Roles of the Facility and Security Manager - Coursework Example

Understanding Facility Management Introduction The modern day organizations have both the facility and security managers in their human resources structures. Both personnel play a significant role in the organization hence calling for the appreciation of each other’s roles and responsibilities. Despite the different roles of the security and facilities manager they happen to complement each other in their duties in an organization. It also important that both personnel appreciate the involvement of technological advances in their different areas of concern which happen to bring close the two functionalities of the security and facility management (Price, 1997). This paper is therefore an in-depth analysis of the concepts of integration, interdependency, and the interaction of the roles of facility and security managers. Further in the paper, the application of technologies in facility and security managers within a typical high rise building will be discussed. Roles of the facility and security manager The facility manager is entirely responsible for the maintenance of organization facilities such as buildings, premises, and services just to mention a few. They are bestowed the obligation of reduction of the operation costs while at the same time increasing productivity. For instance, the facility manager seeks to minimize costs such as electricity and water bills and also making sure that utilities like air conditioner are in good condition (Perri, 2015, p.1). It is also the duty of the facility manager to monitor the organization’s environment and make sure that the surrounding is clean. The facility manager is also obliged to make sure that safety is achieved in any business environment. This can be through training the staff on emergency procedures as well as taking precautions on dangerous and hazardous substances. Today, most organizations would rather employ an individual with basic knowledge of the organizational plan as a facility manger than those with strong technical backgrounds only. The security manager on the other hand is entirely responsible for the safety of the organization. This will involve the safety of the human resource as well as the buildings and property. The security manager is also responsible for keeping the information of the organization safe. Safety of the organization starts from protecting it using guards, alarms and passwords among other security measures. Integration, interaction and interdependencies between the security and facility manager In each and every organization, the security and facilities managers are expected to work hand in hand in order to achieve their objectives. For instance, they both should appreciate the fact that they are both responsible for the security of the organization despite it being the main role of the security manager. The facility manager is also entitled to ensure the safety of the organization although the security manager takes the lead role (O'Brien, 1995). The facility manager becomes the security manager by default. In fact, it is expected that the facility and security manager work hand in hand to achieve the security of the organization (Lewis et al., 2003). Secondly, both the facility and security manager are obliged to set up their objectives and communicate the same to their parties. In most of the organizations, these expectations are communicated to by the facilities and security manager concurrently. To emphasis this fact is a situation when the security management is contracted from outside parties which eventually lead to conflicting results. Hence, the facility manager is normally the policy maker of the facility management role while the security manager implements them such that at the end of it all the security system of the organization reflects the policies set (Atkins and Brooks, 2009). Given their integrative functions, some organizations prefer to employ the same person to perform the facility and security management functions in a bid to avoid duplication of roles (David et al., 2010). However, this is mostly possible in small and medium size organizations where the size of building and equipment is not big. In large organizations, performing the facility and security management functions concurrently is quite a challenge because of the vast organization’s size. The security and facilities managers normally interact in their duties more often than not. They consult and work hand in hand in their job execution. It therefore goes without saying that security and facility planning in most organizations is geared towards safety provision. For instance, many features of security enhancement such as cameras, controlled access systems, perimeter walls just to mention a few are put into consideration during facility planning (Levitt, 1997). This is to avoid threats such as fire outbreaks which could lead to damage of property and loss of lives. The role of the facilities manager in the execution of this function is supervision, inspection and maintenance of the organization property to ensure their safety. Keeping proper records on system management and certificates of compliance is also their obligation. All the aforementioned roles are also conducted by the security manager in his or her duties to keeping the safety of the institution. Nevertheless, it is important to say that there is a clear line between the careers of the security and facilities managers. In terms of their educational backgrounds, the facilities manager has more qualifications given the nature of their job while the security manager has little or even the basic education depending on the organization and region. This is because of the mere reason that the facility manager performs complex functions such as engineering services, accounting, space planning and property management to the simple functions of records management and messenger services among others. In fact candidates for the position of a facility manager have degrees in mechanical engineering with the ability to be leaders since they supervise staff under them to achieve the objectives of the organization. Those with accounting knowledge are much recommended since facility management is also responsible for cost control. The security manager on the other hand is entirely expected to keep the organization from physical theft to information safety such as hackers. Thus, in small organizations this role can be comfortably performed by an individual with basic education with little on job training (Huston, 1999). However, big organizations with complex systems require individuals with proper qualifications. The technologies used by the facility manager and security manager Today, technological advancements are found in all sectors. Thus, it is an advantage as well as a great challenge to both the security and facility managers. Just like other professions, facility management has evolved to become a demanding profession. Today’s facility management is different from the traditional facility management with regard to organizational sizes and scope of work (Malcolm, 1996). In fact, technology has made the work of the modern facility manager more than ancient facility managers. It has also widened the scope of facility management whereby their obligations in an organization are many. For instance, an organization with several subsidiaries and branches will need the consolidation of their facilities into a central unit controlled by computers (Tuveson, 1998). This needs the hand of the facility manager who is responsible for the planning and coordination of the organizational property. For example, the facility manager works to find new office spaces and bargains for them as one way of cost control which also happens to be their functions. Upon purchase, the facility manager is responsible for making sure that the spaces are filled with furniture and equipment among other furnish (Marmot and Eley, n.d). Research indicates that “that evolving business reality in the realms of process improvement, cost containment, speed-to-market accelerations, quality control, and workplace arrangements and concepts will all have a big impact on future notions of facility management. The challenge for facility managers will be to integrate knowledge workers into a dynamic business environment of global competition, technological developments, security threats and changing values” (Booty, 2010, p.295). Technology has also helped the facility manager a great deal in reaching the global market hence having a positive impact on the profits of the organization. Through technological advancements, facility managers search for federal and international relations thus gaining more customers for their goods and/or services. Behind the growth in technology security threats of organizations becomes a challenge. “As the practice of security integration becomes more sophisticated, the term likely will come to indicate an even more comprehensive approach to linking different systems” (Kruk, 1996, p.174). The topic of linking the security system of an organization to the human resource of the same has gained a lot of controversy over the past years. Its application entails installing a security system in the organization that updates itself with changing human resources. With the rapid rate of technological advancements, there are high chances of rendering the facility and security managers obsolete. Today, organizations have installed security systems such as CCTV’s making them not necessarily a security manager (Alder, 1995). In addition there are systems that check on temperatures and other environmental conditions making the services of the facilities less required. In other instances, either the facility or security manager can perform the roles of each other hence making organizations have either of them instead of both. Secondly, most firms have sought to outsource the services of both the security and facility managers in a bid to minimize costs and management stress (Sopko, 1993). It can also be argued that outsourced services are performed by professional who have the expertise hence providing quality services. Conclusion From the above discussion, it can be concluded that both the facility manager and the security play significant roles in an organization with their key function being security. Most often than not, the roles of the facility and security manager can be performed interchangeably. However, their differences must also be appreciated. Reference List Alder, S. (2005). Disaster and Recovery Planning: A Guide for Facility Managers."Security Management. Atkins, B., and Brooks, A. (2009). Total Facilities Management (3rd ed.). Chichester UK: Wiley Blackwell. p. 119 to 130.  Booty, F. (2010). Facilities Management. Amsterdam: Elsevier. p. 295. David C., Kathy R., and Payant, R. (2010). The Facility Management Handbook - Organizing the Department. New York: AMACOM. p. Chapter 2. Huston, J. (1999). "Mastering the Facility." Buildings. Kruk, B. (1996). "Facilities Planning Supports Changing Office Technologies."Managing Office Technology. Levitt, M. 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(1998). "Facility Management in the 21st Century." Managing Office Technology. Read More