Facilities Management Association

The Facilities Management Association and the Chartered Management Institute today signed a Memorandum of Understanding bringing chartered status within reach of FMs with a management background.

FMA Director-General Maurice Tidy and Chairman Gareth Hollyman joined CMI Chief Executive Mary Chapman and Director of Standards & Qualifications Neil Southern in signing the MOU this morning (February 6th).

Tidy explained that the MOU was a product of the need being expressed by both the FMA's Young Managers Forum and the association's corporate members to ensure effective and accredited training for facilities managers, culminating in professional recognition. At a meeting held last year, FMA members including ISS Coflex, Jones Lang LaSalle and Taylor Woodrow amongst others discussed how they could make use of such a service in terms of mapping and then accrediting their in-house training programmes. Support was widespread and further negotiations with CMI took place, leading to today's industry first.

Tidy noted that the Young Managers have been arguing in favour of chartered status for some time. The issue was, for example, the focus of the Fellows debate at last year's BIFM conference. One concern for the Young Managers, he said, is credibility for FMs when dealing with their peers from the engineering and surveying professions, which have long had chartered status.

FM is often described as 80% management skill and 20% technical expertise. The MOU will make chartered status open to practitioners with an MBA or a degree in business and the relevant management experience.

A number of Young Managers Forum members are already signed up to the CMI programme and are expected to have achieved chartered status within months.

Commenting on this move, David Emanuel said: "I am very pleased to see this initiative taking place, especially as chartership does not appear to be on the BIFM agenda.

"I am also pleased that this is not just for FMA members but is open to all FMs with a business degree or who make a commitment to the CMI programme. As the BIFM Members Council representative for Institute members, I would strongly urge everyone with the qualifications and experience to apply. The more accredited professionals we have in this industry, the better for everyone."

For more infomation please contact Maurice or look at
the CMI website: