The skills shortage across FM will continue to be a focus of 2024. The FM sector will grow at a faster rate than the average UK market rate, therefore any lack of talent will continue to cause constriction on this growth.

Comment from 300 North given to Facilities Management Journal for their recent article: Addressing the recruitment shortfall within FM in 2024. For further discussion on how to tackle the skills shortage in the FM sector, please visit their site.

The FM sector has continually seen stable growth despite difficult economic headwinds in recent years. In terms of recruitment and the talent shortfall we continue to see in the sector, businesses have adopted a number of strategies to bring in the talent they need. Retention is a large part of this, and this year we have seen many businesses address and improve their approach to ESG and CSR internally in order to boost employee satisfaction and engagement.

The second half of 2023 has seen a sustained increase in counter offers, as companies compete to recruit in a tightened labour market and strive to hold on to their current talent. Job seekers entering the market are more aware of their value, and of the current shortage of talent available.

Over 70% of employees consider the employee benefits on offer from an employer when applying for and when considering leaving a job. A good benefits package can make an employee feel supported in their role and can provide transformational development opportunities. It is also a vital part of talent attraction.

The PFI sector provides unique opportunities for SPVs, local authorities, FM service providers and other key stakeholder companies to give young people longstanding careers. It is crucial for PFI to become an attractive sector to the next generation of professionals in order to build an expert workforce that will handle many transition periods and handovers in the coming decades, and help innovate the next phase of PPPs in the UK.

Navigating PFI Handback: Key Strategies for Successful Contract Completion

The shape of contractual relationships in PFI are changing as many contracts enter the advised 7-year handback window and new teams come in to manage the handback, and personnel are reassigned to meet demand. As the industry completes more handbacks, the aim is to create a central space for data sharing that will provide solutions and best practice models, as well as best practice recommendations for contract completion.

PFI is a people orientated business. PFI experts have entered the sector from a range of industries, knowing that these would be long-term, stable positions which would allow them to work with thousands of different people from different backgrounds, both professionally and personally. As ex-Director at Apleona, Brian Jenkinson notes, “a huge amount of the role in PFI is people oriented. It’s massively about relationships. It’s an utterly different world to be managing something where you’re locked together for 25 or 30 years.”

Skills shortages in facilities management are still causing headaches for hiring managers who continue to have some long term vacancies on the books. This has led to hiring managers considering different approaches to filling roles; including drilling down on which skills are absolutely essential, looking at candidates from other parts of FM or alternate sectors, offering significant training and development packages, and evaluate candidates based their soft skills where appropriate.