Getting to Know Us - Atlanta Chapter of the International Facility Management Association

[text_block]In 1997, IFMA Atlanta decided to advance its community services efforts beyond a one-day event to an ongoing program throughout the year. With the goals of utilizing the strength of our membership to improve the facilities of nonprofit organizations in the Atlanta area and, at the same time, promoting the profession of facility management to the nonprofit community, the IFMA Atlanta Community Services Committee was formed.

With the help, support, in-kind donations, and services of our professional and associate members, we have assisted with the completion of many projects, saving nonprofit organizations thousands of dollars and enabling them to renovate and maintain their facilities with minimum impact on their operating programs. In some cases, IFMA members serve on their Boards and represent IFMA when needed to aid in obtaining grants for capital projects.

In 2008, the Community Services Committee hosted the first annual IFMA Atlanta Nonprofit Facility Summit, a one-day educational event open to all nonprofit organizations in the Atlanta area. Through presentations from industry professionals that focus on the concerns of nonprofit facilities, participants gain insight into renovating and maintaining their facilities and learn to develop a written Preventative Maintenance Plan. In 2009, we began offering a quarterly Nonprofit Lunch and Learn program with IFMA members donating time to discuss core competency topics as they relate to managing a nonprofit facility.

In 2012, we established a partnership with Georgia Center for Nonprofits to merge our facilities education offerings with their Nonprofit Summit, the largest nonprofit event in the Southeast, and offer our Lunch and Learn programs through their Nonprofit University. In 2014, IFMA Atlanta through GCN Nonprofit University began offering a five-session Certificate of Nonprofit Facility Management course, scheduled to be an annual offering in the fall of each year with supplementary Nonprofit FM Clinics at GCN in the spring.

In the spring of each year, we invite the entire IFMA Atlanta community to join us for Volunteer Day to assist our partners with sprucing up their facilities, helping them with cleaning, painting, landscaping, and minor repairs.

In May, nonprofit organizations are invited to submit an Application for Partnership with IFMA Atlanta Community Services. Upon acceptance for partnership, each nonprofit is assigned a IFMA Liaison who coordinates the activities of the Committee to assist the partner in developing and implementing a plan to effectively achieve their facility goals.

At the IFMA Atlanta July luncheon meeting, we recognize our retiring, returning, and new partners. We have grown from serving one partner in the beginning to serving the following partners for the 2016-2017 program year: A Friend’s House, Atlanta Community ToolBank, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Decatur Cooperative Ministry, Lifecycle Building Center, The Elaine Clark Center, and Project Community Connections.[/text_block]

[text_block]Resources:

Facility Condition Assessment Definitions

Facility Condition Assessment Worksheet

How to Build Your Preventative Maintenance Manual

Preventive Maintenance Manual Worksheet[/text_block]

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Case Studies:

Child Development Association

Furniture Bank of Metro Atlanta

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[text_block]2016-17 IFMA Atlanta Balanced Scorecard (pdf document)