Analysis of risks associated with facilities management outsourcing

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to analyse the risk factors associated with outsourcing of facilities management (FM) services.Design/methodology/approachThe study administered questionnaires on 146 registered members of International Facilities Management Association (IFMA), Nigeria chapter, who carry out their professional practice in Lagos, Nigeria. The survey, conducted in February, 2011 targeted facilities managers, property managers, maintenance officers and procurement officers cutting across the three levels of management. A total of 61 of them returned valid questionnaires, giving a response rate of 41.8 percent.FindingsFindings reveal that “poor quality of services” was rated the most critical risk factor associated with facilities management outsourcing, while “security” and “inexperience” closely followed in that order. Also, there was no significant difference in the rankings of the stakeholders on more than 75 percent of the factors.Research limitations/implicationsMost practitioners would have been left out of the survey due to non‐registration with IFMA due to the seeming novelty of facilities management practice in Nigeria.Originality/valueThis paper provides an unambiguous empirical‐based analysis of outsourcing risks from the perspective of facilities management practice in Nigeria.