Realist vs. Idealist Facilities Managers in Facility Management: A Conceptual Framework

Irwan Mohammad Ali, Nurul Diyana Mohd Dahari, Mohd Rahimi A Rahman and Norashikin Akhiar@Khairuddin
Additional contact information
Irwan Mohammad Ali: Department of Built Environment Studies & Technology, College of Built Environment, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perak Branch, 32610 Seri Iskandar Campus, Perak, Malaysia.
Nurul Diyana Mohd Dahari: Jabatan Kerja Raya Negeri Selangor, Kompleks Ibu Pejabat JKR Selangor, Persiaran Jubli Perak, Seksyen 17, 40200 Shah Alam, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.
Mohd Rahimi A Rahman: Ibu Pejabat Jabatan Kerja Raya Malaysia, Jalan Sultan Salahuddin, 50480 Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Norashikin Akhiar@Khairuddin: Ibu Pejabat Jabatan Kerja Raya Malaysia, Jalan Sultan Salahuddin, 50480 Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 2024, vol. 8, issue 9, 990-1000

Abstract: Facility management (FM) is critical for the efficient operation and long-term sustainability of built environments. Facility managers play a crucial role in fulfilling organisational targets by making strategic decisions that optimise resource use, enhance operational efficiency, and align with broader goals such as environmental responsibility and stakeholder satisfaction. This paper explores the contrasting philosophical beliefs of realism and idealism in FM, highlighting their influence on managerial decision-making, organisational culture, and performance outcomes. A realist facility manager is action-orientated and data-driven, prioritising practicality, cost-effectiveness, and empirical evidence to enhance operational efficiency, optimise resources, and proactively manage risks for measurable outcomes. An idealist facility manager emphasises visionary goals, ethical values, and long-term sustainability, focussing on aligning organisational values with operational practices, fostering stakeholder engagement, and promoting a positive, innovative organisational culture. This paper compares realism and idealism in facility management, examining their principles, assumptions, and approaches. The paper aims to develop a comprehensive framework that integrates the principles of realism and idealism into FM practices. Thus, a conceptual framework is proposed to provide facility managers with actionable insights and strategies that balance the pragmatic, results-driven approach of realism with the visionary, value-orientated perspective of idealism. The proposed methods use a positivist approach with a cross-sectional design, stratified sampling, and structured questionnaires. Next, the data collected is proposed to be analysed using SPSS and SmartPLS, ensuring ethical standards. This methodology serves as a framework for future research to explore how philosophical beliefs influence FM practices. This paper concludes that realism and idealism offer distinct yet complementary beliefs in facility management. It provides a foundation for future empirical research to validate these concepts and their impact on organisational strategies.

Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/ ... issue-9/990-1000.pdf (application/pdf)
https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/arti ... onceptual-framework/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bcp:journl:v:8:y:2024:i:9:p:990-1000

Access Statistics for this article

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science is currently edited by Dr. Nidhi Malhan

More articles in International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science from International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS)
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Dr. Pawan Verma ().