Dr. Matt Tucker hosts a panel of young facility management professionals from Belgium, Kenya, and the Netherlands to discuss what well-being truly means in the modern workplace. The group explores how physical environments, inclusivity and emerging technologies like AI influence their productivity and career development.
In this episode of Connected FM, Dr. Matt Tucker, IFMA’s Director of Research, moderates a student-led discussion on the critical role of well-being in facility management. Featuring three young professionals entering the FM industry, the conversation shifts the focus from simple maintenance to creating spaces where people can mentally, socially and physically thrive.
The panel shares personal insights on:
This episode is sponsored by TMA Systems! Discover more at https://www.tmasystems.com/ifmapodcast
Timestamps:
Caroline: [00:00:00] For me also, it's more about creating spaces that people not only are able to function in, but also thrive in. That is mentally just like they have said mentally. Socially and also they're able to develop their careers.
Host: Welcome to Connected fm, a podcast connecting you to the latest insights, tools, and resources to help you succeed in facility management. This podcast is brought to you by ifma, the leading professional association for facility managers. If you are ready to grow your net. Work and advance in your career.
Go to ifma.org to get started. In today's episode, Dr. Matt Tucker, if FMAs, director of research hosts a panel of young facility management professionals from Belgium, Kenya, and the Netherlands to discuss what wellbeing truly means in the modern workplace. Together, they share their. Insights on the direct impact of CO2 levels, [00:01:00] natural lighting and ergonomic furniture on concentration in health.
Why language support and inclusive communication are essential for multicultural FM teams. How FM is evolving from a technical building, first sector, to a people first service management sector, and why balancing the efficiency of automated tools with human touch is required in fm. Now let's get into it.
Dr. Matt Tucker: I have a dream team with me of young professionals within our IFMA community. And I have a real soft spot for.
Working with students and working with young professionals to help 'em progress in their, in their career. So in this particular circumstance today it was the young professionals who, who wanted to do this podcast and I was kindly invited to, to moderate the session. And what I did is I asked, I asked these guys, well, what do you want to talk about?
I don't want to come up with the topic. I want [00:02:00] them to be able to, to think about what it is that they want to talk about, and the topic that they chose was wellbeing at, at work. So that's gonna be the topic, and I'm really interested to hear your perspectives as young professionals you know, coming into the industry.
So what we'll do first is we'll do a quick round of introductions so we all are familiar with each other, and then we'll get started with the questions. So for those of you who dunno me, I'm Matt Tucker, I'm the director of research for ifma.
Adriana: So I'm Andriana and I, I've just got my master degree in facility management and I'm from Belgium.
Ellina: I'm Ellina I am a second year student at Facility Management at the Hans. And I'm from the Netherlands.
Caroline: Yeah. I'm Caroline att, O-O-T-N-O. I'm taking my facility management and real estate masters at Saxon University and. In the Netherlands. Thank you.
Dr. Matt Tucker: [00:03:00] Wonderful. Okay, so before we get into some of the detail about aspects of wellbeing, I just want to ask you, so we're all on the same page, I'll go round to each of you.
When you hear that phrase wellbeing and wellbeing at work, what, what does that mean to you? Is there any key words or, or aspects that that come straight to your mind? I'll start with you Adriana.
Adriana: For me it means that you are mentally and physically feeling good at work and you are feeling at the good place.
Ellina: Yeah. For me, it's the same everything that helps people feel good at work.
Caroline: Yeah. And for me also, it's more about creating spaces that people not only are able to function in, but also thrive in. That is mentally just like they have said mentally. Socially and also they're able to develop their careers.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Wonderful. So first question, I'm gonna come to you, Adriana. Okay. So you guys obviously suggested this, this podcast [00:04:00] topic. What motivates you to, to care about wellbeing at work? Why is this a, why is this a topic we should be talking about within the facility management community?
Adriana: Because as the future of facility management.
I think that it's very important to be aware of the wellbeing of the employees and it's a very important topic actually. And yeah, that's almost why. Okay.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah. Do you think, from your perspective, is this something which has always been on the radar, do you think, or do you think it's something which is emerging as an important topic?
Adriana: I think it's emerging more. Yeah. And more the time. Pass more. It will be important I think
Dr. Matt Tucker: as a younger generation, when you talk to friends or you know, o other, other people working maybe in your own organization or in other organizations, is it, is it something that they're conscious of as well?
Adriana: Yeah, actually.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah. Cool. [00:05:00] Okay. Right. So as young professionals, am I gonna come to you with this one? Yeah. Yeah. So as young professionals, how does your own wellbeing factor into your workday? So if you think about your general workday, maybe you wanna describe what you're doing and, and what your workplace is like.
Ellina: Yeah. So I'll use the school as an example. So, we mostly sit at a desk and. For me, it's very important that the classrooms are, have good ventilation because when the CO2 levels are too high, I get a headache and I cannot function well and not get all the information I need from my lectures. And lights is very important.
'Cause when the lighting is better, the I can yeah. See everything better, take notes better. And it's also nice for the eyes if the, the light is. Certain gradients.
Dr. Matt Tucker: And would it be common in your, in, in, so it, in your classroom environment, would [00:06:00] it be common that you would have daylight in or were we talking about artificial lighting?
Ellina: A bit of both. 'Cause it is in the Netherlands, so it's quite cloudy often. Yeah. But they do substitute it with good lighting that does feel natural. And there are big windows. So when there is sun, there's good natural light.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah. Yeah. And do you think. Is there anything that you can think of that really challenges you, your wellbeing?
You know, in terms, is there anything that hinders it or, or is always a bit of a struggle?
Ellina: I, I'd say the chairs. I'm sorry. The chairs.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Oh, okay.
Ellina: Because they are hard plastic, so it's, yeah. It's understandable why they are in the classrooms, because you need a lot of chairs. But when you have lectures for longer periods of time, they do get, yeah.
Uncomfortable.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Not fit for purpose?
Ellina: No.
Dr. Matt Tucker: No. Okay. All right. Thank you. So when it comes to you now, Caroline, yeah. So can you share a moment when your workplace made you feel genuinely [00:07:00] supported in terms of wellbeing?
Caroline: Alright being an international, I'm originally from Kenya. And living in the Netherlands means that if I want to thrive in the industry, I have to land Dutch mostly because then I have to interact with the natives for in, in the FM industry.
And one point or the points where I feel like at my workplace, because I work part-time in a retail chain in Divin the most times when I feel supported is when days. They try to speak Dutch slowly so that I understand my level is at a one, and if they speak slowly, I feel like yeah, I'm included in this conversation.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah,
Caroline: yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: I, I actually see this a lot on a wider level in terms of facility management teams. You know, often really multicultural and language is, is something which it's, it doesn't cost a lot to provide support with language [00:08:00] services, but I know I've seen it. For example, with a a, a cleaning team, and they were offered free language support and the, the, the productivity and the morale in the team, it, it changed dramatically just from offering that one Yeah.
Aspect. Yeah. Which just made their life and their job so much more, so much easier.
Caroline: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: So I, I, I appreciate where you're coming from with that.
Caroline: Thank you.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Okay, cool. Right. Let's think about, I know I appreciate your, your. Early in your careers, but I wanna ask you what you think about FM's role in all of this and how FM can support wellbeing.
So I'll come to you first, Alina. So, how do you see the spaces and services that FM provides influencing wellbeing, whether that's mentally or physically, or even socially?
Ellina: Yeah, so of course the, for example, adding plans to an office. It can make an office work. Less walls. You, if instead of looking at a wall, you could look at a plant and could
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah.
Ellina: Make it more fun to be at work or instead of [00:09:00] just having cubicles having open spaces to work in. So people, yeah. You, you see more than just the four walls around you, but maybe see other people and yeah. Have a change of pace.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Okay. Well, I, I dunno if this is relevant to you guys and I apologize if I'm stereotyping here.
Okay. I, I see a lot, especially with younger people having, especially in the workplace, wearing headphones all the time, so, you know, you're in, I can see there was someone in the audience smiling. So, you know, just, just putting headphones in, blocking out what's around, getting on with your job is, is that something that you notice or do or I, I, is that just me kind of generalizing?
Ellina: For me, I, I enjoy listening to music and working at the same time.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah.
Ellina: So yeah, I do do that. You
Dr. Matt Tucker: often see it actually as a wider problem in an open plan office where people do it just so they don't have to listen to the conversations around them or the, the door opening and closing all the time.
So it's not just [00:10:00] when, when I see younger people, but I see it especially just in. Personal life on a train or on anywhere. You know, it's, it seems, seems quite a common thing.
Ellina: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Okay, cool. I'm gonna come to you, Adriana. So, have you, can you think of anything from your experience as a, as, as a young professional that you would like to see any sort of small but meaningful changes that FM could do to really try and promote wellbeing?
Adriana: I think the first thing that they can do. It's listening to their employees to, to know what they need, to feel good at work actually, and then make the change or if they can make them. But yeah, the, the first and the most important thing, I think, is to, to listen to our employees and to understand them.
Dr. Matt Tucker: You guys all did, did you all study fm?
Adriana: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah.
Caroline: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: And you, and you, did you all study it in the Netherlands?
Adriana: No.
No.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Do you study? You studied Netherlands and I studied And you did too? I
Adriana: studied Netherlands as
Dr. Matt Tucker: well. Yeah. I, I, I know this from [00:11:00] personal experience that FM qualifications in the Netherlands, for example, would be part more part of like the service management sector rather than say the build the building or construction sector, which it's quite common in other countries.
I don Was that the same for you or where, where was your, where was your course located Within a university?
Adriana: Actually I had more soft courses, so maybe that's why.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah. Yeah. So I, I, I suppose I, I find, I find your answer interesting and whether that's an influence there that, you know, the, the importance of customer service and, and being able to provide services that influence the customer.
Was that aspects that of the, your course that you were taught. Or, or do you just feel that's important?
Adriana: I just feel that it's the good thing, actually. So
Dr. Matt Tucker: how about you guys? Did it relate to your course at all in terms of customer service or the quality of service?
Host: Facilities don't run themselves. People run them. [00:12:00] TMA Systems delivers intelligent maintenance management solutions designed around the humans, behind the work, the supervisors, technicians, and operators, keeping everything moving with TMAI embedded directly into the work. Flows teams already use AI becomes a practical assistant, helping streamline scheduling, simplifying requests, and surface the right insights at the right time.
TMAs products work in the background. Organizing the noise so your team can stay focused on keeping facilities running smoothly. No new systems to learn, no disruption to trusted processes. Discover more at TMA systems.com/ifma podcast. That's TMA systems.com/ifma podcast.
Ellina: Yeah, we also had a project about buildings and like, in the interior of buildings and how to, like space management, stuff like that.
Yeah. So we do also have the building side of fm, [00:13:00] but also like, yeah, it's a bit of both. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: I, I do think it's more of a common trend in European countries with FM education. It, it, it develops more from a service sector. So these kind of skills, softer skills, like what you referred to, are much more common and natural than the more technical building associated skills, which kind of come later.
Which, you know, in, in perhaps actually this country, in the USA, it's, it's less, less. So it would be more on the construction and building side where FM would fall into. So, interesting observation. I'll come to you, Caroline. Yeah. So the, any, any role that technology can play in this to help with our, our wellbeing?
Have you, have you seen anything around that side of things?
Caroline: Yeah, so, I have seen that, the facility managers already in the industry, they're using technology to enhance and to make people feel more comfortable in their workplaces and even in the spaces that they they're more productive in.
And we see that also with sensors. They, [00:14:00] they collect this information and they use it to customize what people need at workplaces to be comfortable. However, what I think is that at the end of the day, technology should never replace the human touch and the human feel in facility management, but it's instead, it should just enhance it.
Dr. Matt Tucker: I, I, I, I'm throwing this one on you, so don't anyone can answer this, but I can't talk about technology without mentioning ai and, and because I have three talented young professionals with me, I want to get your perspective on that, about how you see AI helping or, or hindering your ability to be productive in the workplace.
Does any, you guys have any experiences or observations on that?
Caroline: Yeah, so I, I think that one of the things that AI has done and is a little bit threatening is to replace some jobs in the facility management industry. So, things that used to be done by people and now being done by ai, like, CRM [00:15:00] and also some companies customer service.
It's only if it. Something that needs escalation, that's when it gets to a human. But if it's something that can be handled by chatbot, then it's taken up and well on. On one hand, it has taken away jobs. Maybe people need to diversify and get other jobs. But on the other hand, on the positive side, it, it has, made the industry more efficient, more fast, and more reliable because, you know, every time you reach out to get a service, then there is always someone or something that will come back to you.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah, yeah,
Caroline: yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Is it, so, yeah, go on. Yeah.
Adriana: If I can add something I think that ai should be used as a tool and not just for replacing the employees.
And so yeah, AI is more to replace repetitive task. Task, sorry.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah.
Adriana: And so, yeah, I, I don't see it the same way as as you see it actually. So
Dr. Matt Tucker: you see it more as an assistance?
Adriana: [00:16:00] Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Yeah. I
Caroline: see it as, I see it as both. Yeah. It as both positive and negative.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Mm-hmm.
Caroline: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: In terms of you, you guys progressing your careers how conscious are you of having skills around, you know.
Using AI technology or being able to manipulate data or read data and that, that kind of side of, of, of the role, is that something you're conscious of when you are looking at jobs?
Caroline: Most of the job descriptions that I look at, because I haven't started to practice actively in the fm, so most of the job descriptions you look at, there are some AI techniques that you need to have and I think.
It would be important for young professionals to get cautious about them and start to get themselves into them regardless of whether they will use it in their workplaces or not. It's just for you to prepare and stand out when applying for a job.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Uhhuh.
Caroline: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Okay. We're almost out of [00:17:00] time, so I'm gonna ask you all just one more question.
Yep. And, and it'll be the same question for all of you, but can you just remind me of where you all are in your careers? So, Alina, you have you, are you still studying? I'm
Adriana: still studying.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Okay. And, and Adriana,
Adriana: I just got Matt Plumes. So
Dr. Matt Tucker: just got your diploma. Are you looking for that first job?
Adriana: Yep.
Dr. Matt Tucker: And Caroline,
Caroline: I'm still studying as
Adriana: well.
Dr. Matt Tucker: You're still studying as well? Yeah. So, so you're all gonna be soon embarking on that first, that first FM job, right? So that that's gonna come with some, you know, excitement, but also some
Adriana: stress,
Dr. Matt Tucker: some stress, some apprehension.
Adriana: Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: So from your experience of kind of looking at this pathway and, and how that influences your wellbeing, what is one piece of advice or encouragement you would give to maybe someone in the audience who's thinking about going down this route of FM and, and maybe starting to study and, and getting employment?
Hmm. Tough [00:18:00] question. Yeah.
Caroline: Well, I can start.
Dr. Matt Tucker: Go on. Yeah.
Caroline: Alright. I would say that you need to look at the trends, right? And also find your passion because it is not about what you are capable of doing. It is about what you really want to do and what you're passionate. To do. Yeah. And there are a lot of branches in Affirm, so you just need to figure out exactly where you want to be and find opportunities in that.
Yeah. Yeah.
Dr. Matt Tucker: I think one final thing I would say, and you know, this will obviously be recorded as well and, and, and watched after, but this is a live podcast and perhaps what isn't seen is there are other young professionals watching and supporting and in terms of wellbeing. I just think that's an unbelievable thing that you are at events like this at a world workplace where we have, you know, almost 4,000 people here.
That can be [00:19:00] intimidating, that can be scary. But you are here and you are putting yourself out there, and I just think I, I, I am envious of that because at your age I would not do that. So I think being, just being present and trying to put yourself out there and speak to people. It gets you, it's puts you outside of your comfort zone, but it really, really will help you moving forward.
So thank you so much to the three of you for, for doing this. I hope it's been nice for you as well. Yeah, yeah. And yeah. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank
Adriana: you much.
Host: Thanks for tuning into the Connected FM podcast. If you enjoyed today's episode, please take a moment to rate and review the show because it really helps us reach more listeners just like you.
And don't forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode. See you next time.