Hospital facilities managers face increasing demands as hospitals integrate advanced systems, navigate strict regulations, and prioritize sustainability. These professionals manage critical operations, ensure compliance with safety standards, and lead teams to maintain efficient and safe environments for patients and staff. With many current managers expected to retire by 2035, there is an urgent need to equip emerging leaders with the technical knowledge, leadership skills, and regulatory expertise required to excel. Preparing future managers involves hands-on training, mentorship, and education focused on both modern technologies and effective collaboration.
What Makes a Future-Ready Hospital Facilities Manager?
The modern hospital facilities manager wears many hats. They’re troubleshooters, strategists, and leaders. Here’s what makes them tick and what future leaders must embrace to excel.
Mastering the Mechanics of Advanced Systems
Hospitals are adopting technologies that would have seemed futuristic a decade ago. From automated building systems to advanced HVAC controls, facilities managers must understand and manage these innovations effectively. Mastery over predictive maintenance systems and smart building technologies isn’t just desirable but essential in this day and age. The next wave of professionals will need deep technical knowledge to integrate these tools into daily operations while keeping downtime to a minimum.
Soft Skills Are Hard to Ignore
Technical expertise is only part of the puzzle. Facilities managers must also be excellent communicators and negotiators. This role bridges teams as diverse as administrative staff, healthcare providers, and technicians. Building trust and fostering collaboration among these groups requires emotional intelligence and a knack for resolving conflicts efficiently.
Navigating Regulatory Roadmaps
The healthcare sector operates under stringent regulatory oversight. Facilities managers must ensure compliance with an array of standards from bodies such as OSHA, NFPA, and The Joint Commission. These rules don’t just exist to create hurdles. They ensure safety, efficiency, and quality care. Future managers will need to embed compliance into every decision, process, and project they oversee.
Data-Driven Decision Making
Hospitals are increasingly dependent on data for operational excellence. Analytics tools help track energy consumption, monitor equipment performance, and even predict failures before they happen. Facilities managers must learn to interpret this data to make proactive decisions that cut costs and improve performance.
Greening the Facilities
Sustainability is a mandate, not a trend. Facilities managers are tasked with leading energy conservation, waste reduction, and water management initiatives. This requires not just technological knowledge but also the ability to rally teams behind long-term environmental goals.
How to Train the Future
Preparation doesn’t happen in isolation. Organizations must create environments where emerging talent can learn, grow, and thrive.
Training Through Real-World Exposure
Hands-on learning remains the most effective way to develop expertise. Rotational programs that immerse trainees in diverse aspects of facility management, like budgeting, systems operations, and maintenance, are becoming common. These programs provide a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and responsibilities facilities managers face every day.
Mentors Make the Difference
Mentorship programs are powerful tools for knowledge transfer. Experienced managers can help younger professionals navigate complex organizational dynamics and solve high-stakes problems. It’s not just about teaching technical skills; mentorship fosters confidence and leadership qualities.
Tech-Driven Learning Opportunities
Digital literacy is no longer optional. Training initiatives increasingly emphasize the use of software platforms and IoT tools. Emerging professionals must learn to manage digital twins, automation systems, and cloud-based maintenance platforms to stay ahead of the curve.
Certifications That Count
Certifications aren’t just badges. They’re passports to professionals’ credibility and career advancement.
- Certified Healthcare Facility Manager (CHFM): A credential that signals expertise in healthcare-specific operational, financial, and compliance challenges.
- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED): Demonstrates a commitment to sustainability and environmentally sound practices.
- Certified Energy Manager (CEM): Focused on energy efficiency, this certification is crucial for sustainability-focused professionals.
- Facility Management Professional (FMP): Ideal for early-career professionals seeking a comprehensive understanding of facility management fundamentals.
- Project Management Professional (PMP): Prepares managers to oversee complex projects with tight budgets and deadlines.
Creating a Pipeline of Future Leaders
The future of hospital facilities management depends on finding, nurturing, and retaining top talent. Engaging students early through partnerships with engineering and business programs is an effective strategy. Internships and apprenticeships provide young professionals with real-world experience, preparing them to take on significant roles later in their careers.
Workforce diversity must also be a priority. A broader range of perspectives fosters innovative thinking and creative problem-solving. Additionally, continuing education, through conferences, workshops, and certifications, keeps professionals at the cutting edge of industry trends.
With more than half the current hospital facilities management workforce expected to retire by 2035, it’s essential to prepare upcoming facilities managers to take over the role. Future leaders must master a complex mix of technical expertise, strategic thinking, and sustainability practices. Equipping these professionals with the right skills, certifications, and opportunities is the surest way to secure the industry’s future.
Sources
3 Ways to Nurture Next-Generation Healthcare Facilities Managers
Build your confidence and accelerate your career
Certified Energy Manager® – CEM®
Certified Health Care Facility Manager (CHFM)
How Facility Managers are Planning for the Future of the Workforce
How to Develop the Next Generation of Healthcare Facilities Leaders
Is FM Prepared for a Technical Labor Shortage?
Project Management Professional (PMP)®
Tech To Foster the Next Generation of Facility Management Leaders
