Our sector has certainly been kept on its toes recently: Brexit, Covid-19, WFH, hybrid working…we caught up with members of the Tudor Group management team to reflect on how the industry has risen to these challenges and find out what they believe the key trends for the sector will be in 2023:
Fabien Caqueret, Managing Director, Tudor Group
“The pandemic and resulting lockdowns saw a shift in working patterns and a fall in building occupancy, where businesses and building owners were relying on their FM teams to safely shut down offices and protect employees.
Then, once workers started to return, FM teams needed to prepare buildings according to new and more stringent health and safety conditions, and accommodate new, more flexible ways of working.
In addition to the evolving role caused by the pandemic, the impact of Brexit is being felt through severe industry wide staff shortages – for which the British Cleaning Council (BCC) has repeatedly asked the government for help.
Now we face the ongoing cost of living crisis, and as we approach the winter months research shows that more workers are likely to be heading back to the office to save on energy bills. FM teams will need to be prepared for a surge in occupancy, and what this will mean for managing hygiene in more crowded spaces.
At Tudor Group, we have never been prouder of our people and the values that we live by: Safety, Quality, Passion, Accountability, and Fairness. We know that operating transparently and honestly throughout these tumultuous times can only make us stronger.”
Robin Kinrade, Director, A Quality Service (AQS)
“For me, the single most important thing about running a cleaning or FM company is acquiring and retaining high quality staff. It’s always a two-way street – we focus on building long-term relationships with everyone that’s part of the Tudor family, supporting people throughout their careers, always keeping an eye out for new ways a talented person can be upskilled or trialled with new responsibilities.
We’re determined to make FM as attractive as possible to people considering a career in our industry. There’s a sense of vocation when you’re responsible for sanitising workspaces during a health emergency. It’s important work, we keep people safe.”
Colin Fox, Regional Operations Director (North), Tudor Group
“I think one trend we’ll see in 2023 is the progressive shift from reactive FM to predictive and intelligence-led activity. There are more and more potential sources of information for FM providers to make use of. If a drone can scan the exterior of a tall building, you can assess exactly what areas need the most attention, whether in terms of repair or cleaning. And you may be able to make use of existing systems – CCTV for example.
Robotic systems are becoming more common, both as robots – working independently – and cobots, robots operated by a human.”
Alan Gibbon, Regional Operations Director (South), A Quality Service (AQS)
“ESG is a term that’s going to be increasingly important in FM. Companies are going to be asked more and more about the products they use and the carbon footprint, for example, of those products.
At Tudor Group, we are committed to offset 100% of the carbon footprint generated by our activities (Scope 1 and 2), in partnership with My Carbon Plan. We minimise our impact on the environment by designing chemical-free cleaning solutions, and we utilise the BigChange software to maximise fleet journey efficiencies and affect driver behaviours.
The S of ESG is the social side. We are committed to working with our chosen charities, and we are a Recognised Service Provider proudly working with the Living Wage Foundation to promote the real Living Wage. We have implemented an employee assistance programme (EAP) managed by Health Assured, a UK market leader, providing our staff free and independent advice, guidance and counselling on a range of subjects.
On the governance side, one great thing about FM is how well it does in areas like diversity, fairness, and opportunity. Our Tudor Group values and business principles encourage honest and direct communication to resolve issues and concerns through reporting suspected compliance violations, unlawful or unethical behaviour, or fraud. We have strict policies to protect against unlawful discrimination and harassment.”
To find out more about the services we provide, or if you would be interested in understanding more about working for the Tudor Group, please get in touch on 0161 789 3550 or via our contact form.
