I can’t believe we’ve already reached the longest day – where has the year gone to? Cast your mind back to January, and all those plans you made – I’d imagine many of you pledged to have a better work-life balance in 2011 – how are you getting on? Some…
With just under a week to go till World FM Day 2011, there are many events being planned. Many of my FM clients and colleagues are holding their own in-house events, and I’d love to hear from anyone else doing this. Some of their ideas are focused on raising the…
Over the past few weeks the role of women in the workplace (and more specifically on the Board) has been in the news. Our recent Women in FM event with Dr Mirella Visser created a huge debate about what success really is – and many agreed it was not necessarily…
I was invited to speak at the Women’s Infrastructure Network’s second UK event yesterday, along with Christine Jones of TigerMouth. My topic was ‘creating your niche’, and I shared my own journey in setting up a successful business, and gave tips for raising your own profile, whether you are starting…
I’m preparing for a talk I’m giving to a corporate’s diversity group this week, and found myself remembering some of the best and worst advice I’ve been given in terms of my career. The best: 1. know yourself and 2. be yourself And the worst (well not advice actually but…
Whether you are responsible for a single site, or multiple locations, having happy customers is the ultimate goal for any FM. Not only does it make for a quieter life, but it also gives reassurance that supplier services are delivering effectively. Ensuring that the basic needs of employees and customers…
I was lucky enough to be invited to the first Bee Craft dinner at the Wax Chandler’s Guild yesterday, where the after dinner speaker was Lord Hattersley. He spoke about his career in both politics and literature. What particularly caught my attention was the distinction he made between today’s ‘career…
Did you know there are three levels of listening? I wonder if we listen actively enough to the people we have conversations with? Which of these do you practice most often? Level 1 It’s like being at a party, where you hear that background noise but don’t really tune in.…
Leisure What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare? No time to stand beneath the boughs, And stare as long as sheep and cows: No time to see, when woods we pass, Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass: No time to…
International Women’s Day took place this week – I asked my friends, clients and colleagues to tell us about the women, working in FM, who have inspired them. Here are some of their comments: Claire McDonald says, I have found the contract manager at my site a great inspiration. Caroline…
