FACILITIES MANAGEMENT JOURNAL JOBS
FM CAREERS - CAREER LADDER / COMPLIANCE
Name: Simone Fenton-
Jarvis
Current role: Workplace
Services Consultancy
Development Director
Lives: Sheffi eld
FMJ chats to a facilities
professional about how they got
into the sector and takes a look
at their career path. This month
we talk to Simone Fenton-Jarvis,
Workplace Services Consultancy
Development Director
What was you first job in the
FM sector?
Facilities Assistant in a Leisure Centre.
What made you choose FM as a
career?
I had a passion for health and fitness and
started to work in Leisure without realising
it was FM whilst I qualified as a PE teacher. I
stayed within FM once I realised how much
I loved it!
How did you progress through the
profession to your current role?
I started as a Facilities Assistant in a leisure
centre before moving to being Senior
Facilities Assistant working within leisure and
residential property. I then progressed up to
Facilities Team Leader, Facilities Manager and
then Head of FM very quickly!
I completed an MBA at She ield Hallam
and moved onto a global organisation as
Operations Manager before becoming Chief
Workplace O icer.
Just recently I have moved to Ricoh to work
within workplace consultancy.
Do you have any qualifications or
training in FM and related areas such as
health and safety? And how have you
benefited from them?
I’ve always been a little bit addicted to
learning - early on in my career I liked to
spend time with contractors, watching and
learning from them, asking questions and
knowing exactly what they were doing.
Knowing the ins and outs of everything has
massively helped my career.
I’m a Swimming Pool and Spa Engineer,
Personal Trainer and Nutritionist. I have
various Health and Safety qualifications,
NEBOSH, IOSH, First Aid, COSHH, Fire Risk.
I completed an MBA a few years ago and
currently working out what my next formal
learning journey will be!
What is your greatest contribution to
the FM sector, or your current role?
I became the first Chief Workplace O icer and
took the research to work out how practically
that actually looked! I am now working
with IWFM to map out future professional
standards around workplace. The scope of
the role is so big and so important and I can’t
wait to see what the CWO roles look like in
the future.
What’s changed most since you
started in FM?
The increased focus on people and the levels
of technology.
What personal qualities do you think
are most needed for a successful career
in FM?
Tenacity, resilience and drive – to find
solutions and carry on (even on the
days where everything goes wrong!).
Communication and relationship
management skills are key as you interact
with so may stakeholders. Finally, empathy!
If you could do one thing di erently in
your career in FM, what would it be?
Skip the PE (pardon the pun) and head
straight into FM at aged 18.
What would make the biggest
di erence to the FM sector?
FM being a chosen career - as a profession
we need to get better at communication
and brand building. There needs to be more
awareness and learning and development
opportunities. It’s such a rewarding, diverse
and challenging profession!
Are you a member of any FM
association or body and if so what
benefits do you think they provide?
IWFM – news / case studies / networking /
professional development and a sense of
belonging!
What advice would you give to young
people coming into the profession now?
Keep learning, keep smiling and building
relationships.
What are your long-term goals for the
next seven to ten years?
I really want to write a book... people keep
asking me what I’m waiting for and to just get
started so watch this space.
What do you predict could be the main
changes to the FM sector over the next
few years?
The increases in technology and the impact
that will have on levels of agile working,
customer service, supply chains and business
improvement.
What are the greatest challenges of
working in FM?
I know this is getting a bit boring now, but our
biggest challenge still remains that there is a
lack of understanding about what FM is and
the scope of impact we have.
What do you enjoy most about
working in FM?
Every day is di erent, you’re never bored and
there’s always more to learn!
COMPLIANCE
BENCHMARKING
Five ways benchmarking helps to improve recycling and
waste management practices:
It provides financial transparency
The price paid for the removal of any material, be it dry
mixed recycling or material destined for waste recovery, will
vary according to the location of the end of life solution.
Greater distances will a ect transport costs, as well as other
handling charges that the provider deems fair. Through a
benchmarking process, customers can begin to determine
a fair market rate according to the region in which work is
being carried out. Benchmarking can even explore costs
per stream against each building user to understand the
e ect of minor collection changes. Customers can then take
the necessary steps to improve the management of their
recycling and waste and its cost e ectiveness.
It makes recycling and waste processing more e icient
Benchmarking will highlight sites where there are overscheduled
collections or an over capacity of material storage.
Changing scheduled collections based on actual knowledge
gained through benchmarking, rather than reacting to site
sta claiming a bin is always ‘overflowing’, will ensure that
the most appropriate solution is put in place.
It corroborates data and provides a path for
improvement
Organisations o en end up with a recycling and waste
management service that is not fit for purpose or too
expensive. A thorough benchmarking process will locate
the ‘holes’ in a customer’s operating data, i.e. uncover the
inconsistencies between what’s written on the page and the
reality on the ground. This kind of analysis not only highlights
where a company might be paying for the removal of fresh air
but also creates a reference point for future improvements
once initial service amendments have been made.
It helps the environment
Benchmarking measures recycling rates and can identify
greener end-of-life solutions for material, The process can
identify carbon reduction strategies for those using landfill
solutions and even help customers to improve their ‘Scope
3’ emissions (indirect carbon output) by recommending local
service providers or solutions for waste and recycling.
It cuts through the noise
Benchmarking encourages businesses to approach recycling
and waste in a di erent way, giving clarity to the true nature
of their management practices. Few will, for example, factor
in the litres of liquid recycling produced as a result of gully
or interceptor clearances, or the rebates accrued when
IT equipment or textiles are recycled from on-site stills.
Benchmarking fully captures this data and considerations
like overall weight, to ensure that corrections have genuine,
lasting e ect.
Paul Taylor is recycling and waste manager
at Sitemark, www.sitemark.co.uk. A longer
version of this piece is pubished online.
78 JUNE 2019
/www.sitemark.co.uk