SELF-PERFORMING VS. SUBCONTRACTING

When considering the choice between choosing a self-performing or subcontracting a facilities maintenance provider, it is crucial to consider various important factors. These factors are specifically designed to meet the individual needs, available resources, and strategic goals of the retail organization. This analysis will help you make an informed decision for your business.

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Self-Performing Facility Maintenance

Retailers are given the flexibility to establish and implement their own policies and standards with regards to using facility maintenance providers. Having self-performing providers for regular maintenance and immediate repairs is essential to maintain seamless operations as they typically provide higher quality and consistency in maintenance work.? Their services are also generally delivered at lower and more predictable costs.

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Nevertheless, finding self-performing providers that can cover a large number may be difficult as these tend to be more local in scope given their need for a dense market with predictable work load. Dealing with sudden increases in maintenance demands or expanding operations can be quite challenging if you solely rely on your self-performer providers for this reason. Also, when faced with specialized or advanced demands, self-preforming teams may occasionally find themselves lacking the necessary knowledge or skills to effectively handle every type of maintenance issue.

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Subcontracting Facilities Maintenance

Subcontractors can improve the implementation process of national maintenance projects by using their provider networks and focusing on project management. ?Being able to easily adjust the scale, whether it's increasing or decreasing, is an important aspect of being adaptable and flexible. Managing occasional or seasonal maintenance requirements is significantly more manageable. Paying for services only when needed could be more economical for companies without a dedicated maintenance staff.

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However, there could be a potential decline in the ability to enforce corporate standards and uphold the quality of output. Subcontractors might require some time to fully grasp the specific business requirements and communicate these to their provider network. Response times may vary based on the ability of the individual subcontractor, potentially causing delays that could impact operations. Subcontracting can result in increased variability in costs, as they are dependent on the volume and frequency of work needed, as well as the strength or weakness of any subcontractor.

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Factors to Consider.

If you operate a sizable retail business with multiple locations, a combination of self-performing contractors and subcontractors will be the ideal option to explore. In today's fast-paced business environment, there is a growing need for flexible solutions that can quickly adapt to evolving requirements. For regular, routine, skill-based, as well as critical and time-sensitive repairs, self-performing providers should be preferred as they typically provide higher quality service at a lower cost. If you need sporadic or occasional tasks, or need a large-scale project, subcontracting may be a better option. Analyze the financial impact of subcontracted services compared to working with self-performers.? Take into account the significance of your maintenance services and decide whether it would be more effective to rely on a self-performing contractor or a subcontractor.

In the end, the choice should be in line with the operational objectives of the retail company, financial constraints, and the particular requirements of their facilities maintenance. Some companies like Scopes Facility Services use a hybrid approach, employing a self-performing team for routine or critical tasks and subcontracting low-priority services.