 45251635.  When Sustainable Development is Core Business: Changing FM Focus in a Local Danish Authority Keywords: Local Authorities, Organisational Change Processes, Action Research, Sustainable Development ABSTRACT How local authorities act to support sustainable development is increasingly on the agenda of politicians as well as their administrations. This paper outlines approaches towards developing facilities management supporting sustainable development from the point of a local authority. Apreciative Inquiry as initiator for a change process in the in-house FM organisation is used in an action research process in order to strengthen transparency and strategic thinking within the FM organisation. FACILITIES MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The local authority is responsible for developing local society in a sustainable direction. This is effectuated partly through the planning act and local legislation that gives direction to the physical expression of the city, and through the delivery of social services to the citizens of the local area. There is, however, not a generally accepted definition of sustainability, though the definition from the Brundtland Commission in 1987 is often used: “Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. The discussion in this paper is based on this definition, and on the assumption that sustainable development is core business for the local authorities. The facility manager has a key role in creating the physical frame for the services delivered, and for developing the architectural expression of the buildings owned by the local authority. Both are very important tasks in the support and development of the local society. However, the definition of sustainable facilities management (FM) is even more unclear and immature. The discussions on sustainable FM seem to have a bias towards technical and systemic solutions to contribution of the buildings towards isolated environmental problems. Key words in the discussion are among others: Implementation of management tools (Sunihl, 2006), eco-renovation (A. Sobotka, D.P. Wyatt, 1998) and sustainable construction (Häkkinen and Nuutinen, 2007), energy performance (Sawyer, Paper for the 12th International FM&REM-Congress, 27-29 January 2010 “Opportunities for Sustainability”  2  Wilde and Turpin Brooks, 2008) as well as indoor air quality and energy efficiency. Facilities management is, however, also discussed in relation to a sustainable development on a societal level. (Alexander 2006) is arguing that community based facilities management can enhance opportunities for social inclusion in the society, while (Nielsen et. al. 2009) point to the housings areas as central in sustainable development due to both resource consumption and as transition agent towards sustainable lifestyles. This paper will open the discussion on the role of facilities management in the local authorities, in developing a sustainable society on local and global level, at present and for future generations. The discussion is based on findings from the initial phase of an action research project conducted in an ongoing Ph.D. project. Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is explored as a method for developing facilities management through the empowerment of employees in the in-house FM organisation.  DEPARTMENT “REAL ESTATE, ROADS AND PARKS” (FM) In February 2009 the department Real Estate, Roads and Parks (FM department) in the local authority of Albertslund and the first author of this article initiated a joint action research process based on the systemic method Appreciative Inquiry. The main goal was to start a change process towards a more holistic FM supporting a sustainable development on a societal level. According to the manager of the department, the motivation for entering the action research process was based on the belief that it could help her create a transparent and viable organisation, integrating facilities management and the responsibility for a sustainable development on a societal level. At present the organisation faces an urgent need to prioritise tasks due to a requered building modernisation and at the same time limited resources. The action research process is believed to support the development of competences and shared knowledge in the department, and thereby qualifying the prioritizations (Kremmer 2009).  Being a merger of two former departments the FM department is relatively new, and the manager found its internal organisation too vulnerable to enter a critique and a problem orientated approach. This was supported by the researchers’ point of view by a quriosity towards the systemic theory and the potential of initiating change by focusing on what works, leading to the choice of AI as the initial approach. The diagramme below shows the principal organisation of the local authority of Albertslund. The FM department has been highlighted, as this is where the action research process takes place.  Paper for the 12th International FM&REM“Opportunities for Sustainability” Figur 1:  The principal organisation of the local authority of Albertslund. The arrow indicates the role of the department in supporcore function of the other departments through development and maintenance of the facilities.The FM department is responsible for the development and maintenance of two kinds of facilities the public buildings and the areas in betweenauthorities is to support and promote decided to focus on the development and maintenance of the facilities in a broad The users of the facilities are both the employees working professionally with for example child care and the citizens using the servicedynamic methods for user involvement in the process supports the core function of a facilitydevelopment on a societal level. EMPOWERING EMPLOYEES It was decided to go through the phases of AI (to define the main topic – sustainable facilities management the process, this process was initiated with workshops on team basis. whole day workshops for the departmeninitiated by an exploration of “the best of what is”.workshops in order to create an arena for the initial processfreely and without a managerial superior solutionimportant presentations during the process.Department of environment and tecniqueCatering and cleaning Environement, planning and buildingReal estate, roads and parks (FM)Children and youth -Congress, 27-29 January 2010 3   like roads and parks. As the core function of the local a sustainable development on a societal level, senses provided by or within the facilities. This demands some very of finding out how FM most efficient, and thereby indirectly how FM can support a sustainable TO STRATEGIC THINKING Reason 2006) within a period of four month.- that was to be elaborated upon during . This was followed by two t, where the employees were creating future scenarios  The manager participated only in parts of the , where the employees could speak . The manager was, however, invited to all  The Mayor and the City CounsilMain DirectordepartmentCulture department Social departmentManagement Support department  ting the – it has been . ly  In order Paper for the 12th International FM&REM“Opportunities for Sustainability” Figur 2: Principal process design spring 2009, showing the phases in Appreciative Inquiry“the best of what is”. Dream: Envisioning “what could be”The overall theme of the workshops was the role of facilities management contributing to a sustainable development on a societal level. The workshops had the aim to provide a common understanding of the current practice within the scenarios for the future facilities management.Scenarios were created under four headings: Data System”, ”Dialogue and Communication in the Organisation” and ”A strategy for sustainable facilities management”. The design describing the first steps to take in the changemake action plans, as all tasks in the department parts of the organisation.  Using Appreaciative Inquiry showed the weakness that the by the borders of the system (= FM-of the whole organisation, some of the ideas and suto initiatives and strategies in other departments.important was that ”sustainability on a societal level” process, as the employees worked very much The strength of the approach was, however, that and sense making during the processthey chose themselves and therefore found meaningfullemployees to address the working conditions in the departmentthe possibility of changing the department into a holistic After the initial phase of the change process scenarios developed by the employees lead to an inclusion of the question of sustainability on a societal level in the process?-Congress, 27-29 January 2010 4 : Define: Topic choice. Discovery: Appreciation . Design: “Co-constructing “what should be”. Destiny: Sustaining “what will be”department, and to facilitate the creation of  ”Everyday environmental work” , ”A Holistic FMand destiny phases were meant to provide a frame for  process. It did, however, turn out to be impossible to are somehow depending on cooperation with other future scenarios developed were organisation). As the system in this case consisted of only a pggestions turned out to be directly  In relation to the overall research question was almost imposible to catch through the on the organisational level. the employees experienced a high level of energy . They worked together across team borders with issues that . Working on a system level , which turned out to be cruciaFM function. the challenges are at least twofold. How can the become reality? And how can the action research process   . -limited art contradictive more spurred the l for future  Paper for the 12th International FM&REM“Opportunities for Sustainability” So far the answer is a focus on “value” or “scenarios can be merged and elevated into terms of value, to the rest of the organisation to discuss The next phase in the development process is strategic, tactical and operational level to a joint workshop. They will be asked what added value the created FM future scenarios could contribute with in their daily work. On thuser involvement and new coorperational forms can be explored, addressing sustainability as an overall value at the same time. The principal process design for this is presented below. Figur 3: The principel process design for spring 20ways of implementation. In our work we have explored the meaningdevelopment on a societal level” trying to orientated approach trying to incorporate sustainability into the practice by different systems and tools. The second points more to the role of facilities management as supporting the corebusiness influencing on the development of the society in a sustainable direction by a more holistic approach. This conceptualization will continue through the Ph.D.CONCLUSION So far findings indicate that there is a great potential in a bottom up approach to change processes in the local authority administration, even in a department working mainly on the tactic and operational level where everything should have been done yesterday. Atdifficult to address the sustainability issues on a societal level be the subject in further discussion later in the ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Thanks to the employees from the local authority encouraging engagement and Realdania for the funding of the Ph.D. through the Centre for Facilities Management – Realdania Research (CFM). -Congress, 27-29 January 2010 5 added value” created through FM. If the four we expect it will be far more accessable strategies without going too much into a tactical therefore to invite the users of the facilities from is basis methods for 10. Elevating the scenarios to a value level and inviting users to qualify the scenarios and s of “sustainable FM” and “FM supporting a distinquish the two. The first we see as a   the same time it has within a systemic approachPh.D. research process. of Albertslund for their engagement and See www.cfm.dtu.dk.  future mode.   sustainable primary tool in proven . This will Paper for the 12th International FM&REM-Congress, 27-29 January 2010 “Opportunities for Sustainability”  6  REFERENCES ALEXANDER, K. and BROWN, M., 2006. Community-based facilities management. Emerald Group Publishing Limited.  BRUNDTLAND, G.H. and WORLD COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT, 1987. Our common future. New York: United Nations.  HÃ¤KKINEN, T. and NUUTINEN, M., 2007. Seeking sustainable solutions for office buildings. Emerald Group Publishing Limited.  KREMMER, S., 090626. Interview.  NIELSEN, S.B., JENSEN, J.O. and JENSEN, P.A., 2009. Delivering Sustainable Facilities Management in Danish Housing Estates. 5-6/11 2009 2009, .  REASON, P. and BRADBURY, H., 2006. Handbook of action research : the concise paperback edition. London: Sage.  SAWYER, L., WILDE, P.D. and TURPIN-BROOKS, S., 2008. Energy performance and occupancy satisfaction: A comparison of two closely related buildings. Emerald Group Publishing Limited.  SHAH, S., 2007. Sustainable practice for the facilities manager. Oxford ; Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.  SOBOTKA, A. and WYATT, D.P., 1998. Sustainable development in the practice of building resources renovation. MCB UP Ltd.   

When Sustainable Development is Core Business:Changing FM Focus in a Local Danish Aurhority

http://orbit.dtu.dk/ws/files/5173144/091110%20paper%20Kufstein%20SFM.pdf

When Sustainable Development is Core Business:Changing FM Focus in a Local Danish Aurhority

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Online Research Database In Technology