The Role of Sustainable Project Management in Facilities Management

Abstract

Growth in facilities management (FM) and project management (PM) have been remarkable over the last decade. Simultaneously, the adoption of sustainability principles among organisations has also increased. The purpose of this study was to determine the connection between sustainability in PM and FM. Specifically, this research study aimed at understanding the common principles involved in both PM and FM that allowed sustainable development goals (SDGs) to be achieved by the United Nations in 2015 and to be an integral part of the European Green Deal in 2019. A systematic literature review of more than 200 different resource materials was performed, 55 of which were finally selected as falling under the scope of the study. The chosen literature was published between 2001 and 2020, except for the Brundtland Commission Report, which was published in 1987. Based on the collected material, a simplified facility lifecycle model was produced to illustrate the connection between sustainability in FM and PM. Developing this model will help practitioners and researchers incorporate PM as a function of FM, including the application of sustainable activities in different phases of a facility's lifecycle.