In the future, the real estate industry and FM will probably be shaped by three current developments. Particularly noteworthy are:

1. new working environments and services to promote employee productivity, health and well-being;
2. digital transformation of real estate and service delivery;
3. sustainability, i.e. requirements of the United Nations in the area of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) of the EU.

The economy is currently vulnerable to many uncertainties and subject to constant change. The COVID pandemic has had a major impact on the way work is done and has been a real accelerant for ‘smart work’: working from home, remote working and so-called ‘third-place’ working became the norm virtually overnight. This has many advantages, such as a reduction in commuting times and the relief of pressure on public transport at rush hours as well fewer hours of congestion. These were socio-politically relevant side-effects of the pandemic that had the consequence of employees working less in the office and videoconferencing more from home. This resulted in more time, more flexibility and more personal responsibility, which was very much appreciated by employees and which they would be reluctant to relinquish.
In cooperation with the IT and HR departments, FM has a key role to play in the implementation of these new work practices. The way we work together and the corporate culture in which we work is a central success factor in employer branding and the ability to attract skilled workers in the future. This is because younger generations in particular place high demands on prospective employers and managers. Digitalization and new expectations of the working world due to work-life blending, including the four-day week, part-time and home working, lead to new approaches in HR management, for example ‘Digital Leadership’, ‘Holacracy’ and ‘Top Sharing’. Not only should these expectations be taken seriously, but companies would do well to rethink and redesign their own working practices. After all, well-qualified employees choose the companies they want to work for and not the other way around. The ethical use of new digital technologies such as IoT, Big Data and AI facilitates new ways of working. Furthermore, audience-centricity and flexibility (service on demand) are central to the combined provision of digital and physical services. Facility managers are both responsible for and lead the digital transformation so that the company can adapt to the new circumstances.

It is up to the Facility Managers to drive the digital transformation and to use the resulting potential for the benefit of employees.

Another area is the efficient use of resources and, indeed, sustainability in general. Around 40 to 45 percent of all CO₂ emissions are directly or indirectly related to the construction and operation of real estate. Sustainability laws, guidelines and optimization requirements therefore have massive implications for the real estate sector. In order to achieve net zero carbon targets, FM will be expected to implement innovative solutions. In the future, the typical building will not only be a consumer of energy but, in the best-case scenario, even an energy generator, which will help to achieve the EU’s goal of climate neutrality by 2050 (Green Deal) or by 2045 in Germany. The Green Deal is the basis of the Austrian government’s 2020 program to ensure that the nation’s building stock goes climate-neutral by 2040 (Path to a Climate-Neutral Energy Future). Switzerland is implementing the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions with its Climate Strategy 2050. New technological opportunities lead to various innovations that promote digital-ethical values, for example the European research project ‘Artificial-Intelligence-Augmented Cooling System for Small Data Centers’ (ECO-Qube), in which buildings are heated with the waste heat from IT servers and artificial intelligence → Digitalization meets decarbonization.

Despite all the attention paid to technology, people are paramount. It is therefore of central importance to focus on the well-being and satisfaction of employees. Especially in the health care sector (hospitals and homes), the demands are constantly increasing. Energy-optimized properties that make employees ill do not solve problems but rather create new ones. The EU Taxonomy Regulation places high demands on European companies in connection with all areas of sustainability. ESG is becoming a key factor for sustainable corporate success, and companies would therefore be well advised to develop and introduce a comprehensive ESG strategy now, as has been shown by the Lünendonk study ‘ESG: Current and Future Value Contribution of Facility Management’ (published November 2022).

Facility Managers must become more involved and acquire relevant ESG competences, in order to meet the high expectations of sustainability, social responsibility and good business practice.

In summary, FM has the strategically relevant responsibility and scope to act on behalf of the company in the following areas:

• developing and operating healthy and safe workplaces;
• enhancing organizational agility and flexibility;
• increasing effectiveness, efficiency and thus productivity;
• developing and implementing sustainability strategies and measures;
• driving the digital transformation as an enabler and, last but not least,
• optimizing the costs of real estate and facilities in a lifecycle-oriented manner in accordance with the property portfolio management strategy.

So, as the Facility Manager of the future, it is your duty to lead your company in the direction of sustainability and ensure that world in which our children grow up is a world worth living in.