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Facilities Leaders Turn Smart Building Data Into Measurable ESG Results
Mourad Amar, Senior Facility Manager at Siemens, outlines how facilities strategy now shapes ESG execution, compliance, and long-term cost control.
Key Points
Many organizations still treat facilities as a maintenance cost centre, even as the function directly shapes ESG performance, regulatory risk, operating costs, and employee experience.
Mourad Amar, Senior Facility Manager at Siemens, explains that smart building systems and digital dashboards now give facilities teams real-time data to drive energy efficiency, compliance, and workplace performance.
Facilities teams create measurable business value when leadership includes them early, aligns metrics to energy, risk, and wellbeing outcomes, and evaluates success beyond maintenance costs alone.
Twenty years ago, facilities management was mainly associated with basic building maintenance. Today, it actively contributes to sustainability, energy efficiency, and workspace optimization.
Facilities management now shapes corporate risk, ESG performance, hybrid workplace strategy, and digital infrastructure, yet many organizations still treat it like a back-of-house cost centre. Over the past two decades, the function has expanded from technical maintenance into cross-functional leadership that drives operational performance, cost control, compliance, technology enablement, and employee wellbeing. The function has evolved. Executive thinking hasn't.
Mourad Amar, Senior Facility Manager at Siemens, has over 20 years of experience managing building operations, renovations, relocations, sustainability programs, and smart system deployments. He sees the integration of energy efficiency, digital systems, and operational excellence as key to driving measurable business outcomes.
"Over the past 20 years, facility management has shifted from a mainly technical role to a much broader, more strategic one. Beyond maintaining buildings, facility managers now balance operational performance, cost control, compliance, sustainability, technology, and employee experience often simultaneously," Amar says. Many of these responsibilities now influence whether an organization meets ESG targets, mitigates regulatory exposure, controls long-term operating costs, and supports workforce productivity. Smart building systems and digital dashboards provide the data that makes this possible, turning facilities from reactive troubleshooting into proactive, strategic optimization.
Hats that shape the business: "Adapting spaces for hybrid work, implementing new safety protocols, and rolling out smart building tools all require facilities to think strategically rather than just reactively," Amar explains. Health, safety, and compliance now demand constant, strategic oversight because they directly affect regulatory risk and operational continuity. At the same time, employee wellbeing has become a core facilities priority, with indoor air quality, comfort, and safe design shaping retention, productivity, and overall satisfaction.
Buildings that think: "Technology has transformed facilities management over the past several years. The biggest practical impacts have come from smart building systems, digital dashboards, and collaboration tools," says Amar. Smart building systems provide real-time data on energy, climate, and maintenance, turning infrastructure into measurable assets. Digital dashboards consolidate data across sites, helping leaders spot trends, inefficiencies, and risks. Collaboration tools allow facilities teams, vendors, and stakeholders to coordinate efficiently, especially in hybrid environments with shifting occupancy.
Pair of scales: "Evaluating new technology is always a balance between potential benefits and added complexity. It's not about chasing every new tool; it's about solving real problems efficiently. We focus on what will actually help out teams, improve the occupant experience, and reduce operational friction,."
Corporate sustainability commitments, he adds, are ultimately executed at the facilities level. Energy efficiency improvements, waste reduction strategies, water management practices, and workspace optimization all sit within facilities' operational scope.
Sustainability gets real: "Beyond keeping buildings running, facilities teams influence energy use, waste reduction, and sustainable design. When we're part of the decision-making from day one, we can help the organization meet its environmental goals while also improving efficiency and employee experience," Amar says. When facilities is included from the outset, environmental goals become operationally achievable and workplace investments align with measurable performance outcomes. "Organizations should measure success not just by operational KPIs, but also by metrics related to energy savings, environmental impact, and employee wellbeing."
When facilities are viewed as mere maintenance, organizations leave significant value on the table, from untapped energy savings and stronger ESG performance to reduced risk and enhanced employee experience. The real challenge now is shifting leadership’s perception to match the function’s true impact, recognizing facilities as a core partner in shaping the future of the organization. “Twenty years ago, facilities management was mainly associated with basic building maintenance. Today, it actively contributes to sustainability, energy efficiency, and workspace optimization,” he concludes.
