An investigation into the use of facilities management in institutions of higher learning in South Africa

Education is about excellence. Unsatisfactory facilities will affect the ability of institutions of higher learning to provide excellent education. The paper investigates the current level of awareness of facilities management (FM) at institutions of higher learning in South Africa and whether management structures allow directors of FM departments to exert strategic influence on the institutions' planning and policies. Following a review of related literature and preliminary interviews, exploratory data was obtained from responses to a structured questionnaire, which was sent to the directors of the facilities management divisions of the 41 residential universities and technikons in South Africa. Results showed that there is a high level of awareness of facilities management among the directors. Although the reporting structure of 64% of the directors connect directly to their institutions' executive management, no significant difference was found in the proportion of their reactive versus proactive approach to maintenance management when compared to those of directors whose reporting structure is further removed from their institution's executive management. This finding suggests that effective facilities management has not been fully adopted by institutions of higher learning.