This month in FM trends: The rise of connected work across facilities, people, and data

Facility and corporate real estate leaders are working in environments that are more complex and more interconnected than ever before. Security, compliance, budgeting, maintenance, and workplace experience are no longer separate efforts. Everything touches everything else.

Across this month’s Eptura insights and podcast conversations, one theme consistently comes through: Modern FM leadership is shifting from isolated tasks to connected systems — linking data, teams, and decisions across the entire organization.

From strengthening compliance to elevating the voice of the occupier, the focus is increasingly on collaboration, clarity, and cross-functional alignment.

Key takeaways

• Facility and CRE leaders are moving from tactical responders to strategic connectors, bridging compliance, security, maintenance, IT, HR, and workplace experience
• Data has become the foundation for better decision-making, improving troubleshooting, enhancing budgeting accuracy, and aligning real estate plans with business needs
• Collaboration is emerging as a core leadership skill, helping FM teams avoid maintenance pitfalls, manage complexity, and build stronger workplace cultures
• Leaders who keep technology human-centered, focusing on people, purpose, and clarity, are better positioned to drive innovation and organizational trust

Compliance, security, and the push for shared accountability

In Compliance Coordination at Government Facilities, this month’s discussions reveal an important shift: compliance is no longer a checklist. It is a shared responsibility.

Government and highly regulated workplaces face rising expectations for transparency, data accuracy, and real-time risk visibility. And because compliance intersects with physical access, IT systems, vendor management, and workforce behavior, FM leaders sit at the center of it all.

In Maintaining Facility Security During the Holiday Season, the message is similar. Security is not just doors and cameras. It is about processes, people, timing, and context.

Compliance and security are becoming less about enforcement and more about connection, bringing departments, data sources, and processes together so risks are easier to see and faster to address.

Today’s facility managers are not just maintaining compliance; they are orchestrating it.

Faster troubleshooting through connected data

In Faster Troubleshooting with Better Data, FM teams describe a familiar frustration. Too many systems and too little clarity make it harder for technicians to understand asset histories, spot failure patterns, or make fast decisions.

When data lives in one place instead of spreadsheets, emails, and outdated binders, troubleshooting becomes dramatically easier. Technicians can:

• Review previous work
• Identify recurring issues
• Prioritize repairs with greater confidence
• Collaborate across shifts with full context

This theme also appears in A Day in the Life of a Modern Facility Manager. FM leaders increasingly rely on digital tools to manage competing requests, track work orders, and move from reactive tasks to proactive planning.

Together, these insights point to an important truth:

• Better data does not just improve maintenance. It improves momentum.
• It keeps teams aligned, reduces downtime, and frees FM leaders to focus on long-term improvements instead of daily firefighting.

Collaboration as the backbone of modern maintenance

Several articles this month highlight a rising focus on cross-department collaboration.

In How Cross-Departmental Collaboration Helps Avoid Preventive Maintenance Pitfalls, maintenance challenges often arise not from technical issues but from communication gaps. Missed handoffs, incomplete notes, unclear priorities, and competing timelines all play a role.

The solution is not more meetings. It is more shared visibility.

Similarly, How a CMMS Helps Move Teams from Confusion to Coordination shows how a centralized system brings context and clarity to maintenance operations. Everyone sees the same work orders, the same asset histories, and the same upcoming tasks.

In Streamline, Simplify, and Scale, the message is reinforced again.
The more connected a team’s workflows are, the less friction they experience during high-volume, high-pressure periods.

A podcast conversation on human experience supports this idea, “Stay curious, be collaborative, and be both the hardest worker and the most attentive listener in the room.” — Martin Frohock

Modern maintenance strategy is not just about equipment. It is about people.
It is about making it easier for teams to work together, share responsibility, and keep operations running smoothly.

Rethinking budgeting and planning through connected insight

Budget planning is another major trend across this month’s content.

In Budget Planning for Space Planners and CRE Leaders, shifting occupancy patterns, evolving portfolio needs, and rising operating costs make traditional budgeting models less reliable. Leaders need a clearer, more dynamic view of how spaces are being used and how those decisions affect investments.

Data-driven budgeting helps CRE teams:

• Understand which spaces deliver value
• Identify where redesign or consolidation makes sense
• Prioritize capital improvements
• Demonstrate ROI with evidence, not assumptions

Insights from workplace behavior, occupancy analytics, and energy data allow for more resilient and future-ready planning.

A podcast conversation with Adam Hoy reinforces this idea, “Focusing on the needs of the company and understanding broader business strategies is essential today.” — Adam Hoy

The message is simple, budgeting is no longer an annual event. It is a continuous flow of information.

Elevating the human experience of facilities work

Across multiple Workplace Innovator and Asset Champion episodes, a powerful leadership theme emerges. FM is becoming a human centered profession.

In Understanding Facility Management Leadership in the Workplace, Edward Kacal emphasizes the importance of versatility, “FM professionals should strive to become generalists… being good at many different things, rather than being confined to specific job titles and descriptions.”

In Advancing Technology and Innovation in Facility Management, Billy Holder offers a foundational reminder, “Through your adoption of new technologies, keep it human. They are not there to replace the human intuition and human knowledge base that we have grown in our industry.”
“We are here for the people, and at the end of the day, that is what matters most.”

Technology plays a key role, but it is not the destination. As the FM and CRE profession evolves, leaders who prioritize human experience build stronger teams, stronger culture, and stronger workplaces.

Stronger workplaces through stronger connections

The article Stronger Connections, Boosted Productivity highlights a trend that brings this entire month together. The workplace is a network of people, tools, data, and interactions.

When those connections are strong:

• Communication is clearer
• Maintenance is smoother
• Security is more reliable
• Compliance is simpler
• Employees feel more supported
• Teams trust each other more

Stronger connections lead to stronger outcomes. And this month’s insights make one thing clear; FM leaders are stepping into a new era where success depends on how well they connect systems, break down silos, and empower people.

By Mike Petrusky

As Director of Podcasts at Eptura, Mike Petrusky hosts both the Workplace Innovator Podcast and the Asset Champion Podcast, sharing thought leadership with CRE, FM, and IT leaders in the digital and hybrid workplace. Mike has produced more than 500 podcast episodes listened to in over 111 countries. As an in-demand public speaker, Mike engages audiences at numerous industry events each year, including International Facility Management Association and CoreNet conferences, focusing on the human element of workplace and facility management.