IWFM brand revealed for BIFM

The new Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management formally introduced itself last night, with a welcome video and a ten-point plan for becoming a modern professional body, only eight months after the BIFM first proposed to embrace workplace as a key differentiator for its members and to establish facilities management as a chartered profession.

The occasion, held as part of Workplace Week, opened with a wide-ranging panel discussion on the workplace opportunity chaired by Ian Ellison, researcher and co-author of a new knowledge report, aimed at the profession, examining its culture, ‘Managing Facilities or Enabling Communities?.’

Introducing the new IWFM brand ahead of the formal website launch next Monday, Chairman Stephen Roots reminded the audience of the reasons for the change and how far the Institute had come in the last year.

He said: “We are entering an exciting new era as a modern professional body that is fit for the twenty first century.

“Our purpose in creating IWFM has been to reframe the rationale for FM to generate a better understanding of the value that facilities and workplace professionals can contribute to the success of organisations.

“Our mission as IWFM is to empower and enable them to reach their full potential and have rewarding, impactful careers.

Outlining a ten-point programme of activity, CEO Linda Hausmanis set out the new Institute’s aims in its first year, working towards its ultimate goal to realise members’ desire for the profession to achieve chartered status. Plans included a new Professional Standards handbook, updated ahead of a major overhaul next year, to include elements on culture and values alongside organisational behaviour and performance, all aligned to a new IWFM development pathway; a proposed career of choice campaign; and a raft of new and improved insights work, plus a remodelling of its flagship FM World magazine, to be renamed Facilitate.

She said: “We have focused on our ambition to achieve Chartered Body status. We want a future where we, along with the community, can have a clear and distinct voice which articulates the value our profession contributes to business, society and the economy.

“Workplace performance is set to remain a critical area of focus and will shape wide ranging discussions from technology and AI to attracting and shaping talent. My objective is to make IWFM more valuable to the workplace and facilities management profession, the industry and the wider economic community; and to support the professional development of its people through leading-edge thinking, sharing best practice and upskilling opportunities. IWFM is about creating the conditions for our profession to thrive and grow”.