Implementation of facilities management strategy for Amathole District Municipality

Facilities management is a profession that encompasses multiple disciplines to ensure the functionality of the built environment by integrating people, places, processes and technology. It combines management and business with the most current professional and technical knowledge to provide a people-oriented and effective work environment. The study has the following objectives: to determine whether pro-active planning in order to optimise sustainable physical infrastructure is currently being carried out; to determine whether the cost structure of facilities management is being analysed to ensure proper planning that is aligned with the budget and to determine whether the organisational structure of facilities management (FM) is developed and fully staffed with qualified officials and that it is being operated from the correct department. This will ensure that facilities management carries out its mandate of creating jobs. The mixed research methodology was used in this study as both quantitative and qualitative techniques were employed in gathering, organising and analysing information obtained from the participants. Pilot questions were distributed to all relevant managers within the Amathole District Municipality. The primary data was gathered from Directors, Heads of Departments (HODs), general managers, senior managers, unit managers and assistant managers with a view to ascertaining their level of understanding of the importance of facilities management (FM) within the Amathole District Municipality. The secondary data for this study was obtained from a literature review of relevant publications from various sources, such as reports, books, the internet and articles. From the respondents’ responses, it can be noted that facility management is of benefit to the organization in that it provides for cost value benefit, the development of policies, safety, good property management and an efficient security system. One of the main drawbacks is the lack of a facilities manager in the department. No Senior Manager has been appointed with the facilities management portfolio, which would assist the top management in making informed decisions. As a result, there is no facilities management strategy, policy or framework to guide the portfolio in the right direction